Government Changes In The United States During The Late 1800s

20182600

During the 1800’s the US went through government changes. In 1776 the Declaration of Independence was approved, in 1777 the Articles of Confederation were adopted, and in 1787 the Constitution was signed. With each new change America improved more, but problems still occurred. America was gaining immigrants which was forcing Americans westward towards the Indians which caused tension issues among the immigrants and the natives. Since government was not fully solidified, there were also issues there. Backcountry farmers were involved in these issues and when this happened, the farmers would take the law into their own hands and lead violent protests against their issues. Examples of what these protests were about are: excise taxes on

The Articles of Confederation were adopted in 1777. Since this was the United States’ first attempt at their own government, it had issues. These issues were in effect for the full ten years that the Articles were in place. In Massachusetts around 1786 and 1787 a lot of the yeoman farmers had just got back from fighting in the Revolutionary War and had not gotten paid what was promised to the people who fought in the Revolutionary War. The Revolutionary War left America in major debt, but since the Articles did not let the federal government collect taxes, the states had to take care of their own debt. To do this, Massachusetts put heavier taxes on the yeoman farmers, who all became indebted. When the farmers could not pay the government seized their farms, land, any animals, their houses, and even sometimes their wives. Despite the state government taking all of the farmer’s property and supplies, the farmer was still expected to pay the taxes. To stop the foreclosures, a group of yeoman farmers took up arms and closed the courts to ensure that no more farms could be foreclosed. This rebellion, Shay’s Rebellion, was led by Danielle Shay, who himself was an indebted farmer. Shay’s Rebellion was considered a grassroot movement because it inspired other revolts such as the Whiskey Rebellion. This rebellion was significant because it showed how weak the federal government was under the Articles of Confederation. Since the federal government was given no powers it had no way to stop the rebellion which prompted a need for a new