American System
By:Alyssa Holt
What was the American System?
This was a plan to stregthen and unify our nation!
Key components of the American System:
A few key components of the American System were:
- establish a protective tariff
- a tax on all imported goods that made European goods more expensive
- establish a national bank with one currency
- improve the country's transportation systems
Nationalism vs. Sectionalism
Nationalism: pride, loyalty and protectiveness to your country
Sectionalism: Loyalty to the interests of your own region or section of the country, rather than to the nation as a whole. This was a threat to nationalism.
Dangers of Sectionalism: sectionalism can divide a country if is gets to out of control.
Henry Clay
Roles Clay played:
- Leader of Whig party
- Secretary of state under John Adams
- Speaker of house of representatives (longer than anyone else in 19th century)
- Nationalist
Henry Clay's American System