HAH Final Study Set

Andrew Carnegie

Scottish-American industrialist who built Carnegie Steel into a massive empire and became one of the richest Americans of the late 1800s; later gave away most of his fortune to libraries, universities, and public institutions.

Social Darwinism

The misapplication of Darwin's "survival of the fittest" to human society; used to argue that the wealthy were naturally superior and that poverty was the natural result of weakness, justifying inequality and opposing government aid.

Philanthropy

Charitable giving to benefit society; Andrew Carnegie practiced this by donating hundreds of millions to build libraries, Carnegie Hall, and universities after his retirement.

John Rockefeller

American industrialist who founded Standard Oil and became the world's wealthiest person by dominating the U.S. oil refining industry through horizontal integration and ruthless business tactics.

Vertical Integration

A business strategy of controlling every stage of production—from raw materials to the finished product—to cut costs and eliminate dependence on outside suppliers. Used by Carnegie in the steel industry.

Horizontal Integration

A business strategy of buying out or merging with competing companies in the same industry to dominate and monopolize the market. Used by Rockefeller to build Standard Oil's control over oil refining.

Carnegie Steel

Andrew Carnegie's steel company headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA; the largest and most efficient steel producer in the world in the late 1800s; sold to J.P. Morgan in 1901.

US Steel

America's first billion-dollar corporation, formed in 1901 when J.P. Morgan purchased Carnegie Steel; at its peak controlled about 60% of U.S. steel production.

Standard Oil

John D. Rockefeller's oil company that controlled approximately 90% of U.S. oil refining at its peak; broken up by the Supreme Court in 1911 as an illegal monopoly.

Sherman Antitrust Act

1890 federal law prohibiting monopolies and business combinations that restrained trade or commerce; the first major federal law to limit corporate power, though initially weakly enforced.

Ida Tarbell

Investigative journalist (muckraker) whose 19-part exposé (1902–1904) revealed the corrupt and predatory business practices of Standard Oil, leading to public outrage and the company's eventual breakup.

Union

An organized association of workers formed to protect and advance their rights and interests—including wages, hours, and working conditions—through collective action.

Strike

A work stoppage by employees who refuse to work as a form of protest to pressure employers into meeting demands for better wages, shorter hours, or improved conditions.

Homestead Strike

A violent 1892 labor dispute at Carnegie Steel's Homestead, PA plant; Carnegie's manager Henry Clay Frick locked out workers and hired Pinkerton guards; ended with the union crushed and a major setback for organized labor.

Pullman Strike

A 1894 nationwide railroad strike led by Eugene V. Debs of the American Railway Union after Pullman Palace Car Company cut wages; ended when President Cleveland sent federal troops, setting a precedent for government intervention against strikers.

Collective Bargaining

The process by which a union negotiates on behalf of all workers with an employer to reach agreements on wages, hours, benefits, and working conditions.

Populism

A late 19th-century political movement representing farmers and working-class Americans against banks, railroads, and big business; advocated for free coinage of silver, government ownership of railroads, and direct election of senators.

Old Immigrants

Immigrants who came to the United States primarily from Northern and Western Europe (England, Ireland, Germany, Scandinavia) before the 1880s; generally seen as more easily assimilated.

New Immigrants

Immigrants who came to the United States primarily from Southern and Eastern Europe (Italy, Poland, Russia, Greece, Austria-Hungary) and Asia after the 1880s; often faced more discrimination and harsher conditions.

Push Factors

Conditions in a person's home country that force or motivate them to leave, such as poverty, famine, political persecution, war, or religious discrimination.

Pull Factors

Conditions in a destination country that attract immigrants, such as job opportunities, higher wages, political freedom, and religious tolerance.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

Federal law that banned Chinese laborers from immigrating to the United States; the first major U.S. law to restrict immigration based on race or nationality; reflected widespread anti-Chinese prejudice, especially in California.

Quota Acts of 1921 & 1924

Laws that severely restricted immigration by establishing national-origin quotas; heavily favored immigrants from Northern and Western Europe while dramatically limiting Southern/Eastern Europeans and virtually barring Asians.

Social Gospel

A Protestant Christian reform movement that applied religious ethics to social problems such as poverty, child labor, and inequality; inspired many Progressive Era reformers to establish settlement houses and push for labor protections.

Settlement Houses

Community centers established in poor urban immigrant neighborhoods to provide education, job training, childcare, and social services; staffed largely by middle-class reformers.

GDP

Gross Domestic Product; the total monetary value of all goods and services produced within a country during a specific time period; a key measure of a nation's economic output and size.

Hull House

Famous settlement house founded by Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr in Chicago in 1889; provided services to poor immigrants and became a national model for social reform and women's activism.

