Unit One Vocabulary Native Americans

Timeline: a diagram that shows events that took place during a certain period of time. Ice Age: period of time in which low temperatures caused much of the Earth’s  water  to  freeze.

Glacier: Huge sheets of ice formed during the ice age. Migration: Movement of people from one place to another. Theory: one possible explanation of something. Artifacts: objects that are made by people in the past. Archeologist: a scientist who studies the artifacts of people long ago and draw conclusions from them.

Ceremony: activity done for a special purpose. Mesa: high, flat landform that rises steeply from the land around it. Drought: long period without rain. Tribe: group of families bound together under a single leadership. League: union of people or groups. Longhouse: building used for shelter by the Iroquois, made from trees and housed several families.

Cultural Region: area in which people with similar cultures live. Wampum: belts or strings of polished seashells that were used for trading and giving by the Iroquois and other Eastern Woodland Native Americans.

Reservation: land set aside by the United States government for Native Americans Maize: corn Nomads: people who travel place to place and take their shelters with them; people who wander.

Barter: trade Pueblo: Spanish word for village Potlatch: Native American celebration in which the hosts gives gifts to their guests (Pacific Northwest Native Americans) used to show generosity and wealth.

Totem Pole: wooden posts carved with animals or other images often made by Native Americans from the Pacific Northwest cultural region used to honor ancestors or special events

Shaman: Native American doctor or healer

Unit Two Vocabulary Explorers

Latitude- distance north or south of the equator, measured in degrees

Degree- unit of measure used in latitude and longitude

Equator- an imaginary line around the middle of the earth, halfway between

the North Pole and the South Pole, 0 degrees latitude

Longitude- distance east or west of the prime meridian, measured in degrees

Prime Meridian- line of longitude marked zero degrees

Silk Road- the major trade route between China and other lands

Saga- long spoken tale repeated from one generations to the net

Renaissance- a period of time in which there was a new desire to learn more

about the arts, science, and other parts of the world.

Printing Press- a machine that would print a large number of books rapidly

Navigation- science used by sailors to plot their course and determine their

location

Prince Henry- Prince of Portugal who established a school for sailors and

navigators

Expedition- a journey made for a special purpose

Colony- a settlement far from the country that rules it

Columbian Exchange- a movement of people, animals, plants, diseases and

ways of life between the Eastern Hemisphere and Western Hemisphere

Circumnavigate- to sail completely around something

Conquistadors- any of the Spanish conquerors in the Americas during the early

1500s.

Unit Three Vocabulary Colonization

Walter Raleigh- English explorer who used his own money to set up England's

first colony on Roanoke Island.

John White- leader of the English colony of Roanoke

Queen Elizabeth I- Queen of England

Charter- A permit to start a colony issued by a monarch

Stock- share in a company

Cash Crop- A crop that is raised only for profit

Pilgrims- English people that wanted to separate from the Church of England.

They were also known as separatists.

Persecution- unfair treatment because  of  one’s  beliefs

Mayflower Compact- The first American document that stated all members of

the colony would accept the rules of the majority.

Puritan- They came for religious freedom also. They wished to worship in a

more "pure" way.

Presidios- military fort built by the Spanish

Self- Sufficient- ability  to  rely  on  one’s  self  for  most  of  what  one  needs

New England Colonies- New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island,

Connecticut

Middle Colonies- New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey. These

colonies were the "breadbasket" because of the grains they could grow.

Southern Colonies- Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia.

Dissenter- one whose views differ from his or her leader.

William Penn- Founder of Pennsylvania, a colony that was a refuge for Quakers.

Proprietors- owner

Debtors- people who owe money

James Oglethorpe- English leader who founded the colony of Georgia as a place

where debtors from England could lead new lives.

Almanac- reference book with helpful facts

Town Common- open space in the center of many New England and Middle

Colony towns where sheep and cattle graze

Apprentice- A young boy that spent 5 or more years in the home of a master

craftsman learning a trade.

Artisan- skilled worker who makes things by hand

Middle Passage- Name given to the second leg of the Triangular Trade Routes.

It reached from Africa to the West Indies. From the West Indies rice, indigo,

sugar and slaves were shipped to the colonies

Triangular Trade Routes- Trade routes that linked Britain (also called England),

Africa, and the British colonies (in America and the West).

o 1. Manufactured goods came from Britain

2. Raw materials from the colonies

3. Enslaved people and gold from Africa

Indentured Servants- A person who agreed to work without pay, usually for 5

to 7 years to pay for his trip to America. Then he or she was set free.

Unit Four Vocabulary The American Revolution

Backcountry- a rugged stretch of land near the Appalachian Mountains.

Families built log cabins, hunted, and carved small farms from the rocky soil.

Ohio River Valley- a region of fertile land and thick forests along the Ohio River.

Claimed by other settlers.

French and Indian War- a war between the British and French with the Native

American Indian allies.

Proclamation of 1763- this proclamation, or official announcement said the

colonists were no longer allowed to settle on land west of the Appalachian

Mountains.

Parliament- Britain’s  law  making  assembly

Stamp Act- a law that placed a tax on printed materials in the colonies, such as

legal documents, newspapers, and even playing cards

Sugar Act- a tax on goods coming into the colony

Repeal- cancel

Tariff- a tax on imported goods

Boycott- a refusal to buy goods

Committee of Correspondence- a group of colonists from each town who wrote

back and forth to each other about events.

