Unit 6 Vocabulary - The Gilded Age

Industrial Capitalism

Economic system based on large-scale manufacturing and capital investment.

Monopoly

Complete control of a product or service by one company.

Trust

Combination of corporations designed to reduce competition and control prices.

Cartel

Association of companies that agree to control production and prices.

Consolidation

Process of combining separate companies into one larger entity.

Vertical Integration

Company controls all stages of production from raw materials to finished product.

Horizontal Integration

Company buys out competitors in the same industry.

Laissez-faire

Economic philosophy that government should not interfere in business.

Industrialist

Person who owns or manages a large factory or manufacturing business.

Captain of Industry

Positive term for industrialist credited with creating jobs and economic growth.

Robber Baron

Negative term for industrialist who uses unethical methods to accumulate wealth.

Labor Union

Organization of workers formed to protect their interests.

Strike

Work stoppage by employees to demand better conditions or wages.

Collective Bargaining

Negotiation between employers and organized workers.

Sweatshop

Workplace with poor conditions, long hours, and low pay.

Wages

Payment given to workers for labor.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Labor organization founded in 1886.

Knights of Labor

Early labor organization focused on broad social reform.

Migrant

Person who moves from one place to another.

Migration

Moving from one place to another within a country.

Push Factor

Conditions that force people to leave their home.

Pull Factor

Attractions that draw people to a new location.

Nativism

Belief that native-born citizens should be favored over immigrants.

Ethnic Enclave

Neighborhood where a particular ethnic group concentrates.

Assimilation

Process of adopting the culture of a new country.

Tenement

Crowded apartment building with poor living conditions.

Political Machine

Organization controlled by a boss that provides services for political support.

Patronage

System of giving jobs and favors to supporters.

Graft

Corruption through dishonest use of public office.

Bribery

Offering payment to influence actions.

Tariff

Tax on imported goods.

subsidy

Government financial support to a business.

Hard Money

Currency backed by gold.

Soft Money

Paper currency not backed by gold.

Greenback

Paper money issued during the Civil War.

Golf Standard

Monetary system backed by gold.

Populism

Political movement supporting government action yo reduce inequality.

Populist Party

Political party formed in 1892 to represent farmers and workers.

Progressivism

Reform movement addressing industrial society problems.

Temperance

Movement to reduce or eliminate alcohol consumption.

Social Darwinism

Belief that competition rewards the strongest.

Interstate Commerce Act

First federal law regulation business.

Sherman Anti-Trust Act

Law prohibiting monopolies and trusts.

Panic of 1873

Major economic crisis exposing weaknesses in industrial capitalism.

Omaha Platform

Populist Party reform platform.