Ethnic Neighborhoods

Concentrated urban residential areas where immigrants of the same nationality or ethnicity settled together, preserving their language, customs, religion, and culture (e.g., Little Italy, Chinatown).

Pittsburgh

Major industrial city in western Pennsylvania; center of the U.S. steel industry; site of the Homestead Strike; headquarters of Carnegie Steel; home to local landmarks like the Cathedral of Learning.

Urbanization

The process by which a growing proportion of a population moves from rural areas to cities, driven by industrialization and immigration in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Chicago

Major industrial city in Illinois; site of the Pullman Strike; home of Jane Addams' Hull House; setting of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle"; center of the meatpacking industry and site of the Great Fire of 1871.

Ellis Island

Immigration processing center in New York Harbor that processed over 12 million immigrants—primarily from Europe—between 1892 and 1954; known as the "Gateway to America."

Angel Island

Immigration processing center in San Francisco Bay that processed immigrants primarily from Asia (especially China) between 1910 and 1940; known for harsh interrogations, long detentions, and discriminatory treatment.

Tenements

Cramped, poorly built, and dangerously overcrowded apartment buildings in urban immigrant neighborhoods; Jacob Riis documented their horrible conditions in "How the Other Half Lives."

Benevolent Societies

Mutual aid organizations formed within immigrant communities to provide members with financial assistance, social support, cultural connections, and help navigating American life.

Progressives

Reform-minded Americans (roughly 1890s–1920s) who believed government should address the social, political, and economic problems caused by industrialization, urbanization, and corporate power.

Upton Sinclair

Socialist author whose 1906 novel "The Jungle" shocked the public by exposing the unsanitary conditions in Chicago's meatpacking industry and the exploitation of immigrant workers, leading to the Pure Food and Drug Act.

Jacob Riis

Danish-American journalist and photographer whose 1890 book "How the Other Half Lives" used photographs and vivid descriptions to expose the terrible living conditions of New York City's immigrant poor in tenements.

How the Other Half Lives

1890 book by Jacob Riis that used photography and investigative journalism to document the horrific living conditions in New York City's immigrant slums; helped spark urban reform efforts.

The Jungle

1906 novel by Upton Sinclair depicting the dangerous, unsanitary working conditions in Chicago's meatpacking industry and the exploitation of immigrant workers; led to federal food safety legislation.

Muckrakers

Progressive Era journalists and authors who investigated and exposed corruption, corporate misconduct, and social injustice to inform the public and push for reform. Term coined by Theodore Roosevelt.

NAACP

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; civil rights organization co-founded by W.E.B. DuBois in 1909 to fight racial discrimination, lynching, and segregation through legal challenges and advocacy.

16th Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1913 that authorized Congress to levy a federal income tax on individuals and corporations.

17th Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1913 that established the direct election of U.S. Senators by popular vote, replacing the previous system of selection by state legislatures.

18th Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1919 that prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages in the United States (Prohibition).

19th Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1920 that granted women the right to vote, marking a major victory for the suffrage movement after decades of activism.

21st Amendment

Constitutional amendment ratified in 1933 that repealed the 18th Amendment, ending Prohibition; the only constitutional amendment to repeal another.

Federal Reserve

The central banking system of the United States, created by the Federal Reserve Act of 1913; regulates the money supply, sets interest rates, oversees banks, and works to maintain economic stability.

Clayton Antitrust Act

1914 federal law that strengthened the Sherman Antitrust Act by specifically prohibiting price discrimination, exclusive dealing, and interlocking corporate directorates; also protected labor unions from being prosecuted as monopolies.

Robert LaFollette

Progressive Republican governor and senator from Wisconsin who championed direct primaries, railroad regulation, and workers' rights; known as "Fighting Bob"; ran for president on the Progressive Party ticket in 1924.

Panic of 1893

Severe economic depression triggered by overextended railroad investment and bank failures; caused widespread unemployment and business closures; helped fuel the growth of the Populist movement.

Jim Crow

State and local laws enacted throughout the American South from the 1870s through the mid-1960s that enforced racial segregation and discrimination against African Americans in public spaces, schools, transportation, and voting.

Plessy vs. Ferguson

1896 Supreme Court decision that upheld racial segregation under the doctrine of "separate but equal," providing constitutional justification for Jim Crow laws; overturned by Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.

Booker T. Washington

African American leader who advocated for economic self-improvement and vocational education rather than immediate civil rights demands (the "Atlanta Compromise," 1895); founded Tuskegee Institute; more accommodating toward white power structures than DuBois.

W.E.B. DuBois

African American intellectual and activist who demanded full political and civil rights immediately; co-founded the NAACP (1909); advocated for the "Talented Tenth"; directly opposed Booker T. Washington's accommodationist approach.

