DBQ ESSAY QUESTION ONE

Step 1: Analyzing the question

Directions: The first step in doing any DBQ is determining exactly what the question is asking you to do. Jot down your ideas in your workspace.

Jacksonian Democrats viewed themselves as the guardians1 of the United States Constitution, political democracy, individual liberty, and equality of economic opportunity.

In light of the following documents and your knowledge of the 1820’s and 1830’s to what extent do you agree with the Jacksonians' view of themselves?

In order to answer this question fully, you will need to include a consideration of:1--who the Jacksonians2 (or Jackson's supporters) were2--the constitutional3 issues of the 1820's and 1830's and how Jackson dealt with

them3--any evidence that political democracy4 was being challenged or developed at this

time4--issues of individual liberty5 raised during the 1820's and 1830's5--issues involving equality of economic opportunity6

6--how well the view that Jacksonian Democrats were guardians of the four areas can be supported.

Give specific examples of all four areas. You will find some examples in the documents, which you will read and analyze first. Draw on information that you have learned in your studies to provide other examples and to help explain the extent to which you agree with the statement.

Step 2: Recalling relevant information

Directions: When answering any essay question, you should briefly list the main events of the time period addressed before you read the documents (do so in your work space). This will become your "outside information" that you will weave into your essay. Essays that lack this required outside information do not generally receive very high scores.

1 Or protectors.2 This includes the various groups in Jackson's broad coalition, such as small farmers and urban workers.3 This includes issues such as states' rights, nullification, and the U.S. Bank.4 A simple definition of democracy is a government in which people have a voice or there is majority rule. 5 This includes issues about slavery, women, and Native Americans.6 This includes opportunity for small farmers and working men and women.

Outside Information

This is some7 of the information that AP students included in their essays.

Age of the Common ManAge of Jackson

U.S. ConstitutionJackson's philosophy--elected by the people and responsible to themWebster-Hayne debateMaysville vetonullification/tariff crisis (Calhoun and South Carolina)Bank veto

Political Democracymajority rule--by white menpolitics and elections; disputed election of 1824campaign of 1828 (rise of Democratic and National Republican

parties)formation of the Whig PartyWorking Men's Party, labor and trade unionismspoils system

Individual Liberty

position on slaveryIndian removal (generally Cherokees)

Worcester v. Georgia, Cherokee nation casesBlack people, immigrants, and urban riotingde Tocqueville and American democracyReform and reformers (Garrison, Grimke sisters, abolition, women's

rights, etc.

Equality of Economic OpportunityWorking Men's Party Bank recharter (Jackson, Clay, and Biddle)Taney, removal of federal deposits from U.S. Bank and pet banksTaney and the Supreme Courtspecie circularpanic of 1837Lowell mill girls

7 You should not be overwhelmed by this list. It includes information from thousands of essays, not one particular essay. You could do very well if you include only a small amount of the information here, particularly if you develop it well. There is, of course, additional relevant information not listed here.

Step 3: Drafting the thesis statement and outline

Directions: Before you read the documents, draft a thesis statement and outline for your essay (in your work space). This will help you organize your thoughts. It will also ensure that you include ample outside information. You will have a chance to revise this after you read the documents and before you begin to write.

Sample Draft Outline

Thesis statement that evaluates the extent to which Jacksonian Democrats were the guardians of democracy.

I. Jacksonian Democrats and the ConstitutionA. President responsible to the common peopleB. Defies Supreme Court ruling concerning CherokeeC. Willingness to use force against South Carolina D. Supreme Court and monopoly

II. Political democracyA. Increased political participation, expansion of right to voteB. Spoils system, kitchen cabinetC. Labor and unionismD. Elections of 1828 and 1832E. Formation of the Whig Party

III. Individual libertyA. American society/democracyB. Indian removal policyC. Continued existence of slaveryD. Women's rights

IV. Equality of economic opportunityA. Veto of Bank, establishment of pet banks

Maysville Road vetoB. Specie circularC. Panic of 1837 and WhigsD. Competition and monopoly

Sample Thesis Statements

Thesis 1: Jacksonian Democrats, supporters and followers of Andrew Jackson, were indeed the guardians of democracy and the interests of the common people. They insisted on a strict adherence to the Constitution, the expansion of political democracy, and the protection of individual liberty and equality of economic opportunity. There were, however, some areas where they failed.

