President Andrew Jackson presided over an important time in American history. The fifty years period between the war of 1812 and the Civil War is called the Jacksonian Age. This time has also been called the Jacksonian Revolution because of the sweeping changes that took place in the American society and politics. Changes in industry were aided by the factory system, brought to America by an English textile worker named Samuel Slater who copied English factory designs and opened many cotton mills. The output of cotton also grew due to Eli Whitney's cotton gin, a machine that removed the seeds from cotton faster than human workers. Other changes included the improvement of railroads and canals and the formation of the Democratic Party. Although America seemed to be prospering because of Andrew Jackson's desire to aid the common man, his presidency was focused mainly on revenge and his own personal gain. Hostile cartoonists portrayed him as King Andrew I.
Since the beginning of the 1824 presidential election, Andrew Jackson was bent on revenge. Jackson became a presidential candidate in 1824. During the election, Jackson received 99 electoral votes; Adams, 84; Crawford, 41; and Clay, 37. Jackson also won the popular by about 50,000 votes over Adams. However, because none of the candidates had a majority of the electoral votes, the election had to be decided by the House of Representatives. Each state had one vote, and only the top three candidates were eligible. On February 9, 1825, the House elected Adams president. He had 13 votes, Jackson had 7, and Crawford had 4. Three Western states that had originally supported Clay switched to Adams. Later, when president-elect Adams named Clay secretary of state, Jackson's supporters accused them of making a "corrupt bargain." This "corrupt bargain" was the idea that Adams went to the House or Representatives leader, Henry Clay, who was already eliminated from the election, and promised that if Clay and his followers would cast their vote pro Adams, Adams would appoint Henry Clay as his Secretary of State.
