Studied by 17 people
What did Twain mean by “Gilded Age”
Refers to the period between 1875-1900
Referred to the superficial glitter of the new wealth so prominently displayed in the late 19th century
Thought it looked good but turned out not to be
Who were the supporters of the Republican Party
Blacks, middle-class businessmen, Protestants
Mostly the North
Who were the supporters of the Democrat Party
Big city political machines, immigrants
Mostly the South
During the Gilded Age, how did Americans feel about the role of the government
They believed that the role of gov. was strictly limited
Wanted to restore what they believed was a more normal political equilibrium
What is the spoils system
Held that after an election the victorious party should reward its supporters by giving them gov. jobs
Often meant turning members of the opposing party out of their gov. positions and became a major burden for presidents as heads of the office-rich executive branch
What event led to the Pendleton Act and what did the act do
Garfield’s assassination convinced Congress that something had to be done about the spoils system
PA: took a number of gov. jobs out of political control (If you want to work for gov., you need to take a test)
How did the political parties differ on tariffs
Republicans supported high tariffs to protect American industry and jobs
Democrats wanted to lower tariffs
What were political machines and what did they do
Highly structured organizations designed to keep a leader and his associates in political power
Provided working-class citizens jobs, loans, and other favors in exchange for their votes
What was Tammany Hall and who was its boss
Most famous political machine
Boss was William M. Tweed (and a group from City Hall)
Who were the candidates in 1876
Republican, Rutherford B. Hayes
Democrat, Samuel J. Tilden
What did the Compromise of 1877 do
The end of a federal military presence and brought Reconstruction to an end
Most Southern African Americans and whites in the decades after the Civil War remained poor farmers, and they fell further behind the rest of the nation
How did the gov. help railroads
US gov. subsidized the building of the transcontinental railroad and gave huge land grants to rail companies who sought to construct rail lines throughout the west
What were railroads like in the east and who was the railroad leader there
Cornelius Vanderbilt lead the modernization of older tracks
Conversion of Eastern lines to common gauge steel rails and consolidated many smaller rail lines under one company
What were the railroads like in the west and where did they eventually meet
Transcontinental railroad was constructed by the congressionally appointed Union Pacific Railroad and Central Pacific Railroad companies
They finally met on May 10, 1869, at Promontory Point, Utah, just north of the Great Salt Lake
How did Bessemer revolutionize steel
Henry Bessemer revolutionized the production of steel when he discovered a way to produce it faster and make it stronger
Describe Andrew Carnegie and what was vertical integration
A young Scottish immigrant who saw a future in the production of steel and emerged as one of the nation’s wealthiest men by the late 1800s through his Carnegie Steel Company
Tactic where Carnegie controlled every aspect of the production process for steel from the mining of the ore to the distribution of the finished product
Describe John D. Rockefeller and what was horizontal integration
A young businessman that soon joined Carnegie as one the nation’s wealthiest men
Strategy was to control one aspect of the production process of oil, in this case, the refining stage
What is laissez-faire policy
Economic system based on natural market forces, not governments, should regulate the marketplace
What did the Sherman Antitrust Act do
An attempt to break up the massive monopolies that were dominating the American economy
Forbade the creation of trusts that were designed to restrain trade
Failed to specify the difference between trusts that were beneficial to customers and those that were harmful
Failed to include any real method of enforcement
What did the Homestead Act do
Provided a settler with 160 acres of land if he promised to live on it and work it for at least five years
Who is Thomas Nast
A political cartoonist for Harper’s Weekly, became William Tweed’s archenemy as he began drawing scathing commentaries regarding the machine’s corruption and greed
Who founded the settlement house movement, what did the house do and what was the first one
Begun by young, college-educated, middle-class women, founded by Jane Addams
The Hull House was the first private social welfare agency, to assist the poor, combat juvenile delinquency, and help immigrants learn to speak English.
