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We sure do live in a wonderful country. We get protection,

 independence, and most importantly freedom. Have you 

ever 

wondered how our country got to be the way it is today? It 

certainly didn't happen overnight. In the following pages, I 

will describe the people, acts, and movements that shaped 

the history of America. Our country would not be the same 

without them

Eli Whitney was a very important factor in developing our country when it was new. His 

biggest achievement was inventing the cotton gin, which made separating cotton fiber 

from cotton seeds extremely quick and easy. Not only did his machine speed up cotton 

production, it turned cotton into a very profitable crop. Along with those improvements, 

his invention also strengthened the economic foundation for slavery in the United States.

- This is a picture of an old 19th 

century cotton gin.

An embargo is an act of prohibiting trade and commerce between a 

particular country, in order to stop it. In 1807, Great Britain and 

France were in the middle of a war. The United States did not want to 

get involved in the war, but still wanted to trade with both of the 

countries. American merchants traveled to the countries to trade with 

them, but the men and their cargo were seized. The United States 

Congress was not pleased with this, so they enforced an embargo on 

both France and Great Britain. The embargo hurt the US because 

farmers could not sell their crops, but it also throttled overseas trade 

very effectively. The embargo was a bit of a setback, but it effectively 

showed our independence as a country. 

The War of 1812 was a war fought between the United States and 

Great Britain. The war went on for almost 3 years, and the US came 

out victorious. The US achieved a lot with their victory, such as 

suppressing Native American resistance on its western and southern 

borders and strengthening their navy. These feats were important, but 

the most important thing taken from their victory was a psychological 

sense of complete independence from Britain. Many Americans called 

it their "second war of independence." 

The Louisiana Purchase was the act of the United States buying the 

Louisiana territory from France. The original price was 50 million US 

dollars, but France owed the US money so the official payment was 

$15 million. It may seem like a lot of money, but in reality we payed 

less than 3 cents per acre of land. This purchase was a major factor in 

starting our country, because it basically doubled the size of our nation 

at the time. When president Thomas Jefferson was considering the 

purchase, many thought it would be unconstitutional. However, there 

was nothing in the constitution that went against it, so Jefferson went 

ahead with the purchase. The Louisiana Purchase definitely helped 

make our country the way it is today. Without it, we may not have 

owned the same amount of land that we do today. 

Supreme Court justice John Marshall made many important decisions in 

court that have changed they way this country works.

McCulloch v. Maryland: The state of Maryland wanted to have taxes on all 

bank notes not chartered in Maryland. James William McCulloch, who was 

the head of the Second Bank of the United States, refused to pay this tax. 

Maryland sued McCulloch, and claimed that the Constitution is silent on the 

topic of banks. They wanted to prove that the bank was unconstitutional, but 

the supreme court ruled against Maryland, and said that Congress had the 

power to create the bank. This case was considered the first constitutional 

court case of our country.

Marbury v. Madison: William Marbury issued a petition to the supreme court 

concerning judicial review. Judicial review is the ability of a court to review 

and bend laws stated in the constitution. Marbury believed that judicial 

review was unjust. Also, Marbury had applied for a seat on the Supreme 

Court, and he was relying on president James Madison to deliver his 

commission, but he never did. The court decided that Marbury had the right 

to his commission, but they could not force James Madison to deliver it. The 

court also determined that it is not written in the constitution that the court 

has the right to change or create any laws that are not already written.

Gibbons v. Ogden: Aaron Ogden filed a complaint requesting that 

Thomas Gibbons be restrained from operating business on the waters 

within New York, due to his monopoly of the steam boat business in 

that state. Ogden argued that the state had power over these affairs, 

while Gibbons argued that Congress held the power. The Supreme 

Court ruled in favor of Gibbons.

The Adams-Onis Treaty was the purchase of Florida by the US from 

Spain. This treaty also established the border between the U.S. and 

New Spain(Mexico). This settled a standing border dispute between 

the two countries and was considered an American triumph of 

diplomacy. This purchase also expanded the territory of the Unites 

States greatly, which helped a lot in gaining more land for our growing 

country.

The Monroe Doctrine was a petition passed by the United States that 

stated that any further attempt by European nations to colonize any 

territory in North or South America would be seen as an act of 

aggression. The primary goal of this doctrine was to free the newly 

independent colonies of Latin America from European conflict. The 

petition not only protected Latin American colonies, but also asserted our 

power to Britain and showed them that we were an independent, self-

reliant country.

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