Westernization, industrialization and immigration

Homestead act

1862 - Provided free land in the West to anyone willing to settle there and develop it. Encouraged westward migration.

Exodusters

African Americans who moved from post reconstruction South to Kansas.

Railroads

Were essential to westward expansion because they made it easier to travel to and live in the west

Impact of westernization on Native Americans

Native Americans were killed and taken from their homes to reservations and forced to adopt American customs and beliefs

Dawes act

An act that removed Indian land from tribal possesion, redivided it, and distributed it among individual Indian families. Designed to break tribal mentalities and promote individualism.

Grange

Originally a social organization between farmers, it developed into a political movement for government ownership of railroads

Populist party

U.S. political party formed in 1892 representing mainly farmers, favoring free coinage of silver and government control of railroads and other monopolies

William Jennings Bryan

Democratic candidate for president in 1896 under the banner of "free silver coinage" which won him support of the Populist Party.

Cross of gold speech

An impassioned address by William Jennings Bryan at the 1896 Deomcratic Convention, in which he attacked the "gold bugs" who insisted that U.S. currency be backed only with gold.

Silverites

people who believed coining silver in unlimited quantities would solve the nations economic crisis

Urbanization

the growth of cities

Impact of urbanization

1. Slums-overcrowded and insanitary

2. Criminal activity

3. Factories unpleasant and dangerous to the public

Trust

A group of corporations run by a single board of directors

Monopoly

Complete control of a product or business by one person or group

Robber baron vs captain of industry

robber baron: American capitalist who acquired a fortune in the late nineteenth century by ruthless means.

Captain of industry: a capitalist who acquired a fortune but over time gave back to their communities

Andrew Carnegie

A Scottish-born American industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Carnegie Steel Company in 1892. By 1901, his company dominated the American steel industry.(robbed baron)

John d Rockefeller

Established the Standard Oil Company, the greatest, wisest, and meanest monopoly known in history(captain of industry)

Laissez faire

Policy that government should interfere as little as possible in the nation's economy.

Social Darwinism

The belief that only the fittest survive in human political and economic struggle.

Sherman Antitrust Act

First federal action against monopolies, it was signed into law by Harrison and was extensively used by Theodore Roosevelt for trust-busting. However, it was initially misused against labor unions

Boss tweed

William Tweed, head of Tammany Hall, NYC's powerful democratic political machine in 1868. Between 1868 and 1869 he led the Tweed Reign, a group of corrupt politicians in defrauding the city. Example: Responsible for the construction of the NY court house; actual construction cost $3million. Project cost tax payers $13million.

Political machines

Corrupt organized groups that controlled political parties in the cities. A boss leads the machine and attempts to grab more votes for his party.

Labor unions

An organization formed by workers to strive for better wages and working conditions

Impact of industrialization

Very strong economy, lots of goods, higher living standards, more trade, but huge growth in cities, terrible working conditions and treatment of workers, child labor, bad sanitation & housing, bad education

Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire

(1911) 146 women killed while locked into the burning building (brought attention to poor working conditions)

How were immigrants treated?

Despite the economic and social advantages of immigrants, they were treated with extreme racism.

Old vs. New Immigrants

Old:n the early to mid 1800s, came from Northern and Western Europe.

New:In the late 1900s, they came from Southern and Eastern Europe.

Nativism

A policy of favoring native-born individuals over foreign-born ones

Chinese exclusion act

(1882) Denied any additional Chinese laborers to enter the country while allowing students and merchants to immigrate.

Emergency Quota Act

1921

*one of a series of acts by Congress that limited immigration

*Immigration was limited by nationality to 3% of the number of foreign born persons from that nation living in the US in 1910

*Designation restricted only certain nationalities and religious groups

*In effect, targeted Italians, Greeks, Poles, and Eastern European Jews

Jane Adams

Social reformer who worked to improve the lives of the working class. In 1889 she founded Hull House in Chicago, the first private social welfare agency in the U.S., to assist the poor, combat juvenile delinquency and help immigrants learn to speak English.

Hull house

Settlement home designed as a welfare agency for needy families. It provided social and educational opportunities for working class people in the neighborhood as well as improving some of the conditions caused by poverty.

Ellis island

An immigrant receiving station that opened in 1892, where immigrants were given a medical examination and only allowed in if they were healthy

Angel island

The immigration station on the west coast where Asian immigrants, mostly Chinese gained admission to the U.S. at San Francisco Bay. Between 1910 and 1940 50k Chinese immigrants entered through Angel Island. Questioning and conditions at Angel Island were much harsher than Ellis Island in New York.

Know nothings

the American Party; anti-immigrant

Trans-Continental Railroad

Created when the Central Pacific and Union Pacific met