Charlotte Mecklenburg Library

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Nation: America 1782-1819

1800 - Slave Resistance

Plantation owners fear their slaves may plan to run away or revolt. To prevent this, slaves are forbidden to meet in groups or learn to read. They live in huts and cabins where the supervisors, or overseers, can watch them. Often, husbands and wives are separated. But the slaves gather in secret to worship, study and sing hymns. One is called Steal Away, and some slaves believe the words are a sacred message telling them to seek freedom.A street through slave quarters

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1807 - Educating Ladies

Most girls receive no formal education. They learn homemaking skills from their mothers. Families who can afford the $5 per session tuition send their daughters to Mrs. Milligan's Young Ladies' School. Pupils learn reading, writing, grammar and needlework. Five years later, Mrs. Bevens will open a girls' boarding school.

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1814 - Treaty of Ghent

December 24, 1814 - The U.S. and Great Britain sign a treaty at Ghent, Belgium that will end the War of 1812. But before word of the treaty that is signed across the Atlantic Ocean reaches America, the British will attack again. One more major battle will erupt, this time on Southern soil.

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1808 - End of the Slave Trade

The United States will no longer allow slaves to be brought here, or imported, from foreign countries. But this ruling does not affect slaves who are already here. It will take a war to win their freedom.

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1800 - Prison Welfare

Lawbreakers imprisoned in sheriff James Neal's jail are well-fed while incarcerated. Each day they receive one pound of wholesome bread, one pound of good roasted or boiled meat and all water needed.

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1786 - How to Govern

America's leaders still disagree when discussing how to formulate the young country's government. Now free from Britain's tyranny, there is no king who rules America. Who should be in charge? How can we defend ourselves against invasion by another country? Who will protect each of the 13 states? How much power will the government have? The Articles of Confederation does not provide for these concerns.

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1815 - Last Battle

January 1, 1815 - Andrew Jackson, born at Waxhaw on the North-South Carolina state line, now commands the American troops defending New Orleans, Louisiana from the British. From fortifications, strategic places built up to strengthen the city, Jackson repels the intruders. But the British will not be dismayed. They will return one week later. 

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1787 - Senator Andrew Jackson

November 6, 1787 - Twenty-year-old Andrew Jackson earns a license to practice law. Not only will he go on to become a judge, senator and war hero, the Carolina native will become the seventh president of the U.S. Jackson's home community of Waxhaw straddles the border of North and South Carolina. Both states will claim this independent thinker as their own.

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1787 - New Republic

September 17, 1787 - Finally, there is a Constitution of the United States of America. It determined how the country will make laws, elect representatives, and defend against its enemies in times of war. The men who drafted the Constitution wisely provided a way to make future changes, called amendments. But more work lies ahead. Only when 2/3 of the states approve, or ratify, the Constitution will it become law. Will nine states ratify it?

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1787 - New Constitution

May 25, 1787 - North Carolina sends five delegates to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. For the next four months, the men will debate and struggle to reach an agreement about the structure and power of our country's government.

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