Gilded Age: Political Machines & Urbanization

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and concepts related to political machines, urbanization, big business, and labor conditions during the Gilded Age.

Political Machine

An organization that controlled political parties in a city and worked to ensure their chosen candidates were elected to their advantage.

Boss Tweed

The head of Tammany Hall, a powerful political machine, who accumulated wealth through extortion and graft.

Urbanization

The rapid growth of cities, driven by industrialization and population growth between 1870 and 1900.

Tenements

Crowded apartment buildings that arose due to urban housing shortages, often suffering from poor sanitation and health conditions.

Spoils System

A corrupt practice in government where political leaders gave government jobs to unqualified friends and supporters to gain money or political power.

Election Fraud (Gilded Age)

Illegal practices by political machines to secure votes, including using fake names, voting multiple times, paying bribes, and taking kickbacks.

Rural to Urban Migration

The shift of population from rural areas to urban cities, causing city populations in the U.S. to jump from 10 million to 30 million in 30 years.

Pros of Big Business (Gilded Age)

Positive aspects of large corporations, including greater efficiency, job creation, lower prices for goods, and production of more goods.

Cons of Big Business (Gilded Age)

Negative impacts of big business, such as unfair advantages over competitors, worker exploitation, environmental pollution, and undue influence on government.

Conditions of Labor (Gilded Age)

Working conditions marked by long hours (10 to 12 hours a day, 6 days a week), low wages ($3 to $12 weekly), and even lower pay for women, children, and unskilled labor.

Street Children of NYC

An estimated 30,000 homeless or abandoned children living on the streets of New York City due to severe urban poverty and family hardship.

Gilded Age Urban Poverty

A condition in urban centers where 11 to 12 million people earned less than $500 a year, facing extreme health risks and poor living conditions.