1841 - President Harrison dies > Curse of Tecumseh!
- Succeeded by John Tyler: "A president w/o party"
1840's - Maine boundary dispute > Aroostook war > Webster-Ashburton Treaty (1842)
- Map on p. 274
- Oregon boundary dispute result of "Oregon River" (American settlers attracted by the rich soil of the Willamette River Valley) - Map on p.277 > Oregon settlement (1846) - 49th parallel
Election of 1844:
James K. Polk (D) v. Henry Clay (W)
Major issue: Manifest Destiny (land greed + ideals)
Polk supported annexation of Texas
Clay wanted to postpone annexation of Texas
* Polk's victory seen by Tyler as a "mandate" to annex Texas which he does by a joint resolution of Congress
"Polk the Purposeful" had a Four-Point Program:
1. Lower the tariff > Walker Tariff (32% > 25%)
2. Restored the independent treasury
3. Settle the Oregon dispute (1846)
4. Acquire California
Causes of the Mexican-American War (1846-48)
Slidell dispatched to Mexico City to offer $24 million for California - rejected!
Texas boundary dispute: Rio Grande River v. Nueces River
January 13, 1844: Polk orders Zachary Taylor to cross the Nueces River and to the March to the Rio Grande River
April 25, 1846: Mexican troops attack Taylor's troops killing/wounding 16 Americans
"American Blood on the American soil." > War
Congressman Lincoln's "Spot" Resolutions
The American 3- Pronged Attack: (Map on page P. 284)
Stephen W. Kearny > Santa Fe and then California
But: John C. Fremont overthrew Mexican rule and created the Bear Flag Republic
Zachary Taylor > Northern Mexico and defeated Santa Anna's troops at Buena Vista
Winfield Scott > Vera Cruz > Mexico City (Sept. 1847)
February 2, 1848 - Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo:
1. Confirmed the American title to Texas
2. Mexico yielded the entire Southwest to the U.S.
3. U.S. agreed to pay $ 15 million for the land
4. U.S. agreed to assume claims of the U.S. citizens against Mexico ($ 3,250,000)
Legacy of the War: pp. 285 - 286
1846: Wilmot Proviso (Amendment) stipulated that slavery should never exist in any of the territory acquired from Mexico (Defeated in the Senate)