Teddy Roosevelt

26th President (1901–1909); Progressive Republican known as a trustbuster, conservationist, and champion of the Square Deal; also known for assertive foreign policy including the Roosevelt Corollary and building the Panama Canal.

Square Deal

Theodore Roosevelt's domestic policy platform promising fair treatment for all Americans—workers, consumers, and businesses—through regulation of corporations, conservation of natural resources, and consumer protection laws.

1902 Coal Strike

Strike by 150,000 Pennsylvania anthracite coal miners; resolved through Theodore Roosevelt's direct mediation—the first time a U.S. president sided with workers rather than management, setting a new precedent for federal arbitration.

William Howard Taft

27th President (1909–1913); Roosevelt's chosen successor who pursued more conservative policies; his presidency split the Republican Party when Roosevelt challenged him in 1912, helping Woodrow Wilson win.

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

March 25, 1911 factory fire in New York City that killed 146 garment workers—mostly young immigrant women—because exits were locked; became a catalyst for major labor safety laws and factory inspection reform.

1912 election

Four-way presidential election in which Democrat Woodrow Wilson won; Theodore Roosevelt ran as the Progressive ("Bull Moose") Party candidate after losing the Republican nomination to Taft; the split between Roosevelt and Taft handed Wilson the presidency.

Woodrow Wilson

28th President (1913–1921); known for progressive "New Freedom" domestic reforms (Federal Reserve, Clayton Act, income tax), keeping U.S. neutral at start of WWI, then leading U.S. into WWI, and proposing the League of Nations.

Isolationism

U.S. foreign policy tradition of avoiding entangling alliances and staying out of foreign conflicts; strongly favored by many Americans before both WWI and WWII.

Imperialism

A policy by which a powerful nation extends its control over weaker nations through military force, economic dominance, or political pressure; justified by ideas of racial superiority and national interest in the late 1800s.

USS Maine

American battleship that exploded in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898, killing 260 sailors; yellow journalists blamed Spain without evidence, fueling public demand for war and the Spanish-American War.

Yellow Journalism

Sensationalist, exaggerated, or fabricated news reporting designed to attract readers and sell newspapers; practiced by William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer; helped inflame public opinion and push the U.S. into the Spanish-American War.

Spanish-American War

Brief 1898 war between the U.S. and Spain triggered by Cuban independence movement and the USS Maine explosion; U.S. won quickly and gained Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines, marking its emergence as a world power.

Teller Amendment

1898 congressional resolution declaring that the U.S. had no intention of annexing Cuba after defeating Spain and would leave the island's governance to its own people.

Platt Amendment

1901 amendment to Cuba's constitution (required by the U.S.) granting the U.S. the right to intervene in Cuban affairs, approve Cuban treaties, and maintain a naval base at Guantanamo Bay, making Cuba a virtual U.S. protectorate.

Panama Canal

Waterway built across the Isthmus of Panama under U.S. direction, completed in 1914; connected the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; shortened shipping routes by thousands of miles; a major engineering achievement of the Roosevelt era.

Roosevelt Corollary

1904 extension of the Monroe Doctrine in which Theodore Roosevelt declared the U.S. right to intervene militarily in Latin American nations that were unable to pay their international debts or maintain order, essentially making the U.S. the police of the Western Hemisphere.

4 MAIN Causes of WWI

MAIN acronym: Militarism (European nations built up massive armies and navies), Alliance System (entangling alliances pulled nations into war), Imperialism (competition for colonies created tensions), Nationalism (extreme national pride and ethnic tensions, especially in the Balkans). Immediate trigger: assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.

4 MAIN Causes of WWII

MAIN applied to WWII: Militarism (Germany, Italy, Japan rebuilt and expanded militaries), Alliance System (Axis vs. Allied powers), Imperialism (Germany sought Lebensraum; Japan conquered Asia), Nationalism (Nazi ultranationalism; fascism). Also: harsh Treaty of Versailles, Great Depression, and failure of Appeasement.

Somme

Battle of the Somme (July–November 1916); one of the bloodiest battles in history with over 1 million casualties on both sides; fought along the Western Front in France; exemplified the devastating stalemate of trench warfare in WWI.

Neutrality

The official U.S. foreign policy at the start of WWI under President Wilson; the U.S. declared it would not take sides in the European conflict, though economic ties to Britain complicated true neutrality.

Lusitania

British ocean liner sunk by a German submarine on May 7, 1915; 1,198 people were killed, including 128 Americans; the sinking outraged American public opinion and was a major factor in eventually turning the U.S. against Germany.

Zimmermann Note

A 1917 secret telegram from German Foreign Secretary Arthur Zimmermann to Mexico, proposing a military alliance against the U.S. if it entered the war; intercepted by British intelligence and revealed to the U.S., helping push America into WWI.

