ACT Reading Practice: Andrew Jackson

Read the passage below on Andrew Jackson and answer the questions:

Andrew Jackson was born in a log cabin in Tennessee in 1767.  Both of his parents had died by the time  he was a teenager and he grew up poor and alone.  He had a quick temper and was involved in more than one duel (shooting at another person) to defend his honor.  Although uneducated, he eventually became a lawyer, but was best known as a soldier.  He fought the British in the American Revolution when he was only thirteen, and eventually rose to the rank of general.  In the War of 1812, General Jackson and his soldiers defeated the British at the Battle of New Orleans and he became an American hero.

In 1828, the American people elected Andrew Jackson as the seventh president.  He used his power to encourage greater voting participation by all white men, not just the rich, and he referred to himself as the president of the “common man.”  To demonstrate his leadership as President, he vetoed, or stopped, many new laws from Congress with which he did not agree.  One of the laws Jackson stopped was the growth of a National bank for the entire country.  Jackson took away the bank’s power because he believed the rich would control it and prevent the poor from getting loans.  By vetoing the bank, Jackson earned the support of farmers, working people and westerners, but angered the rich who thought it would be harder for them to make money.

When he was elected, Jackson fired many people who worked for the government.  He gave their jobs to people who helped win the election, instead of the people who were most qualified for the job.  Jackson said, “To the victor [winner] belong the spoils [the jobs].”  People call this the “spoils system.”  Jackson said that the spoils system was fair because it gave more people a chance to work for the government.  However, many people disagreed because the new employees would always agree with Jackson or risk loosing their jobs.

To raise money for the United States, Andrew Jackson helped Congress pass a new tariff law.  A tariff is a tax on imports, or goods coming into the country from other countries. The tariff raised the price of foreign goods and encouraged people to by American-made products.  The law angered many Southern Plantation owners who wanted to buy foreign goods cheaply and did not want other countries to tax their farm goods.  Leaders in South Carolina refused to obey the tariff law.  They believed a state had the right to nullify any national law with which it did not agree.  President Jackson signed the Force Bill, threatening to send the army to South Carolina to make sure the law was obeyed.  Fortunately, the tax was lowered and the state agreed to follow the law -- war was prevented.

As a General in the army, Andrew Jackson had fought against many Native American tribes.   In 1830, President Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, which ordered all Native American tribes living in the eastern United States to leave their homes and move west of the Mississippi River.  One group, the Cherokee went to court to try and keep their land, but Jackson sent the army to remove them.  Over 15,000 Native Americans were forced to move west on foot.  Twenty-five percent of the natives died on the journey leading this event to be called “The Trail of Tears.”

Andrew Jackson was President for eight years.  In 1836, he returned to his home in Tennessee and died there at the age of 78.  To his day, he has a very controversial reputation.  He is remembered as a strong leader who defended the nation from the states taking too much power, encouraged greater participation in elections and helped the poor gain economic rights.  However, his harsh treatment of the Native Americans, abuse of power and refusal to compromise have made many question his place in history.



SOCIAL SCIENCE: This selection entitled “Andrew Jackson’s Place in History,” was created by members of the EGHS Social Studies Department.  Andrew Jackson is a U.S. President with a questionable reputation.  Did he use his power for the good of the nation or to advance his own goals?

The main point the author is trying to make in the first paragraph (lines 1-6) is that:

The word “honor” as used in the first paragraph (line 3) most nearly means:

According to the passage, why was Andrew Jackson considered the President of the “common man”?

The passage indicates that President Jackson vetoed the National Bank for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

The passage indicates that many people thought the spoils system was unfair because:

The main idea of paragraph four is:

One can infer from the context of the paragraph, that the word “nullify” as used in paragraph four means:

According to the passage, the forced march of the Native Americans from the east to the west is know as the “Trail of Tears” because: