Era Of Good Feelings Dbq

After the loss of the Napoleonic wars and the War of 1812, the American people were greatly scared and felt the need for oneness and unity. This period of time was called the Era of Good Feelings because of its one-party domination. (www.ushistory.org) Although this era was a time of nationalism, prosperity, and growth for the United States, there were some social issues and economics conflicts taking place in the country. Because the country was in a state of nationalism, people did not recognize the problems such as internal improvement arguments and economic and social conflicts that were going on at the time. One of the most significant and critical conflicts that took place during the Era of Good Feelings was the economy of the country.

In the 1800s, Florida was giving the southerners a hard time in that runaway slaves would hide there. In addition, a group of Native American clashed with the American settlers across the borders of Georgia. In addition, there was great tension between the North, the South, and the West regarding slavery. These regions were arguing on whether slavery should be outlawed. Because cotton was a skyrocketing industry, the south needed the slaves to do the tiresome and dreadful field work of separating the cotton from its pod for later manufacturing, therefore, the southerners, unlike the northern region, were against the outlawing of slavery. Issues regarding this topic were escalating, this is when the Missouri Compromise had risen. This act was an attempt to de-escalate the conflict between the regions and bring peace to the country, it passed a law that “the further introduction of slavery or involuntary servitude be prohibited...and that all children of slaves, born within the said state, after the admission thereof into the Union, shall be free but may be held to service until the age of twenty-five years." (Edward Channing. 360), this act, however, was only a temporary

There were some very important technological advancements that had occurred at that time, but advancement and growth do not happen overnight. Some people may even reject good ideas oblivious to the fact that they could actually be beneficial! Internal improvement debates had risen and bills pertaining to the infrastructure of the country were being proposed by the government, but, unfortunately, some of them were not passed. Three bills, if passed, would have provided the building of roads. Many of these bills were overruled due to fear of monopolistic activity of the government. People supporting the states' rights were against the government getting involved in the building of infrastructure. Many republicans were looking for ways to improve the transportation system. In 1816, John C. Calhoun sponsored the federal internal improvement plan which included the building of roads, and canals, but once again, the plan was vetoed because of president Madison. However, despite the fact that things did not go as planned for John C. Calhoun he was persistent and put the plan into action. The work of building roads was funded by private businesses, the state, and local government. Later on, in the early 1800s, railroads were in the making and the invention of steamboats had come about. Last but not least, the industrial revolution also played a role in the growth of the