Mobilization

The process of organizing and preparing a nation's military forces, industries, and resources for war; the U.S. mobilized through the draft, war bonds, rationing, and conversion of factories to war production.

Armistice

An agreement by warring parties to stop fighting; WWI ended with an armistice signed on November 11, 1918 at 11:00 AM, when fighting on the Western Front ceased.

Sedition Act

1918 law making it illegal to speak, write, or publish anything critical of the U.S. government, Constitution, military, or war effort; used to prosecute anti-war activists, socialists, and critics of the draft.

Clear and Present Danger

Legal test established in Schenck v. United States (1919) by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes; held that free speech could be limited when words create a "clear and present danger" of immediate harm (e.g., falsely shouting fire in a theater).

Treaty of Versailles

1919 peace treaty ending WWI; required Germany to accept full responsibility for the war (War Guilt Clause), pay massive reparations, disarm its military, and give up territory; its harshness contributed to conditions that led to WWII.

Reparations

Financial war payments that Germany was required to make to the Allied nations under the Treaty of Versailles to compensate for war damages; amounted to 132 billion gold marks and crippled the German economy.

League of Nations

International peacekeeping organization proposed by Woodrow Wilson in his Fourteen Points; established by the Treaty of Versailles; the U.S. Senate refused to ratify U.S. membership, weakening the organization from the start.

Warren Harding

29th President (1921–1923); ran on a promise of a "Return to Normalcy" after WWI; his administration was marked by pro-business policies and the Teapot Dome corruption scandal.

Andrew Mellon

Secretary of the Treasury under Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover; wealthy banker and industrialist who championed tax cuts for the wealthy and businesses; a leading proponent of supply-side economics in the 1920s.

Supply-Side Economics

Economic theory that reducing taxes on businesses and wealthy individuals will encourage investment, stimulate production, and create economic growth that eventually benefits all ("trickle-down economics"); championed by Andrew Mellon in the 1920s.

Demand-Side Economics

Economic theory (associated with John Maynard Keynes) that government spending and putting money in consumers' hands stimulates demand, revives the economy during recessions, and reduces unemployment; associated with FDR's New Deal.

Palmer Raids

1919–1920 government raids ordered by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer targeting suspected communists, anarchists, and radical leftists during the "Red Scare"; resulted in mass arrests, deportations, and violations of civil liberties.

Sacco & Vanzetti

Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, Italian immigrants and anarchists who were convicted of murder and robbery in 1921 and executed in 1927; their trial was widely seen as driven by anti-immigrant and anti-radical prejudice rather than solid evidence.

Scopes Trial

1925 trial in Dayton, Tennessee, in which high school teacher John Scopes was convicted of teaching evolution; highlighted the conflict between scientific modernism and religious fundamentalism; featured famous attorneys Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan.

Prohibition

The period 1920–1933 during which the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol was banned in the U.S. by the 18th Amendment; led to widespread bootlegging, speakeasies, organized crime, and was ultimately ended by the 21st Amendment.

Al Capone

Chicago gangster who built a powerful criminal empire through bootlegging, gambling, and other illegal activities during Prohibition; became the most notorious organized crime figure of the 1920s; eventually convicted of tax evasion in 1931.

Great Migration

The movement of approximately 1.6 million African Americans from the rural South to Northern cities (1910–1940) to escape Jim Crow laws, racial violence, and limited economic opportunity, and to find jobs in northern factories.

Flappers

Young women of the 1920s who challenged traditional gender roles by adopting short skirts, bobbed hair, makeup, and unconventional behaviors (dancing, smoking, drinking); symbolized the social and cultural changes of the decade.

Installment Plan

A method of purchasing goods by making a small down payment and paying the remainder in monthly installments; enabled ordinary Americans to buy consumer goods like cars, radios, and appliances in the 1920s, fueling the consumer economy.

Babe Ruth

Baseball legend (George Herman "Babe" Ruth) who played for the New York Yankees in the 1920s; set home run records and became a national hero; his fame symbolized the mass celebrity culture and sports enthusiasm of the Roaring Twenties.

Harlem Renaissance

A cultural, intellectual, and artistic movement centered in Harlem, New York in the 1920s–1930s that celebrated African American literature, art, music (jazz and blues), and identity; key figures included Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, and Duke Ellington.

Great Depression

Severe, worldwide economic downturn triggered by the U.S. stock market crash of October 1929; characterized by 25% unemployment, massive bank failures, farm foreclosures, and widespread poverty; lasted through the 1930s until WWII production ended it.

100 Days

The first 100 days of FDR's presidency (March–June 1933), during which he and Congress passed an unprecedented number of major laws and programs to address the Great Depression; set the standard for presidential action in a crisis.