The early 1800's were a time of continuing change for the United States. Scenes like the ones witnessed in Cane Ridge, Kentucky were seen all around the country. New cities and the transportation revolution had left the people with stirred up emotions and hopes for the future. People struggled to find definition for their lives in the turmoil of the changing nation by concentrating their energies on things such as religious, social, and political movements.
American's longing for a reformed religion spurred the creation of the Second Great Awakening. The new churches were less formal than their predecessors were. Added to the usual church "rituals"ÃÂ were things such as circuit riders, which were traveling ministers, that gave sermons to groups like the one in Cane Ridge. The sermons were more personalized, dealing with aspects of the people's lives and designed to help people achieve their goals with a regimen of prayer and handwork that appealed to many.
English: Andrew Jackson - 7 th President of the Un...
United States
American abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison, thre...The fanaticism with religion grew stronger as preachers like Charles Grandison Finney handed Americans the task of perfecting the nation.
Fervent religions call to perfect America led to the development of a variety of social groups that wanted to approach the goal in different forms. Shakers and Mormons found that they needed to move away from mainstream America to achieve their goal. Though opposition was to be expected, women formed their own groups in order to express their views. A major movement, though short-lived, was the temperance movement, which was against the consumption of alcohol because of the many evils, such as crime and insanity, which it led to. It was one of the first organized reform movements in the United States. States such as Maine and Tennessee passed strong laws forbidding liquor and the success of those states and others encouraged...