Thesis 2: Supporters and followers of Andrew Jackson believed themselves to be the guardians of the Constitution and the common people and took credit for an increase in universal male suffrage during the 1820's and 1830's. However, the issues of slavery, the removal of Native Americans, women's rights, states' rights, and the national bank

recharter and veto offered more challenges than the Jacksonian Democrats could successfully handle. The Jacksonian Democrats were more the beneficiaries of political democracy than the guardians of it.

Step 4: Analyzing documents

Directions: Click on the letter buttons, above, to read documents. As you read a document, note the main idea and source. Also think about how each document might relate to outside information as well as to other documents. Jot down notes in your work space.

Document A

Source: George Henry Evans, "The Working Men's Declaration of Independence" (December 1829)8

"We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights" against the undue influence of other classes of society, prudence, as well as the claims of self defense, dictates the necessity of the organization of a party, who shall, by their representatives, prevent dangerous combinations to subvert these indefeasible and fundamental privileges. "All experience hath shown, that mankind" in general, and we as a class in particular, "are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves," by an opposition which the pride and self interest of unprincipled political aspirants, with more unprincipled zeal or religious bigotry, will willfully misrepresent. "But when a long train of abuses and usurpations" take place, all invariably tending to the oppression and degradation of one class of society, and to the unnatural and iniquitous exaltation of another by political leaders, "it is their right, it is their duty," to use every constitutional means to reform the abuses of such a government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

Note on Document A: George Henry Evans was one of the organizers of a party to represent the men of the working class. In this document establishing the Working Men's Party, he paraphrases the Declaration of Independence partly to make the point that the working class has inalienable rights just as any other class in society. Like the colonists, the working class will suffer evils done to them by the government only up to a point. But after many abuses, it is time to use all constitutional means available to working-class men to reform the government and protect their right to equal economic opportunity. It is not completely clear whether or not this is a pro-Jacksonian document. After all, the Jacksonians supposedly represented the "common" people. But the date on the document is well into the first year of the Jackson administration, indicating that some working-class members regarded the Democrats as excluding them and abusing their rights instead of protecting these rights. Only after Jackson was in office did they organize their own party to guard their equal economic opportunity--but they probably could not have done this until after the right to vote was expanded to include them.

8 Note the date. Does it help you determine if this is a document supporting or criticizing Jackson?

Document B9

Source: Andrew Jackson's veto message (July 10, 1832)

I sincerely regret that in the act before me I can perceive none of those modifications of the bank charter which are necessary, in my opinion, to make it compatible with justice, with sound policy, or with the Constitution of our country. . . . The present Bank of the United States . . . enjoys an exclusive privilege of banking, . . . almost a monopoly of the foreign and domestic exchange.

It appears that more than a fourth part of the stock is held by foreigners and the residue is held by a few hundred of our own citizens, chiefly of the richest class.

Of the twenty-five directors of this bank five are chosen by the Government and twenty by the citizen stockholders. . . . It is easy to conceive that great evils to our country and its institutions might flow from such a concentration of power in the hands of a few men irresponsible to the people.

Is there no danger to our liberty and independence in a bank that in its nature has so little to bind it to our country?

It is to be regretted that the rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes.

Note on Document B:In 1832, Congress passed the bill to recharter the Bank of the United States, and it quickly became a campaign issue. In this document, Jackson is giving the reasons for his veto. He argues that the Bank had to be dismantled because it was a financial monopoly that favored the wealthy. Moreover, over a fourth of the stock was held by foreigners. The remainder was held by a few hundred rich people who were not responsible to the citizens and who could use their power and wealth for their own selfish purposes. The Second United States Bank was not compatible with justice, therefore it was unconstitutional. You might use this document to support your argument that Jackson was a guardian of the Constitution and of the interests and rights of the common people, especially their right to equal economic opportunity. His attack on the concentration of power in the hands of a few would have met with the approval of the Working Men's Party and of western farmers, land speculators, owners of small businesses, and state bankers, but not of people such as Daniel Webster, who was primarily responsible for the recharter bill.

9 Compare this to Document A. Do you think the Working Men's Party would have supported Jackson's veto of the Bank charter?