Tea Act- a new law by parliament that a British company would be the only

company allowed to sell tea to the colonists.

Patriots- colonist who opposed British rule

Loyalists- colonist who remained loyal to the King George and the British

government

Militias- volunteer armies

Minutemen- men who could be ready in a minute notice

Continental Army- an army with soldiers from the 13 colonies

Olive Branch Petition- a letter to King George III asking for freedom

Fort Ticonderoga- an important victory for the Americans

Mercenaries- soldiers from one country who are paid to fight for another

country

Battle of Saratoga- battle of the Revolution won by the Americans and was a

turning point in the Revolution

Valley Forge- site where George Washington and the troops camped for the

winter during the war

Benedict Arnold- American general who became a traitor and joined the British

forces.

Fredrich von Steuben- helped to turn Continental army into professionals.

Marquis de Lafayette- European volunteer from France who helped the

American army

Francis Marion- famous for his surprise attacks on the British army

Cowpens- battle of American Revolution where the Americans fought against

the British and loyalist Americans

Yorktown- the last battle of the Revolution with an American victory

Treaty of Paris- a treaty that said that Britain recognized the United States as an

Independent nation.

Unit Five Vocabulary The Constitution

Articles of Confederation - first plan of government for the U.S in effect from

1781 to 1789. It gave more power to the states than to the central government.

Constitutional Convention- Meeting of delegates who met in Philadelphia,

Pennsylvania, in 1787 and replaced the Articles of Confederation with the

Constitution.

Virginia Plan- This said that larger states would have more votes and power.

New Jersey Plan- This plan stated each state large or small would have the

same number of votes.

Compromise- Each side gives up something to reach an agreement.

Great Compromise- agreement at the Constitutional Convention to create a

Congress with 2 houses.

Three Fifths Compromise- only 3/5 of the slaves would be counted.

Checks and Balances- give each branch of government the power to check and

to limit the power of the other branches.

Veto- refuse to sign into law

Separation of Powers- division of power among the three branches of the

federal government under the Constitution.

Bill of Rights- first ten commandments to the Constitution

Amendment- an addition or change to the Constitution

Political Party- an organized group of people who share a view of what government should be and do.

Unit Six Vocabulary Westward Expansion

Pioneer- early settlers of a region

Frontier- outer edge of a settled area

Wilderness Road- Trail used by pioneers through the Appalachian Mountains

from Virginia to Kentucky established by Daniel Boone in 1775.

Cumberland Gap- Pass through the Appalachian Mountains, in northwest

Tennessee

Self-Sufficient- ability to rely on oneself for most of what one needs

Louisiana Purchase- Territory purchased by the United States from France in

1803.

Expedition- journey made for a special purpose

Pike’s  Peak- a mountain in east central Colorado; part of the Rocky Mountains

named after Zebulon Pike.

Battle of Tippecanoe- Battle between the United States soldiers and the

Shawnee in 1811 that neither side won.

Monroe Doctrine- policy declared by President James Monroe warning

European nations not to interfere in the Western Hemisphere.

War of 1812- Conflict between United States and Britain that lasted from 1812

to 1815.

Indian Removal Act- Law passed in 1830 forcing American Indians living in the

southeast to be moved west of the Mississippi.

Indian Territory- Land set aside by the Indian Removal Act of 1830 for the

Native Americans who were forced to move from the southeastern United

States

Annex- to add or attach

Manifest Destiny- belief that the United States should expand west to the

Pacific Ocean.

Mountain Men- fur trappers who helped explore and settle the Oregon

Country.

Wagon Train- common method of transportation to the West, in which wagons

traveled in groups for safety.

Gold Rush- sudden movement of many people to an area where gold has been

found.

Forty-Niners- nickname for a person who arrived in California in 1849 to look

for gold.

Free States- states that did not allow slavery.

Slave States- states in which slavery was legally allowed.

States’  Rights- idea that states have the right to make decisions about issues

that concern them.

Fugitive Slave Law- Law passed by Congress in 1850 that said escaped slaves

had to return to their owners.

Unit Seven Vocabulary The Civil War

Sectionalism- loyalty to one section of the country rather than the whole country.

Slave Codes- laws designed to control the behavior of slaves

Underground Railroad- system of secret routes used by escaping slaves that led from

the South to the North or Canada.

Abolitionist- person who wants to abolish, or end slavery

Secede- to break away

Confederacy- Confederate States of America formed by 11 Southern states that

seceded from the Union

Union- United States of America

Fort Sumter-

Border States- during the Civil War, a state between the Union and the Confederacy

that allowed slavery but did remain in the Union

Civil War- war between people of the same country

Blockade- shutting off an area by troop or ships to keep people and supplies from

moving in or out.

Anaconda Plan- Union strategy for defeating the Confederacy

Draft- law that requires men of a certain age to serve in the military if called.

Battle of Gettysburg- Union victory over Confederate forces in 1863 near Gettysburg,

Pennsylvania that marked the turning point of the Civil War

Gettysburg Address- famous Civil War speech given by President Lincoln in 1863 at

the site of the Battle of Gettysburg.

Assassination- the killing of a high ranking official or leader