Semester 2 terms

A Century of Dishonor

A book that exposed how badly the U.S. treated Native Americans.

American Federation of Labor

A group of skilled workers who wanted better pay and working conditions.

Andrew Carnegie

A rich steel businessman who believed in giving money to help others (philanthropy).

Angel Island

The immigration station on the West Coast where many Asians entered the U.S.

Battle of Little Bighorn

A fight where Native Americans defeated U.S. troops led by Custer.

Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show

A traveling show that made the West look exciting and heroic.

Buffalo soldiers

African American soldiers who fought in the West after the Civil War.

Bureau of Indian Affairs

A government group that managed Native American reservations and affairs.

Carlisle Indian School

A school that tried to force Native American kids to adopt white culture.

Chief Joseph

A Native American leader who tried to lead his people to Canada to escape the U.S. Army.

Chinese Exclusion Act

A law that stopped Chinese workers from coming to the U.S.

Chisholm Trail

A major route used to drive cattle from Texas to Kansas railroads.

Comstock Lode

A huge silver discovery in Nevada that brought lots of miners.

Coxey’s Army

A group of unemployed people who marched to demand jobs during a depression.

Dawes Severalty Act

A law that broke up Native American land to make them act more like white farmers.

Ellis Island

The immigration station in New York where many Europeans entered the U.S.

Eugene Debs

A labor leader who fought for workers’ rights and later ran for president as a socialist.

Exodusters

African Americans who moved west after the Civil War to escape racism in the South.

Frederick Jackson Turner

A historian who said the frontier helped shape American democracy and character.

George Custer

A U.S. general who was killed at the Battle of Little Bighorn.

Geronimo

A Native American leader who fought to keep his land but was eventually captured.

Ghost Dance

A Native American religious movement that hoped to bring back their old way of life.

Gospel of Wealth

Carnegie’s idea that rich people should use their money to help society.

Haymarket Affair

A labor protest in Chicago that turned violent and hurt the labor movement.

Homestead Strike

A violent strike at Carnegie’s steel plant that showed tensions between workers and bosses.

Homestead Act

A law that gave free land to settlers willing to farm it for five years.

Industrial Workers of the World

A radical labor union that wanted to unite all workers, skilled and unskilled.

Interstate Commerce Act

A law that tried to control unfair railroad practices.

J.P. Morgan

A powerful banker who helped big businesses grow and saved the U.S. economy more than once.

Jane Addams

A reformer who helped immigrants and the poor by starting settlement houses like Hull House.

John D. Rockefeller

A wealthy oil businessman who used ruthless methods to build a monopoly.

Knights of Labor

A labor union that tried to include all workers and push for big changes.

Mary E. Lease

A Populist speaker who told farmers to "raise less corn and more hell."

New South

The idea of a South with more industry and less dependence on slavery.

People’s (Populist) Party

A political party that wanted to help farmers and workers against big business.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

A court case that said segregation was okay if things were “separate but equal."

Pullman Strike

A big railroad strike that stopped trains and was ended by the government.

Samuel Gompers

A labor leader who founded the American Federation of Labor.

Sand Creek Massacre

A surprise attack where U.S. soldiers killed many peaceful Native Americans.

Sherman Antitrust Act

A law meant to stop big companies from becoming monopolies.

Social Darwinism

The belief that rich people were better because they were "fitter" to survive.

Social Gospel

A movement that said Christians should help the poor and fight social problems.

Tammany Hall

A powerful political group in New York City known for helping immigrants but also being corrupt.

Taylorism

A system to make workers more efficient by breaking jobs into simple tasks.

Tenements

Overcrowded and dirty apartment buildings where poor people lived in cities.

The Birth of a Nation

A movie that was praised for its film work but also criticized for being racist.

Vertical v. Horizontal Integration

Vertical means controlling every step of making a product; horizontal means buying out all the competition.

William Jennings Bryan

A famous speaker and Populist who ran for president and supported farmers.

Wounded Knee

The site of a massacre where U.S. soldiers killed many Native Americans in 1890.

Alfred Mahan

A naval officer who believed a strong navy was key to world power.

Booker T. Washington

A Black leader who promoted vocational education and economic self-improvement over immediate civil rights.

Bracero Program

A deal that brought Mexican workers to the U.S. to help with farm labor during World War II.

Carrie Chapman Catt

A women’s suffrage leader who pushed for the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.

Clayton Antitrust Act

A law that strengthened antitrust rules to break up monopolies and protect workers' rights.

