US History - Unit 3

Thomas Edison

discovered electricity and invented the light bulb

Samuel Morse

invented morse code, developed the telegraph

Alexander Graham Bell

invented the telephone

Transcontinental Railroad

construction finished in 1869, united the east and west part of the country together

Promontory Point

location in Utah where the transcontinental railroad from Sacramento to Omaha was completed

Bessemer Process

the process of smelting iron to make steel faster and cheaper; invented by Henry Bessemer

Gilded Age

coined by Mark Twain; gilded means that it looks luxurious and great from the outside but in reality, the outside perspective is fake; the Gilded Age looked like the Golden Age of the United States but it was not great for people in lower classes

mass production

production of products in very large amounts

assembly line

process that breaks the manufacture of a product into steps that are completed in sequence; worked great in mass production of products

John D. Rockefeller

one of the wealthiest Americans even in present day; controlled 90% of the oil industry

Andrew Carnegie

owner of Carnegie Steel Co., manufactured much of the steel used in the US; donated about 90% of the wealth he possessed in support of the arts and educationJ

J.P. Morgan

had a monopoly in buying stocks; took over railroads' bought the Carnegie Steel company

Cornelius Vanderbilt

consolidated railroads in the south; controlled the railroad industry

Gospel of Wealth

the belief that the wealthy had the responsibility to spend money to benefit the greater good; charity, donations, etc.

Social Darwinism

less suited individuals will be weeded out through competition; poor and suffering must be lazy or inferior and deserve to be that way

monopoly

90% of control over a certain industry

trust

a relationship which the owner must keep or use the property for the benefit of another

Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)

made it illegal to form a trust that interfered with free trade between states or other countries

sweatshop

a factory or workshop in the clothing industry where workers work under very low wages, long hours, and poor conditions

Socialism

the belief that the means of production should be regulated by the community

Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)

attempted to solve problems faced by workers by changing the economic and political system; led by Eugene Debs

Knights of Labor

supported 8 hour workdays and equal pay

American Federation of Labor

led by Samuel Gompers; focused on reaching agreements on hours, wages, and working conditions; used strikes to raise wages

Haymarket Affair (1886)

protest that was staged against police brutality after six strikers were killed

Homestead Strike (1892)

steelworkers protested a wage cut; unsuccessful strike

Pullman Strike (1894)

workers of the Pullman company went on strike and shut down the railroad; violence erupted and government was involved to end the strike

Populist Movement

called for government action against business monopolies and political corruption

Interstate Commerce Act (ICC)

created to supervise the railroad industry and insure set rates

laissez-faire

economy that had no government interference in businesses and companies

Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883)

authorized bipartisan civil service commission to appoint Federal jobs through a merit based system

spoils system

the system that Andrew Jackson created in order to gain political support; supports of Jackson would be given a governmental job if Jackson won presidency

William McKinley

president during the Spanish-American War (which he brought victory); gained control of Hawaii; restored the country after a depression

immigrants

came to American during 1870-1920 from parts of Europe and Asia; sought for religious freedom and living a better life

Nativism

the strong feeling of hatred towards immigrants; argued that the country was being taken over and people were stealing jobs

Ellis Island (1892)

became the major immigration station on the east coast; based on the island of State of Liberty

Angel Island (1910)

west coast immigration site in San Francisco

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

banned all Chinese immigrants after 1882; restricted rights of Chinese already living in the U.S.

political machines

a form of political corruption, offered services to voters in exchange for financial and political support

grafts

a form of political corruption; funds that were intended for public projects are used for personal/private interests

Social Gospel movement

religious movement that wanted to apply Christian ethics to social problems

tenement housing

single family buildings that were divided into multiple living spaces for multiple families

William Du Bois

fought for equal rights for African Americans; founder of the NAACP

NAACP

formed for taking action in response to violence and discrimination against African Americans; supported African Americans and pushed for more rights and laws protecting them

muckraker

American writers that wrote accounts on political and economic corruptions and publishing them for the people to see

Ida Tarbell

journalist and muckraker that focused on the abuses of capitalism; criticized Rockefeller's monopoly of the oil industry; did not support women's suffrage

Upton Sinclair

writer of The Jungle; Progressive and a muckraker that supported the working industry and wanted better working conditions

Meat Inspection Act

President Roosevelt pushed for strict meat requirements and regulations

Pure Food and Drug Act

passed law to prohibit the sale of contaminated food and medicine

initiative

describes the right of citizens to propose laws or issues to voters/legislature

referendum

the right to vote of citizens about proposed laws and ideas directly

recall

the right for voters to demand a separate election to remove and elected official before the end of that official's term

Theodore Roosevelt

believed in environmental conservation, tax reform, government regulation of big business, supported worker's rights, women's suffrage, reforms of the food industry

Square Deal

protection of the consumer, control of large corporations, and conservation of natural resources

conservationist

a person who advocates for the protection and preservation of the environment and wildlife

federal reserve system

created by Congress to provide the nation with safer and more stable financial system/bank

Election of 1912

Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson went up against each other; Wilson won as a Democratic Progressive

Bull Moose Party

a political party established by Roosevelt, also known as the Progressive Party

16th Amendment

Congress should have the power to make and collect taxes on incomes no matter where the source of income is

17th Amendment

allows voters to cast direct votes for US Senators

Women's Suffrage Movement

the fight to win the right to vote for women in the United States

19th Amendment

granted women the right to vote