3.11 & 3.12: The New Republic
3.11: Explain the continuities and changes in American culture from 1754 to 1800.
3.12: Explain how and why migration and immigration to and within North America caused competition and conflict over time.
In the last set of notes, we went over the Constitution and the first two presidents of the United States, which ended up being very long. But this set of notes will be much shorter! For the last topic of Unit 3, we’re going to be talking about the development of a distinct American identity.
Demographics
So firstly, what did it mean to be American? While Americans were still very similar to Europeans culturally, they were already developing their own religion, arts, society, and technology.
In terms of demographics, America was made up of roughly 80% white people and 20% black, with the white population being mostly a mix of English, Scots, Irish, and German. Major cities were Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, and Charleston
During the early days of America, women had limited roles in society compared to today. However, their role expanded during this time due to the emergence of the idea of Republican Motherhood. This concept stated that women were important in raising education sons who would participate in government and understand the values of liberty and republicanism. The idea that women needed to raise well-educated children led to girls’ education expanding. This led to an increasing in schooling for girls. In 1789, Massachusetts established elementary education for all children. However, this increase in education did not apply to black people or Native American women.
Art
During this time, ideas about our national identity developed as well. Many works of art were created with historical themes and Enlightenment influence. For example, Charles Wilson Peale painted a famous portrait of George Washington. Samuel Jennings broke artistic norms by including women and black people in his paintings. John Trumbull painted historical events while also romanticizing them, such as with his depiction of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Architecture, Religion, and Technology
For architecture, the American style was mostly borrowed from Europe with formal brick and stone, such as in Thomas Jefferson’s home of Monticello. For literature, books such as Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack became popular and widely read throughout the states, only being outsold by the Bible.
For religion, Thomas Jefferson created the Virginia Statue for Religious Freedom in 1786, which defined the separation between church and state, and argued that people could not be forced to support church ministry with taxes or be forced to go to church. This also allowed people to practice their own religion of choice. There were two major churches, the Anglican Church (mostly found in the South) and the Congregational Church (mostly found in New England, based on Puritanism)
For technology, James Watt invented the steam engine in 1769, which led to the development of the steamboat and steam locomotive for transportation. The invention of the spinning jenny and power loom during this period greatly increased the production of the textile industry. In 1793, Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin which allowed for the separation of cotton seeds from fiber, creating a large demand for slaves in the South because plantations could now produce much more cotton.