Document C10

Source: Daniel Webster's11 reply to Jackson's veto message (July 11, 1832)

[This message] extends the grasp of executive pretension over every power of the government. . . . It appeals to every prejudice which may betray men into a mistaken view of their own interests, and to every passion which may lead them to disobey the impulses of their understanding. It urges all the specious topics of State rights and national encroachment against that which a great majority of the States have affirmed to be rightful and in which all of them have acquiesced. It sows, in an unsparing manner, the seeds of jealousy and ill-will against that government of which its author is the official head. It raises a cry that liberty is in danger, at the very moment when it puts forth claims to powers heretofore unknown and unheard of. It effects alarm for the public freedom, when nothing endangers that freedom so much as its own unparalleled pretenses. This even, is not all. It manifestly seeks to inflame the poor against the rich; it wantonly attacks whole classes of the people, for the purpose of turning against them the prejudices and the resentments of the other classes. It is a state paper which finds no topic too exciting for its use, no passion too inflammable for its address and its solicitation.

Note on Document C:Senator Daniel Webster (and Henry Clay) were Jackson's main opponents in Congress. They knew that President Jackson opposed the Second Bank and hoped to create popular opposition to Jackson in an election year. They anticipated that many Democrats favored the Bank and that Jackson would not dare to veto it. When Jackson did veto the bill to recharter the Bank, however, Webster accused Jackson of pitting the poor against the rich and creating ill will and fear for political gains.

According to Webster, it was the increased power of the executive under Jackson that was to be feared. You might recall a political cartoon showing King Andrew Jackson stomping on the Constitution and vetoing the Bank charter. Clearly, Webster and those who became members of the Whig Party in opposition to "King" Jackson did not view Jackson as a guardian of the Constitution.

Document D12

Source: Harriet Martineau,13 a British author, reporting on her 1834 visit to the United States in Society in America (New York, 1837)

I had been less than three weeks in the country and was in a state of something like awe at the prevalence of not only external competence but

10 Compare this document to Document B.11 It is important to note the source. Was Daniel Webster a Jacksonian Democrat or a critic?12 Be sure to compare Martineau's report to Document A.13 Who is Martineau? From what viewpoint did she observe conditions in the United States?

intellectual ability. The striking effect upon a stranger of witnessing, for the first time, the absence of poverty, of gross ignorance, of all servility, of all insolence of manner cannot be exaggerated in description. I had seen every man in the towns an independent citizen; every man in the country a landowner. I had seen that the villages had their newspapers, the factory girls their libraries. I had witnessed the controversies between candidates for office on some difficult subjects, of which the people were to be the judges.

With all these things in my mind, and with evidence of prosperity about me in the comfortable homesteads which every turn in the road and every reach of the lake brought into view, I was thrown into painful amazement by being told that the grand question of the time was "whether the people should be encouraged to govern themselves, or whether the wise should save them from themselves."

Note on Document D:Martineau was a British author who made a visit to the United States in 1834. On a relatively short trip, she had seen nothing but independent citizens in the towns and landowners in the country, but no poverty, ignorance, servility, or insolence. She had witnessed debates prior to elections in which all men would be voting. This seemed so democratic that she was surprised to find that it was a big issue in 1834.

If you compare this document with George Henry Evans' views on the position of workingmen, you may feel that the two documents are contradictory. Remember Martineau's frame of reference. This document does suggest that there was a fair measure of political democracy and economic opportunity in the 1830's.

Document E14

Source: Philip Hone, a New York City businessman and Whig politician, describing riots in eastern cities during the 1830's, in The Diary of Philip Hone,15 1828-1851 (New York, 1927)

Thursday, April 10.--Last day of the election; dreadful riots between the Irish and the Americans have again disturbed the public peace. I happened to be a witness of the disgraceful scene which commenced the warfare. . . . A bank of Irishmen of the lowest class came out of Duane Street from the Sixth Ward poll, armed with clubs, and commenced a savage attack upon all. . . . There was much severe fighting and many persons were wounded and knocked down. . . . In a few minutes the mob returned with a strong reinforcement, and the fight was renewed with the most unrelenting barbarity.

