Reform Movements Part II Notes

• What are six conditions women in the 19th century endured?

  1. Unable to vote
  2. Legal status of a minor
  3. Single = could own her own property
  4. Married = no control over her property or her children
  5. Could not initiate divorce
  6. Couldn't make wills, sign a contract, or bring suit in court without her husband's permission
• What is the "separate spheres" concept?

  A woman's sphere was in the home (it was a refuge from the "cruel world" outside), their role was to civilize the husband and the family
• What is meant by the "cult of domesticity?"

  Glorifies the woman as the homemaker; women saw this as a form of slavery
• Where was the first women's rights convention held?

  Seneca Falls, New York. It launched the modern women's rights movement.
• What were the goals of this convention?

  • Educational and professional opportunities
  • Property rights
  • Legal equality
  • Repeal of laws awarding the father custody of the children in divorce
  • Suffrage rights
• Who was the leader of the convention?

  Elizabeth Cady Stanton
• What document was produced?

  The Declaration of Sentiments
• What other document does this document closely mirror?

  The Declaration of Independence
• How did the introduction of the cotton gin impact the growth of slavery in the South between 1820 and 1860?

  It caused slavery to spiral and grow crazily along the cotton belt
• What was the goal of the abolitionist movement?

  Promoted the end of slavery in America
• Why was there no real anti-slavery sentiment in the country prior to the 1840s?

  Slavery was popular and the North didn't see slavery first hand
• Describe the different between gradualists and immediatists:

  Gradualists: want it phased out and allow the South to adapt to having no slaves

  Immediatists: Said slavery is inhumane and wanted it gone immediately
• Why were Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth so effective at spreading the abolitionist message?

  Douglass said slavery was un-christian and speaking about the horrors of slavery. Truth spoke about life as a slave and also as a woman
• What was the Underground Railroad? How is it similar to an actual railroad?

  A system used by slaves to escape to freedom in the North. White abolitionists provided safe-houses for escapees. Railroad terminologies were used as code so they didn't get caught:

  Ex., passengers, conductors, tracks, depots, etc.

  Harriet Tubman is the most well known "conductor"