Unit 6: The Gilded Age (1865-1900)

pure capitalism

an economy where people compete to make enough money to buy the things they want and need; whatever money people get they keep: there are no taxes, but also no government programs or institutions

pure socialism

an economy where the government makes sure that everyone has the exact same amount of money and other resources

industrialization

factories built faster than ever, owned by massive companies; new technologies

Bessemer Process

new techniques for turning iron into stronger steel

Standard Oil Company

the industrial empire of John D. Rockefeller, dominating the United States oil industry

Carnegie Steel Company

steel manufacturing company founded by Andrew Carnegie; monopoly for American steel industry

urbanization

growth of cities that accelerated rapidly after the Civil War; most largest cities in the North

reasons for urbanization

population growth; people left farms seeking economic opportunities and new technologies in cities, immigration

late 1800s immigration

mostly from Southern and Eastern Europe; most are poor, illiterate, don’t speak English; came to the United States fleeing discrimination, overpopulation, and lack of job opportunities

Social Darwinists

made racist claims that people who were not white were genetically inferior

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

barred the immigration of Chinese laborers for 10 years, and also placed new requirements on Chinese already in the country, including certifications for re-entry

muckraker

a Progressive Era journalist or writer who exposed corruption and abuses of power in business and government, often through investigative journalism and sensationalist publications

Little Italy

an ethnic enclave within a city, predominantly populated by Italian immigrants and their descendants

Jacob Riis

a famous muckracker who became famous by critically reporting on the living conditions in New York City’s poorest areas; he was an immigrant from Denmark; racist towards the immigrants he reported on

late 1800s economic inequality

90% of Americans were massively poor; richest 10% owned 90% of country’s wealth

tenements

cheap, overcrowded, and often unsanitary apartment buildings that housed many immigrant and working-class families in urban areas during the late 19th and early 20th centuries

middle class

industrial cities needed managers, doctors, engineers, etc. to keep everything running; could afford factory products but life was still very difficult

first suburbs

residential areas that emerged outside major cities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; where the wealthy escaped the difficulties of city life

declining birth rate in cities

having more kids meant more mouth to feed; poverty-stricken; did not need labor

late 1800s education

90% of the country literate by 1900, more students attending high school, founding of many universities and increase in attendance

Henry George

advocated for a "single tax" on the unimproved value of land, believing that it would address economic inequality and encourage land use

Edward Bellamy

American writer and social theorist best known for his utopian novel, "Looking Backward"; advocated for socialism and economic equality

Social Gospel

a religious social reform movement; aimed to apply Christian principles of charity and justice to address social and economic problems arising from industrialization and urbanization

settlement houses

some middle class people move into poor immigrant communities to create these, which provide social services to poor immigrant families; still discriminatory because they believed their culture superior

National American Woman Suffrage Association

some states began to give women the right to vote in state/local elections, divorce laws became less strict, bans of saloons to combat male alcoholism

Samuel Gompers

the founder of the American Federation of Labor; advocating for workers' rights and economic improvements through organized labor

effects of industrialization on economic inequality

more efficient production means production of things with less people, which leads to fewer jobs; employers can fire anyone who demands higher pay or better conditions because people are desperate for work

robber barrons

a pejorative term for wealthy industrialist and financiers in the late 19th century who accumulated vast fortunes through ruthless and often unethical business practices, such as forming monopolies and exploiting workers

Credit Mobilier Scandal

a financial fraud during the Gilded Age; revealed widespread corruption and bribery where government officials took huge bribes

political machines

a highly organized political organization that uses tangible incentives like money and jobs to recruit and control members; often led by a powerful “party boss”

monopoly

when one company develops control over an entire industry; companies can raise prices as much as it wants and drive competitors out of business

Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890

the first federal law to address the issue of monopolies and trusts in American business, aiming to restore competition and prevent concentrations of power that could harm trade; was not well enforced

injunction

a court order that either requires or forbids a specific action by an individual or a public official; used to put down union strikes

yellow dog contracts

an employment agreement where workers promised, as a condition of employment, not to join or remain a member of a labor union

Pinkertons

a private detective agency used to infiltrate unions and supply guards to keep strikers and suspected unionists out of factories

Great Railroad Strike of 1877

500,000 railroad workers go on strike; federal troops used to put down strike, 100 killed; some railroad companies improved benefits, others didn’t

Pullman Strike

a major strike and boycott against the Pullman Palace Car Company that stemmed from wage cuts and other unfair conditions

Homestead Strike

a violent labor dispute in 1892 between the Carnegie Steel Company and its workers at the Homestead Steel Works in Pennsylvania; major setback for the union movement, the company fires many and wages were decreased

Laissez-Faire government

belief that the government needed to do as little as possible; rooted in capitalism because those who deserve their wealth will be allowed it

consequences of Laissez-Faire economics

no minimum wage laws; no food stamps, welfare, or government healthcare; no restrictions on child labor; no protections for workers or worker safety laws; few attempts to break up monopolies or protect unions

"“New South”

Southern elites believed the Southern economy needed to industrialize; built more factories and became leaders of textiles, steel industries, lumber industry; railroads connected from North to South