Friday, August 22, 1834.--Riot in Philadelphia. The spirit of riot and insubordination to the laws which lately prevailed in New York has made its

14 You should compare Hone's report to that of Martineau in Document D. 15 As a businessman and Whig politician, Hone is not likely to have been sympathetic to people of the "lowest class."

appearance in the orderly city of Philadelphia, and appears to have been produced by causes equally insignificant--hostility to the blacks and an indiscriminate persecution of all whose skins were darker than those of their enlightened fellow citizens. . . . Several houses were pulled down and their contents destroyed on Tuesday of last week; the police were attacked and several of the police officers badly wounded.

Note on Document E:This businessman and Whig politician does not share the British author's view of the citizenry in Document D. He notes violence against groups such as African Americans and Irish immigrants. This class antagonism and discrimination probably had roots in social and economic inequality. You may recall that the nativist movement was strong in the United States, and that it was particularly hostile to Irish Catholic immigrants at this time. You may also recall that free Black people in the 1830's had very restricted civil rights and restricted economic opportunities. This document might cause you to consider the Jacksonians' position on slavery.

Document F

Source: Acts and Resolutions of South Carolina16 (1835)

3. Resolved, That the legislature of South Carolina, having every confidence in the justice and friendship of the non-slaveholding states, . . . earnestly requests that the governments of these states will promptly and effectually suppress all those associations within their respective limits purporting to be abolition societies, and that they will make it highly penal to print, publish, and distribute newspapers, pamphlets, tracts and pictorial representations calculated and having an obvious tendency to excite the slaves of the southern states to insurrection and revolt.

7. Resolved, That the legislature of South Carolina regards with decided approbation the measures of security adopted by the Post Office Department of the United States in relation to the transmission of incendiary tracts. But if this highly essential and protective policy be counteracted by Congress, and the United States mail becomes a vehicle for the transmission of the mischievous documents, . . . [we] expect that the Chief Magistrate of our state will forthwith call the legislature together, that timely measures may be taken to prevent [such mail] traversing our territory.

Note on Document F:In these Acts and Resolutions, the legislature of South Carolina asked non-slaveholding states to suppress abolitionist societies and make it illegal to print or distribute information about abolition. South Carolina warned Congress that if it allowed abolitionist material to be sent through U.S. mail, the state would take measures to prevent that mail from entering or crossing South Carolina. You may recall that in his annual message to Congress in 1835, President Jackson attacked the abolitionists and their incendiary publications. He urged Congress to ban abolitionist materials from the mails. The following year, Congress passed a "gag rule" to bring a halt to the abolitionist petitions that were flooding Congress. This document gives you evidence of a major failing in the Jacksonians' guardianship of individual liberties and the constitutional right to free speech.

16 Note that this request is being made by the legislature of South Carolina. What position has South Carolina taken toward federal actions of which it disapproved?

Document G

Source: Woolaroc Museum, Bartlesville, Oklahoma.17

Note on Document G:This mural depicts the 1,200-mile march that the Cherokee were forced to undertake in the fall and winter of 1838 from Georgia to the new Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. You may recall that Jackson made clear in his first message to Congress that he meant to remove all Native Americans east of the Mississippi to provide land for White settlers. You may also remember that Jackson carried out this policy despite two contrary rulings by the Supreme Court. The Cherokee appealed to the Supreme Court in 1828 after Georgia denied their claim to nationhood, arguing that Georgia's denial of their independence violated the U.S. Constitution. In Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, Chief Justice John Marshall upheld their view. In another case in 1832, Worcester v. Georgia, Marshall held that the tribal nations were guaranteed by the United States. Jackson's removal policies were carried out after he left office, when the Cherokee and other southeastern tribes were sent to Oklahoma under army guard. You might conclude that Jackson's actions toward the Cherokee show his disregard for the constitutional power of the Supreme Court and for the individual liberties of the Cherokee.

Document H

Source: Chief Justice Roger B. Taney's18 opinion in Supreme Court case Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge (1837)17 Does the location of this picture give you any information?

The interests of the great body of the people of the state, would, in this instance, be affected by the surrender of this great line of travel to a single corporation, with the right to exact toll, and exclude competition, for seventy years. While the rights of private property are sacredly guarded, we must not forget, that the community also have rights, and that the happiness and well-being of every citizen depends on their faithful preservation.

