From the Paper
"Martin Van Buren, the eighth president of the United States, was born on December 5th, 1782, in Kinderhook, New York. His parents were Abraham Van Buren, a farmer and tavern keeper, and Maria Hoes Van Alen, both of Dutch descent. Van Buren attended the village school and then the Kinderhook Academy before he began to read law with Francis Silvester, a local attorney, in 1796, when he was only 14. Consequently, he was admitted to the state bar when he was only 21 (Encyclopedia Americana) and opened his own practice in Kinderhook in 1803. He married his cousin Hannah Hoes in 1807 and they had four children together. Van Buren's successful law practice and involvement in local politics eventually provided a strong base for his launch into national politics."

Tags:biography, BIOGRAPHIES

Abstract
This paper explains the presidential election of 1840, which is considered the very first modern political campaign because of its use of political imagery and widespread advertising. The author points out that the campaign itself was full of political antics and did not specifically focus on the issues that were of great concern for a majority of American voters. The paper reports that, because of the widespread political campaigning of the Whigs, Harrison became the 9th President of the United States in 1841 through what is now known as a landslide.

From the Paper
"Thus, while Congress struggled with four turbulent sessions with Van Buren as President, the Whig Party sought every opportunity to strengthen their cause against the President. Whig victories in many Democratic strongholds in New York City were more than mere political reactions to the financial chaos of the Panic of 1837, for they arrived from substantial political networks and a sophisticated style of electioneering never seen before. Whig managers, such as Thurlow Weed of New York City, were prepared to wage an extensive grassroots campaign to capitalize on the public furor aroused by the Panic. However, Van Buren misread these political signs, for he had developed a stereotypical view of the Whigs as disorganized and amateurish."

Tags:imagery, issues, finance, panic, crisis

From the Paper
"As a newly settled frontier area that shared in the culture of an older, dominant power, the American Colonies and, later, the United States of America expended a great deal of effort in defining themselves as a separate cultural entity. Perhaps it was not even until the United States had become a dominant power itself that America felt free of the shadows cast by its ancestors. A comparison of works by two American painters will give some idea of how the this process of self-definition worked. Benjamin West (1738-1820), the most successful American painter of the eighteenth century, was a friend of King George III and his official history painter. West was also a founder and the second President of the Royal Academy and had one of the most successful careers of any painter of his time. Thomas Eakins (1844-1916) worked in relative obscurity. He was a successful ..."

Abstract
This paper discusses the transportation by force of the Cherokee nation from their native lands to Oklahoma that was mandated by the U.S. government in 1838. While it was Jackson's successor, Martin Van Buren, who would order the forced march that became known as the "Trail of Tears", the policies that led to the forced removal had begun in 1830 under Jackson with the Indian Removal Act. The writer describes the horrors of the march and its devastating effects on the Cherokees as well as the other Indians who were driven out with them. The writer discusses the historical and political background behind the relocation, and the reasons for Jackson's deep-seated hatred and resentment of the Cherokees. The writer also describes the attempts by the Cherokees to negotiate with the U.S. government prior to the march and other circumstances leading up to the march, and concludes with a brief note on what happened to them after their arrival in Oklahoma.

From the Paper
"The Cherokee nation had, at one time, spanned the territories now known as the Carolinas to Florida and West to Mississippi. Over the course of several millennia, the Cherokee had banded together five tribes, each with its place in a relatively democratic political structure, where respect for the rule of law was absolute, and their culture significantly advanced. Education was paramount, they maintained a very solid and reliable economy, and they maintained the belief that they could successfully co-exist with the Americans. This, of course, would prove to be exceptionally naive when it came to Jackson. Where he had failed in his youth, he was certainly able to get back at the Cherokee decades later."

Tags:racist eviction land-hungry obsolescence genocide, Monroe Doctrine, Supreme Court, opposition exposure anti-Indian

Abstract
The paper outlines the politics, legal issues and litigation involved with the Amistad slaves' trial and shows how both the slavery and anti-slavery factions' were using this incident to back their cause. The paper highlights how the Amistad trial raised issues that would become central to the issues of civil rights and human equality and would eventually deal a serious blow to slavery.

From the Paper
"When Amistad took place, Portuguese merchants routinely took West African enslaved blacks to Cuba, which remained a Spanish colony. Despite the Spanish laws against slavery, the West African natives were smuggled into Cuba where slavery was allowed. The trip on the Amistad was expected to be another routine trip. The Africans were stuffed and chained in the hold and fearfully awaited their fate. When Singbe freed himself and the others, they took the ships weapons and overcame the crew. Rather than heading back to Africa, the captive sailors traveled up the coast to Long Island, where the ship was seized by a U.S. revenue cutter. The passengers were taken to New London, Connecticut, where slavery was permitted. Once the Africans stepped foot on American soil, they were arrested, and their rights and legal status became embroiled in a complex struggle. Because of all the variables involved, no one knew for sure what their eventual status would be."

Tags:Connecticut, Spain, Judson, Van, Buren, Supreme, Court

Abstract
The paper shows that a distinct political revolution occurred between the Presidential Elections of 1824 and 1848. This change is often referred to as the Jacksonian Revolution or the rise of mass politics. It discusses how the beginnings of these changes are seen in 1824, but would not be institutionalized as a part of every election campaign until 1848. The paper shows that the most notable differences between the Presidential Elections of 1824 and 1848 were the use of party identifications or the partisan nature of the papers, the way that editors and people who wrote editorials to the papers argued their points and the development of early forms of polling and political endorsements.

From the Paper
"During the 1824 Presidential Election there are few, if any, forms of polling, political endorsements, or advertisements, but they are all over the papers by the 1848 Presidential Election. Several unscientific polls are reported to the New York Herald regarding the 1848 Presidential Election during the six months leading up to the elections. "Another Vote for Taylor " On a late trip of the steamboat Herald, down the Illinois river, the vote for President was taken and stood as follows:- In the ladies' cabin, for Taylor 14; for Cass, 3. Gentlemen's cabin, for Taylor, 43; Cass, 23." "

Tags:adams, buren, cass, clay, crawford, democrats, federalists, polk, polling, soil, taylor