G4 Glossary
gold rush (p. 309) Term for the gold-mining boom in the U.S.
western territories in the late 1840s and 1850s.
“good neighbor” (p. 673) President Herbert Hoover’s policy to
promote better relations between the United States and nations in
the Western Hemisphere; it declared America’s intention to dis-
claim the right to intervention pronounced in the Platt
Amendmentand the Roosevelt Corollary.
Great Awakening (p. 85) A widespread evangelical revival move-
ment of the 1740s and 1750s, sparked by the tour of the English
evangelical minister George Whitefield. The Awakening spread reli-
gious fervor but weakened the authority of established churches.
Great Compromise (p. 149) Resolved the differences between
the New Jersey and Virginia delegations to the Constitutional
Convention by providing for a bicameral legislature: the Senate,
with equal representation for each state, and the House of
Representatives, apportioned by population.
Great Society (p. 772) The sweeping legislative agenda of
President Lyndon Johnson; it sought to end poverty, promote civil
rights, and improve housing, health care, and education. The pro-
gram was criticized as costly and ineffective.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (p. 780) Congressional action,
undertaken at President Johnson’s request, giving the President
the authority to deploy U.S. troops to repel aggression in
Southeast Asia. This provided congressional sanction for the esca-
lation of the Vietnam war.
Half-Way Covenant (p. 67) A modification of puritan practice,
adopted by many Congregational churches during the 1650s and
afterwards, that allowed baptized puritans who had not experi-
enced saving grace to acquire partial church membership and
receive sacraments.
Harlem Renaissance (p. 658) A modern artistic and literary
movement that celebrated African American life and culture in
early twentieth-century Harlem, New York. Among its key figures
were Langston Hughes, Richard Wright, and Zora Neale Hurston
(literature); Duke Ellington (music); Jacob Lawrence (painting);
and Aaron Douglas (sculpture).
Hartford Convention (p. 203) A gathering of New England
Federalistsfrom December 1814 through January 1815 to chan-
nel opposition to Thomas Jefferson and the War of 1812. Some
participants may have regarded the meeting as preparatory to a
secession movement by the New England colonies.
headright (p. 58) A system of land distribution, adopted first in
Virginia and later in Maryland, that granted colonists fifty acres for
themselves and another fifty for each “head” (or person) they
brought with them to the colony. This system was often used in
conjunction with indentured servitude to build large plantations
and supply them with labor.
Hepburn Act (p. 572) Federal legislation, passed in 1906, that
gave the Interstate Commerce Commission sufficient power to
inspect railroad companies’ records, set maximum rates, and out-
law free passes.
Homestead Act (1862) (p. 389) Federal law granting 160 acres
of public land in the West to any settler who would farm and
improve it within five years of the grant; it encouraged migration
into the Great Plains.
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (p. 834) A virus,
usually spread through sexual contact, that attacks the immuneFirst Continental Congress (p. 108) An assembly comprised of
delegates from twelve colonies that met in Philadelphia in 1774. It
denied Parliament’s authority to legislate for the colonies, adopted
the Declaration of Rights and Grievances, created a Continental
Association to enforce a boycott of British imports, and endorsed a
call to take up arms against Britain.
Force Acts (p. 423) Three laws passed by the Republican-
dominated Congress in 1870–1871 to protect black voters in
the South. The laws placed state elections under federal juris-
diction and imposed fines and imprisonment on those guilty of
interfering with any citizen exercising his right to vote.
Fourteen Points (p. 628) A comprehensive plan, proposed by
President Woodrow Wilson in January 1918, to negotiate an end
to World War I. It called for freedom of the seas, free trade, arms
reduction, national self-determination and an end to colonial rule
and secret diplomacy.
Fourteenth Amendment (p. 409) An amendment, passed by
Congress in 1866 and ratified in 1868, that prohibited states from
depriving citizens of the due process or the equal protection of the
laws. Although the amendment was a response to discriminatory
laws against blacks in the South, it figured prominently in the
expansion of individual rights and liberties during the last half of
the twentieth century.
Free Soil party (p. 311) A party that emerged in the 1840s in
opposition to the expansion of slavery into the territories. Formally
organized in 1848, it nominated Martin Van Buren for president.
In 1856, Free Soil party members joined with former Whigsand
other disaffected voters to form the Republican party.
Freedmen’s Bureau (p. 408) A federal refugee agency to aid for-
mer slaves and destitute whites after the Civil War. It provided
them food, clothing, and other necessities as well as helped them
find work and set up schools.
French and Indian War (p. 92) Fourth in the series of great wars
between Britain and France, this conflict (1754–1763) had its
focal point in North America and pitted the French and their
Indian allies against the British and their Indian allies. Known in
Europe as the Seven Years’ War, this struggle drove the French
government from much of North America.
French Revolution (p. 158) The massive and violent social and
political upheaval commencing in 1789 that ended the French
monarchy, established a republic, expropriated the land and
property of the Catholic Church, and culminated in a bloody
reign of terror.
Fugitive Slave Act (p. 315) Initially, a 1793 law to encourage
the return of runaway slaves; this law was amended, as part of the
Compromise of 1850, so as to authorize federal commissioners
to compel citizens to assist in the return of runaway (fugitive)
slaves. The law offended Northerners and its nonenforcement
offended Southerners.
Gibbons v. Ogden(p. 242) Supreme Court ruling (1824) that
held that no state could pass laws affecting interstate trade,
thereby ensuring the federal government’s supremacy in inter-
state commerce.
Glorious Revolution (p. 68) The peaceful accession of William II,
a Protestant, and Queen Mary to the British throne in 1688, end-
ing the Catholic rule of James II. Many colonists rebelled against
governors who had been appointed by James II and demanded
greater political rights.