. . . The charter of 1785 to the proprietors of the Charles River bridge . . . confers on them the ordinary faculties of a corporation, for the purpose of building a bridge; and establishes certain rates of toll, which the company are authorized to take. . . . There is no exclusive privilege given to them over the waters of Charles River, above or below their bridge; no right to erect another bridge themselves, nor to prevent other persons from erecting one; no engagement from the state, that another should not be erected; and no undertaking not to sanction competition, nor to make improvements that may diminish the amount of its income.

Note on Document H:Andrew Jackson appointed Roger B. Taney to the Supreme Court as Marshall's successor. In this case, Justice Taney is ruling that the Charles River Bridge Corporation had not received monopoly rights to a bridge over the Charles River in its charter of 1785 and that the rights of the community are as important as the rights of private property. The state could therefore give charters to other companies to build bridges over the Charles River, even if they competed with the existing bridge. This is an attack on monopoly and privilege in the building of transportation facilities. You might conclude that this decision supported the rights of the community against monopolies, a position Jacksonian Democrats supported in their efforts to maintain equal economic opportunity.

Step 5: Revising the thesis statement and outline

Directions: Revise your thesis statement and outline to amend your main points, if necessary, and incorporate information from the documents. Scroll back to your draft thesis statement and outline in your work space, then make your changes.

Sample Revised Outline19

Thesis statement that evaluates the extent to which Jacksonian Democrats were the guardians of democracy.

I. Jacksonian Democrats and the Constitution

18 Do you know who appointed Taney to the Supreme Court?

19 This outline incorporates all of the documents and allows for the inclusion of a great deal of relevant outside information. In addition, it provides the opportunity to cover the four areas required in the question and to discuss both sides of the statement.

A. President responsible to the common peopleB. Defies Supreme Court ruling concerning Cherokee (Document G)C. Willingness to use force against South Carolina D. Supreme Court and monopoly (Document H)E. Gag rule (Document F)F. Use of veto (Documents B and C and outside info)

II. Political democracyA. Increased political participation, expansion of right to vote

(Document D)B. Spoils system, kitchen cabinetC. Working Men's Party (Document A)D. Elections of 1828 and 1832 E. Formation of the Whig Party (Document C)F. Women and most free African Americans had no vote

III. Individual libertyA. American society/democracy (Documents D and E)B. Indian removal policy (Document G)C. Continued existence of slavery D. Free African Americans and immigrants (Document G)E. Women's rights

IV. Equality of economic opportunityA. Veto of Bank, establishment of pet banks (Documents B and C)

Maysville Road vetoB. Specie circularC. Panic of 1837 and WhigsD. Competition and monopoly (Document H)E. Labor movement (Documents A and E)

Sample Revised Thesis Statements20

Thesis 1: Jacksonian Democrats, supporters and followers of Andrew Jackson, were indeed the guardians of democracy and the interests of the common people. They insisted on a strict adherence to the Constitution, the expansion of political democracy, and the protection of individual liberty and equality of economic opportunity. There were, however, some areas where they failed.

Thesis 2: Supporters and followers of Andrew Jackson believed themselves to be the guardians of the Constitution and the common people and took credit for an increase in universal male suffrage during the 1820's and 1830's. However, the issues of slavery, the removal of Native Americans, women's rights, states' rights, and the national bank recharter and veto offered more challenges than the Jacksonian Democrats could

20 This is the time to revise your draft thesis statement. Does the majority of your evidence from the documents and from your own study support the Jacksonians' view of themselves as guardians of democracy, or does it refute it?

successfully handle. The Jacksonian Democrats were more the beneficiaries of political democracy than the guardians of it.

Step 6: Writing the essay

Directions: Now you should be ready to write your essay.

