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| | In addition to the Utopian communities, there were key social and religious movements in or around the 1840s that resulted from the culmination of the Second Great Awakening, which swept America from 1790 to 1840: | | In addition to the Utopian communities, there were key social and religious movements in or around the 1840s that resulted from the culmination of the Second Great Awakening, which swept America from 1790 to 1840: |
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| − | * the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormon Church), the only major church founded in America, was established in 1830 by Joseph Smith in western New York. He then moved to Ohio, and then Nauvoo, Illinois, where it thrived so much that it became the largest town in Illinois in 1844 (even bigger than Chicago). The movement banned alcohol and emphasized hard work and entrepreneurship. But in 1844 an anti-Mormon newspaper (the "Nauvoo Expositor") began harshly criticizing the church, and city council responded by shutting down the newspaper, which in turn led to a backlash causing the imprisonment of Mayor Joseph Smith. While in jail, Joseph Smith (and his brother) was killed by a mob that was unlawfully allowed to enter the prison. Brigham Young became the next leader of this church within a few years, and led the 70,000-person Mormon community on a 1,300-mile migration to establish a new state in the west, then part of Mexico but now Utah. Today the Mormon Church is the fourth largest church denomination in the United States, after Catholics, Baptists and Methodists.<ref>http://www.ncccusa.org/news/080215yearbook1.html</ref> One of its spectacular temples is located just north of D.C., close to the "Beltway" (highway 495 that loops around D.C.). | + | * the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the Mormon Church), the only major church founded in America, was established in 1830 by Joseph Smith in western New York. He then moved to Ohio, and then Nauvoo, Illinois, where it thrived so much that it became the largest town in Illinois in 1844 (even bigger than Chicago). The movement banned alcohol and emphasized hard work and entrepreneurship. But in 1844 an anti-Mormon newspaper (the "Nauvoo Expositor") began harshly criticizing the church, and city council responded by shutting down the newspaper, which in turn led to a backlash causing the imprisonment of Mayor Joseph Smith. While in jail, Joseph Smith (and his brother) was killed by a mob that was unlawfully allowed to enter the prison. Brigham Young became the next leader of this church within a few years, and led the 70,000-person Mormon community on a 1,300-mile migration to establish a new state in the west, then part of Mexico but now Utah. Today the Mormon Church is the fourth largest church denomination in the United States, after Catholics, Baptists and Methodists.<ref>http://www.ncccusa.org/news/080215yearbook1.html</ref> One of its spectacular temples is located just north of D.C., visible from the "Beltway" (highway 495 that loops around D.C.). |
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| − | * The Seventh Day Adventist Church began 1844, when a prediction of the end of the world based on a biblical interpretation did not happen (the so-called "Great Disappointment"). This new Christian religion emphasizes observance of the Sabbath on Saturday (hence its name), adherence to the Bible, and preparation for the second coming of Christ. The Seventh Day Adventists also developed an approach to good health that included building hospitals, such as the large hospital located in Hackettstown, New Jersey. | + | * The Seventh Day Adventist Church began 1844, when a prediction of the end of the world based on a biblical interpretation did not happen (the so-called "Great Disappointment"). This new Christian religion emphasizes observance of the Sabbath on Saturday (hence its name), adherence to the Bible, and preparation for the second coming of Christ. The Seventh Day Adventists also developed an approach to good health that included building hospitals, such as a medical school in southern California and hospitals throughout the United States. |
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| | * Women's rights began as a social movement in 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, where the first women's rights convention was held. The assembly drafted a Declaration of Sentiments that called for granting women the right to vote, which they did not have at the time. Separately, in 1849, the English-born Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive a medical degree in America, which she obtained from Geneva College in New York. | | * Women's rights began as a social movement in 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, where the first women's rights convention was held. The assembly drafted a Declaration of Sentiments that called for granting women the right to vote, which they did not have at the time. Separately, in 1849, the English-born Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to receive a medical degree in America, which she obtained from Geneva College in New York. |
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| − | * In 1840, the first anti-slavery party (called the "Liberty Party") formed. It lasted until 1848, when it merged with opponents of slavery in the Whig and Democratic Parties in order to form another anti-slavery party, the stronger Free-Soil party. | + | * In 1840, the first anti-slavery party (called the "Liberty Party") formed. It lasted until 1848, when it merged with opponents of slavery in the Whig and Democratic Parties in order to form another anti-slavery party, the stronger Free-Soil Party. Later it would be replaced by the Republican Party. |
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| − | * In 1842, the union workers' movement obtained a key court ruling in their favor from the Massachusetts Supreme Court, in ''[[Commonwealth v. Hunt]]''. That decision held that it was legal for workers to organize a union and to strike. Union power was greatly increased by this ability to strike (and shut down a factory) when the employer does not give into union demands. Some blame the collapse of the American automobile industry today and the resultant depression in Michigan on abuse by unions of their great power. The unionization of ''government'' workers also became a national controversy, as the Wisconsin Governor seeks to terminate the basic union power of "collective bargaining" for its ''government'' workers. | + | * In 1842, the union workers' movement obtained a key court ruling in their favor from the Massachusetts Supreme Court, in ''[[Commonwealth v. Hunt]]''. That decision held that it was legal for workers to organize a union and to strike. Union power was greatly increased by this ability to strike (and shut down a factory) when the employer does not give into union demands. Some blame the collapse of the American automobile industry today and the resultant depression in Michigan on abuse by unions of their great power. The unionization of ''government'' workers has also become a national controversy in recent years, and in 2011 the governor of Wisconsin Governor signed into law limitations on the power of "collective bargaining" for its ''government'' workers. |
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| | ==James K. Polk and War with Mexico== | | ==James K. Polk and War with Mexico== |