U.S. History: Immigrants, Cities, Political Machines & The Progressive Era

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering immigration, urban growth, municipal political machines, civil service reform, and Progressive Era domestic policies from Modules 4 and 5.

Push Factors

Forces that drove immigrants out of their homelands, including famine, land shortages, religious persecution (such as Russian pogroms against Jews), and political unrest.

Pull Factors

Forces that attracted immigrants to the United States, such as jobs in booming industries, higher wages than at home, and the promise of a better life.

Birds of Passage

Immigrants who intended to stay in the United States only temporarily to earn money and then return to their homelands.

"Old" Immigrants

Immigrants who arrived in the United States before 1890, traveling primarily from western and northern Europe, including Britain, Ireland, Germany, and Scandinavia.

"New" Immigrants

Immigrants who arrived in increasing numbers after 1890, originating mainly from southern and eastern European nations such as Italy, Austria-Hungary, and Russia.

Steerage

The cheapest passenger accommodations on a steamship, located in cargo holds and characterized by dark, crowded conditions, shared toilets, lice, and disease.

Ellis Island

The chief East Coast immigration station in New York Harbor operating from 1892 to 1924, processing approximately 17 million mostly European immigrants through medical and legal inspections.

Angel Island

The West Coast immigration station in San Francisco Bay that operated from 1910 to 1940, where approximately 50,000 mostly Chinese immigrants endured harsh questioning and detention in run-down buildings under the Chinese Exclusion Act.

Americanization Movement

An education program designed by government agencies and volunteer groups to assimilate immigrants into dominant American culture by teaching English, U.S. history, government, cooking, and social etiquette.

Melting Pot

The idea that the United States is a mixture of people of different cultures and races who blended together by abandoning their native languages and customs.

Nativism

An overt favoritism toward native-born Americans that fueled anti-immigrant sentiment and legislative efforts to restrict foreign arrivals.

Chinese Exclusion Act

An 1882 federal law banning immigration of Chinese laborers for ten years—later extended and made indefinite until its repeal in 1943—exempting only students, teachers, merchants, tourists, and government officials.

Gentlemen's Agreement

A 1907–1908 agreement between the U.S. and Japan in which the Japanese government agreed to limit the emigration of unskilled workers to the U.S. in exchange for San Francisco repealing its school segregation order against Japanese children.

Urbanization

The rapid growth of cities, especially concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest, spurred by industrial job opportunities, rural migration, and incoming immigrants.

Tenements

Overcrowded, multifamily urban dwellings that were often unsanitary, poorly ventilated, and unsafe.

Social Gospel

A 19th-century reform movement based on the belief that Christians and churches had a moral duty to solve societal problems and achieve salvation through service to the poor.

Settlement Houses

Community centers founded in slum neighborhoods and operated largely by middle-class, college-educated women to provide educational, cultural, and social services to the urban poor.

Hull House

A prominent Chicago settlement house founded in 1889 by social reformers Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr.

Political Machine

An organized political group that controlled city government activities by providing services, jobs, and naturalization assistance to voters and businesses in exchange for votes and financial loyalty.

Graft

The illegal use of political influence for personal financial gain.

Tweed Ring

A corrupt ring of New York City politicians led by Tammany Hall boss William M. Tweed that defrauded taxpayers of millions—including the Tweed Courthouse project—until being exposed by cartoonist Thomas Nast.

Patronage (Spoils System)

An officeholder's practice of appointing friends and political supporters to government civil service jobs, regardless of their qualifications.

Pendleton Act

An 1883 civil service law signed by President Chester Arthur establishing a bipartisan commission to appoint federal employees based on competitive merit examinations rather than political favoritism.

Progressivism

An early 20th-century reform movement aimed at restoring economic opportunities and correcting injustices in American life around four primary goals: social welfare, moral improvement, economic reform, and efficiency.

Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU)

A reform organization founded in 1874 and led by Frances Willard that advocated for total alcohol prohibition while pursuing a broad "Do everything" agenda including prison reform, kindergartens, and women's suffrage.

Muckrakers

Journalists and investigative writers during the Progressive Era who exposed corruption, unsafe working conditions, and abuses of power in business and government.

The History of the Standard Oil Company

A 1904 expose written by muckraker Ida M. Tarbell revealing John D. Rockefeller's ruthless business tactics, which accelerated public demand for antitrust legislation.

The Shame of the Cities

A 1904 book by muckraker Lincoln Steffens that exposed urban political machine corruption, election fraud, and police bribes.

The Jungle

A 1906 novel by Upton Sinclair that portrayed the nauseating and unsanitary conditions of Chicago's meatpacking industry, prompting federal food regulation.

Scientific Management

An industrial management approach, also known as "Taylorism" after Frederick Winslow Taylor, that analyzed workplace workflows using time-and-motion studies to maximize production efficiency.

Brandeis Brief

A legal brief developed by attorney Louis D. Brandeis that grounded legal arguments primarily in social science research, medical data, and statistical evidence rather than pure legal precedent.

Commission Plan

A reformed municipal structure first adopted by Galveston, Texas, in 1900 where a board of elected commissioners or department experts collectively governs the city, each overseeing a specific municipal branch.

Council-Manager Plan

A system of municipal administration where elected city council members pass legislation and hire an experienced, nonpartisan city manager to administer public services.

Wisconsin Idea

A progressive reform philosophy championed by Governor Robert "Fighting Bob" La Follette that utilized public university professors and scientific research to help draft state laws and regulate corporations.

Secret Ballot

A government-printed ballot marked in privacy at polling places to eliminate intimidation and corrupt party vote-buying.

Initiative

A progressive election mechanism empowering citizens to bypass state legislatures by collecting petition signatures to place proposed laws directly on the ballot.

Referendum

A procedure allowing registered voters to approve or reject a proposed law or act passed by the state legislature via a direct popular vote.

Recall

A democratic procedure enabling voters to petition for an election to remove a public official from office before their term expires.

Bully Pulpit

Theodore Roosevelt's conception of the presidency as an influential national platform to preach his ideas, sway public opinion, and advance progressive policy.

Square Deal

Theodore Roosevelt's domestic policy agenda designed to protect common citizens against exploitation by powerful trusts and corporations.

Trust

A legal business entity that holds stock across multiple corporations within an industry, enabling a small group of directors to dominate markets and eliminate competitive pricing.

Meat Inspection Act (1906)

A federal law passed during Theodore Roosevelt's presidency establishing strict cleanliness requirements for meatpackers and mandating federal inspections of meat-processing facilities.

Pure Food and Drug Act (1906)

A federal statute that halted the sale of contaminated foods or medicines and required truth in labeling on commercial products.

Conservation

The planned management and sustainable utilization of natural resources, championed by Theodore Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot, balancing preservation with development for public benefit.