Scoring Guide

8-9 Contains a well-developed thesis that clearly addresses the extent to which the Jacksonians' view of themselves was accuratePresents an effective analysis of the extent to which the view is accurate in the four areas; treatment may be unevenEffectively uses a substantial number of documentsSupports the thesis with substantial and relevant outside informationIs clearly organized and well writtenMay contain minor errors

5-7 Contains a thesis that addresses the Jacksonians' view of themselvesHas limited analysis, is mostly descriptive; deals with two or three aspects of the question in some depth OR deals with three or four aspects in a more general wayUses some documents effectivelySupports the thesis with some outside informationShows evidence of acceptable organization and writing; language errors do not interfere with comprehensionMay contain errors that do not seriously detract from the quality of the essay

2-4 Presents a limited, confused, and/or poorly developed thesisDeals with two or three aspects of the question in a general way OR three or four aspects in a superficial waySimplistic explanationQuotes or briefly cites documentsContains little outside information or information that is generally inaccurate or irrelevantDemonstrates weak organizational and/or writing skills that interfere with comprehensionMay contain major errors

0-1 Contains no thesis or a thesis that does not address the questionExhibits inadequate or inaccurate understanding of the questionContains little or no understanding of documents or ignores them completelyContains inappropriate or no outside informationIs so poorly organized or written that it inhibits understandingContains numerous errors, both major and minor

Sample Essay 1: Excellent (score of 9)

Jacksonian Democrats were not the "guardians of Democracy" that they claimed to be, but instead were merely guardians of their own sectional interests and Andrew Jackson's inflated ego.21 Jacksonians were skilled at emotionalizing issues and rallying the support of the South and West. Their primary goals were not Constitutional justice and individual liberty, but instead they strived to suppress New England, the Whig party, and business interests and to preserve state's rights.

Andrew Jackson (despite allegations to the contrary by South Carolina and Tennessee) was born in North Carolina and grew up a son of the frontier. The hero of the Battle of New Orleans and a proven hothead (he flagrantly disobeyed orders and hanged a few of the enemy in the Seminole War), Jackson was also not what one would call an intellectual. Emotionalization of campaign issues got him elected in 1828 over a superior statesman, President John Q. Adams. Through an over-emotionalized revivalistic campaign style, Jackson's camp brought the common man out of the backwoods into the voting booth. (Records show that voter participation rose dramatically through the Jackson era). By exploiting the class difference between the urban Eastern industrialists and the South-and-Western agrarian, Jackson's aides turned "Old Hickory" into a symbol for the fight against the upper class and intellectualism. Henceforth it mattered little what Jackson did as president, as long as it was perceived as the will of the common man.22

The Bank of the United States, under the direction of Nicholas Biddle, had, to an extent, become an agent by which "fat-cat" Northern merchants filled their money bags. The Bank was not good, however, for Western speculators who had borrowed a great deal of money from the bank and now, in the late 1820s, were feeling the crunch of leveling-off land prices. Because the Bank did not benefit Jackson's constituency (and because of a personal dislike for "Czar" Biddle), Jackson vetoed the bill for recharter of the Bank, proclaiming that was in the "hands of a few men irresponsible to the people." He of course meant the common individual. Intellectuals like Daniel Webster saw through this exploitation of industry/agrarian conflict. Webster's reply in Document C shames Jackson for turning a political issue into an emotional quandary.23 (It should be noted, in fairness to Andrew Jackson, that Webster owed several thousand dollars to the B.U.S.). Still, Jackson claimed to be protecting the rights of individuals, instead of the interests of Western speculators.24 In Roger B. Taney's decision (Taney was a Southern and a Jacksonian) in the 1837 Charles River Bridge Case, business was overruled by the rights of the community and the individual, or was it? Taney's decision really set a precedent for state's right intervention in commerce, though it claimed to support the individual's liberty.25

21 Very strong and sharply focused thesis.

22 There is a wealth of outside information here and excellent discussion of attack on Eastern interests.23 Sophisticated use of document.24 Good use of bank document and outside information. 25 Good interpretation of Taney case as states' rights.

Sometimes, however, it was Jackson's ego and not sectional favoritism that drove Jacksonian democracy. When Chief Justice John Marshall (a Federalist) ruled that the Cherokee nation had a right to its territory, Jackson declared, "Justice Marshall has made his decision now let him enforce it." Jackson claimed that the "common man" wanted the Indians removed and promptly sent the Cherokee down the "Trail of Tears" to Oklahoma. The move was actually fueled by Jackson's dislike for Marshall and his feeling that the executive branch superseded the Court. Jackson vetoed the Maysville Road project in Kentucky, claiming that the Constitution mandated internal improvements in intra-state areas be the responsibility of local government.26 He declined to mention that the road ran through the home district of his archrival, Whig Speaker of the House Henry Clay. In truth, Jacksonian Democracy did not protect individual rights, as evidenced by the mistreatment of blacks, Indians, and immigrants. Most Jacksonians were slaveholders, and until Jackson's individual pride was damaged by the nullification crisis of 1828 (Jackson resented upstart South Carolina and John C. Calhoun, due to the Eaton affair), Jackson was an advocate of slavery. The Cherokees were brutally mistreated by Jackson's removal policy. Irish immigrants were often the victims of big city riots in the East, which Andrew Jackson did nothing to prevent. These injustices were usually concealed from visitors like Harriet Martineau and Alexis De Toqueville.27