What was the goal of the temperance movement
Make laws to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages
Believed prohibition would cure society of a variety of ills, particularly poverty
Who were the leaders of women’s suffrage and where in the US did women gain the right to vote
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony formed the National American Woman Association
Number of western states did allow women to vote by 1900, Wyoming being the first
What was the ruling in Plessy vs Ferguson
Ruled that because a car was provided for African-American passengers, the state of Louisiana had not violated the Fourteenth Amendment
Justices used the “separate but equal” doctrine to justify their decision
What were Jim Crow Laws
Segregated public facilities from drinking fountains to hotel rooms
Compare Booker T. Washington and WEB DuBois
Washington argued that “the agitation of the questions of social equality is the extremist folly”
WEB DuBois would demand an end to segregation and the granting of equal rights to all Americans (Talented 10th)
What were three examples of Jim Crow laws
Poll Taxes
Liberty Tests
Grandfather Clause
Which case later overturned Plessy
The Plessy vs Ferguson ruling would later be overturned in 1954 by Brown vs Board of Education of Topeka Kansas
What were tenement buildings
Poorly built, overcrowded housing where many immigrants lived
What did the Dawes Act do
Attempt to “civilize” Native Americans
Stripped tribes of their official federal recognition and land rights and would grant individual Indian families land and citizenship in 25 years if they “behaved”
What did the Morrill Land-Grant Act do
Intended to stimulate higher education in the states
Federal gov. gave hundreds of thousands of acres of public land to state governments
What was life like for those who attempted to farm in the west
Conditions on the western plains were harsh
Because of the lack of trees and wood, many settlers had to build their homes out of sod
Water was often in short supply, and tainted sources of water spread diseases such as typhoid
What were bonanza farms
Large farms that came to overcome agricultural life in a lot of the west in the late 1800s.
Large amounts of machinery were used, and workers were hired laborers, often performing only specific tasks
Which was the first state to grant women’s suffrage
Wyoming led the way in giving women the right to vote in statewide elections
What were Exodusters
Most famous group of African Americans to leave the South for the West
They modeled their journey on the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt to the Promise Land
What was the Grange and what did it do
Organization that formed farmer cooperatives to enable members to enjoy economies of scale by buying and marketing products
Organized politically and sponsored state legislation to regulate railroads and grain elevators
Who was Mary Lease
Popular speaker, telling farmers to “raise less corn and more hell”
What did the Interstate Commerce Act do
Planned to regulate railroads but did not prove effective
What party represented farmers and what were some of its goals
The Populist Party hoped to unite all working people across the country
Called for increasing the amount of senators, gov. ownership of railroads, and the eight-hour day for workers
Who were the presidential candidates in 1896 and how did they differ
Republican, William McKinley, conducted a “front porch” campaign
Democrat, William Bryan, campaigned vigorously throughout the swing states of the Midwest
Which party benefited from 1896
The debate of Bryan and the Populist free-silver movement initiated an era of Republican dominance of the presidency and of both houses of Congress
What were some other effects of the election of 1896
Populist Demise
Urban Dominance
Beginning of Modern Politics
What was the Turner Thesis
Jackson Turner asserted that the American national character was shaped by the move west
He argued that American democracy and self-reliance were products of the frontier experiences
What caused the creation of labor unions
Labor was doing the heavy lifting for the country
Ten-plus hours a day, six days a week, and unsafe conditions created a vacuum that labor unions attempted to fill
Describe the American Federation of Labor
Would see the greatest and longest-lasting success of all unions because of their use of collective bargaining and focus on “bread and butter” issues
What were some ways business handled labor dissent
Closing the factory
“Locking out” the workers
Keeping them from obtaining their day’s pay
Where were most of the new immigrants from
Most immigrants came from Northern Europe, usually from the British Isles and Germany
Where did most new immigrants arrive when they came to the US
The federal gov. opened Ellis Island in New York City harbor as a reception center
What were some acts that limited immigration
Chinese Exclusion Act
Webb Alien Land Act
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Flashcard (43)