Southern Black middle class

black Americans continued to vote in large numbers, increase amount of land they owned, obtain education, become lawyers, doctors, teachers

rural South persistance

still centered around cotton; the poorest region of the United States because of poor education system, late start to industrialization, and racial discrimination

Civil Rights Cases

Supreme Court ruled that Congress cannot stop individuals and businesses from discriminating

Plessy v. Ferguson

Homer Plessy, a man whose great-grandparent was black, was forced to move to the car at the back of the train despite having a first class ticket; sued the railroad but the SupremeCourt ruled that it was legal to have segregation, as long as facilities were “separate but equal”

poll taxes

charged people a hefty fee to vote; largely targeted black people because they were the poorer community; aimed to eliminate black voting in the South

literacy tests

tests that were taken to prove you were intelligent enough to vote; targeted towards black people and designed to be impossible; aimed to eliminate black voting in the South

grandfather clauses

used to exempt most poor white voters from being disenfranchised by literacy tests and poll taxes; “if you grandfather was free, you could vote”

chain gangs

a group of convicts forced to labor, typically at tasks like road construction or ditch digging, while chained together; typically aimed at black people

racism in the South

black people were discriminated against in employment, banned from serving on juries, banned from higher education except at black colleges, often convicted of crime with little or no evidence, given long sentences when convicted, enslaved in the prison system, lynched by white mobs

W.E.B. Du Bois

the first black man admitted to earn a PhD at Harvard, became a leading author, speaker, activist, and publisher criticizing Jim Crow laws

Ida B. Wells

former slave who spent much of her life as a journalist, activist, and teacher; famous for relentless work to document lynchings and demand anti-lynching legislation

The National Afro-American League

formed to protest against lynching and advocate for full equality in voting, education, public accomodations, and other areas of public life

Booker T. Washington

founded Tuskegee Institute, started the National N- Business League to help black-owned businesses grow, preached about white America; wanted to win better economic conditions without advocating for political equality

Black Exodus of 1879

thousands of black Americans left the South and moved to the North; those who moved to Kansas were called “Exodusters”

rising supply of staple crops

the world’s supply of key crops began to rise as more of these crops were produced by farmers internationally; supply exceeded demand and prices fell, famers started making less money

mechanized farming

in order to stay competitive as a farmer, you had to use large, expensive farming machines and focus on growing one cash crop; small farmers had to borrow money and fall into debt, or allow themselves to be bought out by a larger farm

National Grange Movement

a fraternal organization formed in 1867 to address the struggles of farmers after the Civil War; aimed to provide education, social interaction, and a platform for farmers to address issues

Farmers’ Alliance

a series of agrarian movements in the late 1800s that aimed to improve the economic and political standing of farmers, particularly in the South and West; addressed issues like low crop prices, high interest rates on loans, and dominance of railroads; precursor to Populist Party

Ocala Platform

direct election of senators, state use of ballot initiatives; lower tariffs to reduce prices for consumers; progressive income taxes; public ownership of railroads; low-interest loans for farmers; eight hour maximum workday for industrial workers; leaving gold standard

leaving the Gold Standard

the government would only print as many dollars as there were ounces of gold in the Treasury; populists wanted the government to abandon this, which would allow them to print more money; help farmers in debt

cattle herding in the West

taking techniques from Mexican farmers in Texas, white ranchers herded and sold huge numbers of cattle for a profit in the East

environmental destruction in the West

as settlers moved, trees and natural habitats were destroyed; conservation movements arose to protect certain areas

John Muir

American naturalist, author, and early advocate for wilderness preservation in the United States; advocator for national parks and founder of the Sierra Club

Las Gorras Blancas

Mexican-Americans that fought off being forced by white settlers and cattle ranchers by destroying railroad tracks and cutting barbed wire fences to prevent ranchers from hoarding land for themselves

Indian Wars

continuation of attacks on indigenous people and their land; tried to push Native Americans onto reservations

Battle of Little Bighorn

a decisive military clash between the U.S. Army and a coalition of Native American tribes, including the Lakota Sioux and Northern Cheyenne, that resulted in a complete victory for the Native Americans; increased government’s resolve to enforce reservations and suppress Native American resistance

Native American massacres

a violent event where a large number of Native Americans were killed, often by U.S. government forces or settlers, as part of the westward expansion and Indian Wars; Wounded Knee, Sand Creek, Bear River

Dawes Severalty Act

much reservation land was split up and given to Native families on the terms of being civilized; goal to split up tribes and destroy their unity; created boarding schools to “kill the Indian, save the man”

Republican base in the Gilded Age

businessmen in the middle and upper classes, majority of Black Americans, white Protestants supporting reform movements

Democratic Base in the Gilded Age

white Southerners, urban immigrant voters

party patronage

whenever one party took power, they would replace everyone in government with their friends and supporters; contributed to corruption and incompetent government

Pendleton Act

tried to reduce party patronage by creating a difficult civil service exam that people had to pass in order to get some government jobs

McKinley Tariff

increased tariffs by quite a bit, making businessmen happy but farmers unhappy