Jacksonian Democracy did little for individual liberty and constitutional justice, but instead hid behind emotionalized issues. Jackson's ego dictated policy, as did the needs of the South and West. Several examples of suppressed individual freedom occurred. Jacksonians were more the protectors of self interest, than the guardians of Democracy.

AP Reader analysis:This is a superbly written essay far surpassing the requirements for the top category. It contains a comprehensive, well-developed thesis that the Jacksonian Democrats acted for their political self-interest, not for constitutional justice and individual liberties. Information from the documents is woven throughout the essay and in some instances used implicitly. Throughout the essay, the thesis is consistently supported by information from the documents and outside evidence.

Sample Essay 2: Good (score of 6)

Since the founding of the Constitution, the leaders of the U.S. had preserved the supremacy of the federal government over local governments. However, during the 1820s and 1830s, the tide turned with the introduction of Jacksonian Democracy.28Followers of Andrew Jackson believed they were the moral guardians of the constitution and used it to protect states rights. They believed in having as little government as possible. Their policies were aimed at the "common man" and sought to bring individual liberties to them. One area that they did not tolerate though, was foreign

26 Good use of Cherokee case and Maysville Road to illustrate Jackson's positions on the Constitution.27Excellent paragraph on individual rights and sophisticated use of documents.28 The thesis statement could be better focused. The main issue was not federal vs. state supremacy, but democratizing the federal government.

immigrants and the Indians.29 Jackson did not believe in giving them equal opportunity as given to the Americans.

Jackson himself had a humble upbringing as an orphan. Perhaps this led him to emphasize the common man's importance in society and bringing in opportunity. He wanted to achieve bringing the federal government down to the level of society. As a staunch state's rightist,30 he believed in localizing government. When he was elected, he used the spoils system, or rotation in office to allow for political diversity and compatability in office.31 One Jacksonian Democrat, George Henry Evans created the Working Men's Declaration of Independence. It applied the beliefs of Jacksonian Democracy to the Declaration, our basis for forming the Constitution. Here, he shows how the Jacksonian Democrats believed in allowing individual liberty though the rights to reform government and guard the natural laws of society.

Also under Jacksonian Democracy came the new view of economics and society. The major dealing of Jackson was the defeat of the Second Bank of the United States. Jackson believed that since in the constitution, there was no justification to create such a bank, it was illegal. He also felt that having one large federal bank deprived state banks from a chance at survival. When the Bank's charter was up for renewal in 1832, Jackson naturally vetoed the recharter bill. He used his presidential veto quite freely. He states that the bank provides for the exclusive privilege of banking and concentration in the hands of few men. Eventually Jackson bled the bank dry of its funds and issued pet banks, similar to those proposed by the Jacksonian Democrats.32

Jacksonian Democrats were challenged by the imminent nullification laws of South Carolina. Jackson immediately demanded that S. Carolina withdraw the bill and comply with the laws of the federal government. The Force Act was issued which allowed naval and armed troops to enter S. Carolina to enforce the laws.

One major area of dispute was the intolerance of foreigners by the Jacksonian Democrats. Jackson first had trouble with the Native Americans. He was undecided whether to expel the Indians or leave them alone on their reservations. It was obvious that Jackson did not tolerate the Indians. Most of the legislation passed under him went against the Indians. The painting from the Woolaroc Museum shows the migration of the Indians from their homeland to some other area. The Jacksonian Democracy did a great injustice to the native Americans. Also at the voting polls, great riots began between Americans and foreigners over the 1834 elections. Americans learned to not tolerate foreigners and came down on them with barbarity.33

The Jacksonian Democrats basically provided the U.S. with the development of the common man and a government working in favor of the people much like populism of

29 Shows some understanding that there are two sides to the question.

30 Error. Jackson opposed Calhoun’s position on the Nullification Doctrine.31 Good use of outside information in this paragraph.32 Good paragraph on Bank, using documents and outside information.33 Two good examples of the limits of Jacksonian democracy.

the 19th century, these movements believed in crushing elitism in society. As Harriet Martineau states, the people were the judges and this allowed for the formation of the U.S. as a better society for almost everyone.

