Biographies of the New American Nation

Biographies of the New American Nation — page 5 — BIOGRAPHIES OF THE NEW AMERICAN NATIONA GEORGE WASHINGTON THOMAS JEFFERSON Other statesmen guided the United States toward its unique brand of democracy through persuasion and compromise James Madison John Jay and Alexander Hamilton urged the pursuit of liberty through majority rule in essays that together are known as The Federalist Papers In 1830 Senator Daniel Webster spoke eloquently and at great length in defense of the Constitution and the power of the federal government which made him a national hero in the process When tariffs and the subject of slavery were creating a serious rift between northern and southern states Henry Clay repeatedly championed compromise legisla tion that kept the nation united for decades before the country erupted in civil war Expansion was a crucial element in the development of the new American nation In 1804 President Thomas Jefferson sent Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on a west ward expedition to explore territory recently acquired in the Louisiana Purchase and estab lish a path to the Pacific Ocean The journey was also meant to establish ties with Native American tribes Shoshone maiden Sacagawea joined the expedition as an interpreter With her assistance Lewis and Clark were able to gain the help from Western Shoshone tribes that made the completion of their mission possible 10

Biographies of the New American Nation — page 6 — INTRODUCTION Not all interactions with Native Americans were as successful Anger at the loss of land to white settlers resulted in native uprisings led by Indian chiefs such as Tecumseh and Osceola throughout the 18oos Relations between whites and African Americans at this time were also troublesome to say the least Nat Turner led a slave revolt in 1831 Virginia which strengthened the intensity of the argu ments on both sides of the slavery debate until the matter reached a boiling point during the American Civil War The treatment of groups such as Native and African Americans was protested by social reformersoftheage Chiefamongthese reform ers were the abolitionists who were against slavery William Lloyd Garrison a leading abo litionist used the power of his newspaper the Liberator to spread his anti slavery message The work of former slave and brilliant speaker Frederick Douglass also helped put an end to slavery in the United States It is safe to say that the personal lives of these and other leading U S figures were influenced by historic events that occurred as their country grew and prospered and vice versa Their stories are truly the stories of the new American nation 11

Biographies of the New American Nation — page 7 — CHAPTER 1 GEORGE WASHINGTON any U S presidents have been hon ored for their great achievements George Washington s achievements have dis tinguished him as the Father of His Country Washington was commander in chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution chairman of the convention that wrote the U S Constitution and the first president of the United States He led the people who transformed the United States from a British colony into a self governing nation of democracy His ideals liberty and set a standard for future presidents and the entire country Washington was born in Westmoreland County Va on Feb 22 1732 He was the cldest child of Augustine and Mary Ball Washington His father owned plantations businesses and mines After his father died in 1743 George lived with his half brother Lawrence at an estate on the Potomac River called Mount Vernon George learned how to survey measure areas of land and to farm At age 16 Washington joined a group sent to survey unknown lands on the Virginia 12

Biographies of the New American Nation — page 8 — sit in peace r GEORGE WASHINGTON he heart his country Portrait of General George Washington depicted upon his steed at the conclusion of the American Revolution Washington's ardent patrio tism led him to be named the first president of the United States Bob Thomas Popperfoto Getty Images 13

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