History of the United States #1

Know how to spell these two words:

• Accommodate
• Privilege

Today’s vocab: 

• Pedantic - boring
• Evanescent - temporary, transient, that which passes 

 High School history myths: 

• Betsy Ross supposedly sewed the first American flag when George Washington asked her to (allegedly he asked for 13 stars and 13 stripes and said to use five points instead of six so as not to confuse it with the Jewish Star of David) this is a lie. It came out of a book written by her grandson after her death
• Nathan Hale - a Yale graduate and a spy for Washington. At 21 he was caught by the British and hung. He was quoted as saying, “I only regret, that I have but one life to lose for my country” but all the records indicate is that his have her all that we know is that hail said quote patriotic sentiments
• North Church - Paul Revere hung lights in its window but the current Old North was pro-british in 1775 it wasn't where Revere road from he did it at a church called Old North that was later destroyed by the British

High School texts have to pass by school boards who consist of idiots and people trying to fit into their politics; for example, in the South they discussed the Civil War differently than they do in the north and in Catholic areas they discuss the Inquisition differently.

Two important words: 

• Carpetbagger - a Northerner who tries to help a black citizens during Reconstruction
• Scalawag - a Southerner who helped black people vote during Reconstruction

 Presidents and their inauguration dates

1. George Washington - April 6th 1789 to 1797 - asked to be president for life but said no
2. John Adams - 1797 to 1801 - got Congress to pass the Alien and Sedition laws which were unconstitutional. It pissed off Jefferson so much that he decided to run for office, which was new thought. Before this it was thought that the office found the man. Jefferson ran with Burr as his vice president candidate (recommended to read Vidal’s Burr). There was a tie and then Alexander Hamilton chose Jefferson as the winner
3. Thomas Jefferson - 1801 to 1809 - Louisiana purchase land from the Mississippi to the Continental Divide
4. James Madison - 1809 to 1817 - during the War of 1812 impressment of Americans (part of naturalization) into the Navy (they viewed it as early draft dodging). Western states wanted to invade and conquer Canada while New England didn't want it. This is the only war the US has ever truly lost. We captured and burned Toronto (then their capital) and then the Brits burned our capital (they entered Washington unopposed). The Battle of New Orleans was the only major victory and it came two weeks after the war was over. In this war, there were no gains and no losses, just the dead
5. James Monroe - 1817 to 1825
6. John Quincy Adams - 1825 to 1829 - a great man but a bad president. He went on to the House of Representatives. Jackson got more votes but not a majority Henry Clay made a corrupt bargain
7. Andrew Jackson - 1829 to 1837 - First non-Virginian or Massachusetts aristocrat, he was just a common man and a war hero. He was, for the most part, a good president who didn't mess around but we can never escape that he did commit genocide
8. Martin Van Buren - 1837 to 1841 - inherited debt from Jackson but blamed for it
9. William Henry Harrison - 1841 - a canoe and Tyler too were Tippecanoe was a battle that he was famous for he was quite rich he died in 30 days after becoming president because he caught pneumonia while giving his inaugural speech
10. John Tyler - 1841 to 1845
11. James K. Polk - 1845 to 1849 - “54° 40' or Fight!” with his campaign slogan it was the northern borders shared with Britain he didn't mean it but he was just promising the two ended up splitting it down the middle Texas got independence from Mexico and barely anyone lived there until some Southern Americans came in with slaves Mexico didn't allow slavery so they fought a war Sam Houston LED them brackets quite a character lived with the Indians became a drunk got kicked out he beat Santa Ana Polk brought Texas into the Union boundaries of Texas is vague so they fight the Mexican war and took more land that was an easy War and the US got a lot out of it California New Mexico Utah Nevada Etc they got California just in time for the gold rush found by Marshall
12. Zachary Taylor - 1849 to 1850 - died in office
13. Millard Fillmore - 1850 to 1853 - he admitted California into the Union and oversaw the Compromise of 1850
14. Franklin Pierce - 1853 to 1857 - a truly abominable president
15. James Buchanan - 1857 to 1861 - our only bachelor president; his First Lady was his niece
16. Abraham Lincoln - 1861 to 1865 - most interesting election we've ever had. Stephen Douglas and Lincoln had even courted the same girl. Lincoln opposed slavery but didn't want to mess with it. There were four major candidates: the Republican Party (a new party full of radicals in which liberals),  Temperance, Free love not slavery the South seceded South Carolina was first Maryland Delaware Kentucky and Missouri slave states stayed in the Union. West Virginia seceded from Virginia to loyal to the Union (later one Virginian referred to it as “the bastard whore son of an illegitimate political rape”). John Wilkes Booth shot Lincoln boost brother was prominent actor of Shakespeare (see the movie Prince of Players) as was his father before him John Wilkes Booth was famous as was his famous as Tom Cruise.
17. Andrew Johnson - 1865 to 1869 - tried to reinstall slavery; was impeached but not convicted
18. Ulysses S. Grant - 1869 to 1877 - one of the most corrupt periods of US history
19. Rutherford B. Hayes - 1877 to 1881 - he didn't win popular votes or electoral votes but Florida gave votes away to end Reconstruction
20. James A Garfield - 1881 - murdered by a religious fanatic named Charlie Guiteau who was into Christian free love including incest but he couldn't get any he was called “Charlie Gitout!”
21. Chester A. Arthur - 1881 to 1885
22. Grover Cleveland - 1885 to 1889 - Democrats won because the Republican candidate was extremely corrupt
23. Benjamin Harrison - 1889 to 1893 - lost popular votes got electoral
24. Grover Cleveland - 1893 to 1897 - got re-elected after losing to Harrison in the last election
25. William McKinley - 1897 to 1901 - he got shot but he could have survived with modern medicine but the doctors of the time were not up to the task
26. Theodore Roosevelt - 1901 to 1909 - once was shot during a speech but didn't stop it was only after the speech that he went to a hospital
27. William Taft - 1909 to 1913 - “Two Ton Taft” was probably the smartest President we ever have he would go on to become a chief justice in the Supreme Court
28. Woodrow Wilson - 1913 to 1921 - an idealist and teacher, who had to fight World War I
29. Warren G. Harding - 1921 to 1923 - a lot of corruption and he died in San Francisco; no one knows who killed him. He had lots of affairs
30. Calvin Coolidge - 1923 - 1929 - a man of few words he was once asked when went on in church he said, “sin.” When asked to expand he added, “they’re against it.”