AP Reader analysis:The thesis here is not focused clearly on the issues and therefore doesn't guide the essay as well as it might. The essay does use the documents and outside information in arguing the strengths and limitations of the Jacksonians. More analysis of the documents and a sharper thesis statement would have improved this essay.

Sample Essay 3: Unsatisfactory (score of 3)

Jacksonian Democrats, which were found in the 1920's and 1930's,34 believed in strict interpretation of the Constitution, individual freedoms, equal opportunity, strong government in the states, and equality of white men and women.35 Many people did not agree with Andrew Jackson or his methods of getting things done. Jackson was a racist. He did nothing for the slaves, and harassed the Indians. Jackson always used his poor background as a stand, that even the common man can become president.36

Jacksonian Democrats stressed that individuals had rights above the whole. Any man, no matter what his background had the rights of happiness, life, and liberty (Document A). Harriet Martineau, a British author could not believe that in America every man was an "independent citizen". He even wondered if people governing themselves was very safe (Document D).37

Jacksonian Democrats may have viewed themselves as giving more power to the people, but that did not hold to be completely true. Jackson did a few good things to give people a choice. Jackson vetoed the Bank of the United States because he felt it gave the people no choice. If the bank had control over the nation's money, then neither the government or the people could decide where they wanted their money placed (Document B).38 Many people disagreed with Jackson's so-called patriotism. Daniel Webster, who was for the Bank of the United States, felt that Jackson was being unreasonable. Webster thought that since freedom was not truly endangered, that Jackson was being too passionate about it (document C).39 Jackson felt that if people were denied even simple freedoms, that over the course of time larger and more important freedoms would be taken away.

Jackson continually supported laws or passed laws that denied rights. In Document E riots are described. The riots were a direct result of Jackson's laws.40 Jackson seemed to completely disregard the rights of immigrants and anyone else who was not white Protestant. States in the North were opposed to slavery, wrote literature, and mailed

34 This misdating is a minor error.35 What evidence is there that Jacksonians supported equality for women?36 This paragraph has some good information in it, but it needs to be better organized. 37 Harriet Martineau was a woman. This shows misunderstanding of her praise for American society.38 This misinterprets Jackson's bank veto message. 39 This does not correctly interpret Webster's concern. 40 Error. There is no evidence in the document that the riots resulted from any Jackson policy.

things to slaves to get them to consider freedom as an alternate lifestyle. South Carolina asked the Northern states to halt all writing about abolishing slavery, they did not their slaves to get restless (Document E). Jackson supported this stand.

The worst thing that Jackson did against another society was move the Indians. He had thousands of Indians forcefully moved from their homes. He had Indians murdered, thrown out, and even tortured. Only a few Indians wanted their people to be relocated, and those were the only ones he even tolerated. The trek he sent the Indians on was known as the "Trail of Tears" (Document G). Over 1/3 of the Cherokee nation died on that trip, and mostly because of Jackson's selfishness.41

On the whole Jacksonian Democrats had good ideas. They wanted people to have choices, as shown in "Charles River Bridge vs. Warren Bridge" (Document H), and they gave power to the people. Jackson truly felt that he was representing the whole when he had Indians moved, and condoned slavery. Jackson may have once been a "common man", but when he was president he didn't listen to the "common man" any longer. Hopefully the United States will never have another president that was so openly prejudiced. It would be nice to think that people would have better judgment than to reelect another Andrew Jackson.

AP Reader analysis:This essay conveys the idea that Jackson's policies tended to favor one group, White Americans, at the expense of Native Americans and African Americans, but it does not connect the ideas. Documents are used in a superficial and descriptive manner or are misread. There is little outside information to support the generalizations.

41 What specific evidence is there of Jackson's selfishness?