Committee on Public Information (CPI)

A government agency that spread pro-war propaganda during World War I.

Congress on Racial Equality (CORE)

A civil rights group that fought against segregation using nonviolent protests.

D-Day

The massive Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France on June 6, 1944, that helped turn the tide in World War II.

Dollar Diplomacy

President Taft’s policy of using American money to influence Latin America instead of military force.

Dust Bowl

A period of severe dust storms in the 1930s that ruined farmland and forced many farmers to move.

Eleanor Roosevelt

The First Lady who became a powerful advocate for civil rights, women’s rights, and the poor.

Espionage Act (1917)

A law that punished people for spying or interfering with the U.S. war effort in World War I.

Eugene Debs

A socialist leader who ran for president five times and was jailed for speaking out against World War I.

Executive Order 9066

FDR’s order that forced Japanese Americans into internment camps during World War II.

Federal Reserve Act

A law that created the Federal Reserve to regulate banks and control the money supply.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

The U.S. president who led the country through the Great Depression and most of World War II.

Fourteen Points

Woodrow Wilson’s plan for world peace after World War I, including the idea of a League of Nations.

Good Neighbor Policy

FDR’s promise to improve relations with Latin America by avoiding military intervention.

The Grapes of Wrath

A novel by John Steinbeck about a poor family fleeing the Dust Bowl for California.

Great Migration

The movement of millions of African Americans from the South to Northern cities for jobs and less racism.

Great White Fleet

A group of U.S. battleships that sailed around the world to show off America’s military strength.

Harlem Renaissance

A cultural movement in the 1920s celebrating Black art, music, and literature, centered in Harlem.

The Jungle

A book by Upton Sinclair that exposed the gross conditions in the meatpacking industry, leading to food safety laws.

Kellogg-Briand Pact

An agreement where countries promised not to use war to solve problems (spoiler: it didn’t work).

Korematsu v. U.S. (1944)

A Supreme Court case that ruled Japanese internment camps were legal during World War II (later criticized).

League of Nations

An international group formed after World War I to promote peace, but the U.S. never joined.

Lend-Lease Act

A law that let the U.S. send weapons and supplies to Allies in World War II without officially joining the war.

Marcus Garvey

A Black nationalist leader who promoted pride, economic independence, and a return to Africa.

Margaret Sanger

An activist who fought for birth control access and founded what became Planned Parenthood.

Manhattan Project

The secret U.S. project to develop the atomic bomb during World War II.

Muckrakers

Journalists who exposed corruption, bad working conditions, and social problems in the early 1900s.

Neutrality Acts

Laws in the 1930s designed to keep the U.S. out of foreign wars.

New Deal

FDR’s programs to help Americans during the Great Depression by creating jobs and reforming the economy.

Nineteenth Amendment

The amendment that gave women the right to vote in 1920.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

A Supreme Court case that allowed "separate but equal" segregation (later overturned by Brown v. Board).

Prohibition

The nationwide ban on alcohol from 1920 to 1933, which led to bootlegging and organized crime.

Red Scare

A period of fear that communists were trying to overthrow the U.S. government, especially after World War I.

Roosevelt Corollary

Teddy Roosevelt’s addition to the Monroe Doctrine, saying the U.S. could intervene in Latin America to keep order.

“Rosie the Riveter”

A symbol of women working in factories during World War II to support the war effort.

Schenck v. U.S. (1918)

A Supreme Court case that ruled free speech could be limited if it created a "clear and present danger."

Sedition Act (1918)

A law that made it illegal to speak against the U.S. government during World War I.

Social Security

A New Deal program that provides retirement money, disability benefits, and support for the unemployed.

Square Deal

Teddy Roosevelt’s plan to give everyone a fair chance by busting trusts, protecting consumers, and conserving nature.

Tennessee Valley Authority

A New Deal program that built dams to provide electricity and jobs in the South.

Theodore Roosevelt

A progressive president known for trust-busting, conservation, and his "Big Stick" foreign policy.

United Nations

An international organization created after World War II to promote peace and prevent future wars.

W.E.B. DuBois

A Black leader who pushed for immediate civil rights and helped found the NAACP.

War Production Board

A government agency that oversaw factory production during World War II to make weapons and supplies.

Woodrow Wilson

The president during World War I who pushed for the League of Nations and progressive reforms.

Works Progress Administration

A New Deal program that created millions of jobs building roads, schools, and public buildings.

Yellow Journalism

Exaggerated, sensational news reporting to stir up emotions and sell newspapers, especially before the Spanish-American War.