Gilded Age and Progressive Age Sherman trust act? Law that Standard Oil was in violation of)

Why does agriculture improve?

Where do farmers go?

• new machinery was produced

• farmers get into tenant farming + sharecropping

Urbanization

• consequences?

“population shift from rural to urban areas“

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consequences:

• air pollution

• poor water quality

• disease

Growth of cities:

cities grew in population since jobs were becoming popular and people needed a place to live

difference between rich and poor

rich:

• most likely owned the factories poor people worked in (earned lots of income from there)

poor:

• worked long hours in factories, got paid bare minimum

government policy towards business during this era

• towards labor?

• laissez-faire (little to no government control)

• anti union laws were created

• court decisions weakened the power of the labor unions

• people working in terrible conditions started to fight for workers rights

Robber Barons or Captains of Industry?

Robber barons:

• industrialists (manage a company)

• “successful industrialists whose business practices were often considered ruthless or unethical”

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Captains of Industry:

• “A business leader whose means of amassing a personal fortune contributes positively to the country in some way“

Monopoly

• pools

• trusts

• tactics

“Rockefeller, merged the operations of many large companies to form a trust. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Trust came to monopolize 90% of the industry, severely limiting competition. These monopolies were often accused of intimidating smaller businesses and competitors in order to maintain high prices and profits.“

Gospel of Wealth

“The 'Gospel of Wealth' was an article written by Andrew Carnegie in 1889. Carnegie, a steel magnate, argued that very wealthy men like him had a responsibility to use their wealth for the greater good of society.“

Philanthropy

“the act of voluntary giving by individuals or groups to promote the common good”

Personalities of the era:

Key figures:

• John D. Rockefeller

• Andrew Carnegie

• Cornelius Vanderbilt

• J.P. Morgan

Rockefeller

• robber baron

“…one of the most successful business tycoons of the Gilded Age. Known for his cutthroat business tactics, Rockefeller used both vertical and horizontal integration to build his business empire, eventually controlling 90% of the oil industry in the United States.”

Carnegie

• robber baron

“Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans in history.“

Vanderbilt

• robber baron

“his business tactics and strategies which allowed him to create a transportation empire. He is considered one of the great American industrialists of the 19th century. He is praised by some for his business acumen…“

Regulation

The action or process of the government or any other authority to help make sure the economy is fair

Sherman Antitrust Act

banned businesses from merging to form a monopoly

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goal:

• “promote fair competition and prevent monopolistic practices”

Interstate Commerce Act

“a United States federal law that was designed to regulate the railroad industry, particularly its monopolistic practices“

Wabash v Illinois

“A Supreme Court decision that prohibited states from regulating the railroads because the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.”

US vs EC Knight

• wants to outlaw monopolies

• “severely limited the federal government's power to pursue antitrust actions under the Sherman Antitrust Act“

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result:

• “the company couldn't be controlled by the government“

Northern Securities vs US

• was it successful?

“The Supreme Court ruled that Northern securities had violated the Sherman antitrust act“

• successful → “the justices ruled 5-4 in favor of the federal government“

Union Techniques:

• bread and butter

“An organization of workers joined to protect their common interests and improve their working conditions”

Strikes? Picketing? Lockouts? Collective Bargaining? Blacklists? Yellow Dog?

Yellow Dog Contract:

• “an agreement between an employer and an employee in which the employee agrees, as a condition of employment, not to be a member of a labor union“

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Strikes:

• “a work stoppage by a body of workers to force an employer to comply with demands”

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Lockouts:

• “The shutting down of a factory by an employer to force his workers to accept his terms by not allowing them the opportunity to earn money.”

AFL? Knights of Labor?

• what were the differences

AFL = American Federation Labor

• “a group of separate national unions organized by delegates from craft unions and primarily concerned with securing concrete economic gains“

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AFL → “focused on winning economic benefits for its members through collective bargaining”

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Knights of Labor → tries to organize all the workers against all the employers

What was the government’s approach towards labor?

• government sided with management rather than the unions

• government supported management and wanted to maintain order

Pullman

• “His innovations brought comfort and luxury to railroad travel in the 1800s with the introduction of sleeping cars, dining cars, and parlor cars.”

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Pullman Strike:

• “…an act of solidarity between striking workers and union members. workers refused to switch or touch any trains with Pullman cars on them, and the majority of trains have a Pullman car because of the company's massive size.”

Homestead

“A law that gave free farmland to any male or widow who agreed to work it for five years”

• but they must contribute to the land (create agriculture, build a home, etc.)

Haymarket

“Strike in Chicago in favor of 8 hour days where a bomb was thrown into a crowd, killing 1 person. It caused the end of the Knights of Labor. August Spies. He was one of the organizers of the protest at Haymarket on May 4, 1886.“

Railroad

• “…helped start the USA's industrial revolution by creating a demand for goods and increasing trade. -It united the whole of the USA, creating a feeling of nationalism →Led to more people to settling in the West.“

• “expanded to connect towns, providing faster transport for everyone.“

Populist goals?

• “The ideology that the common people have the capability and power to have control over their government“

• significance →gave people a voice

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goals:

• “Free coinage of silver, end to protective tariffs, end to national banks, tighter regulation of the railroads, and direct election of Senators by voters“

Who believed in populism?

“Farmers, working people and supporters of silver from the mid west and south of the USA supported populism.“

Who became the spokesman? (populism)

• did he succeed?

• William McKinley

• major fail → nationwide → geographical limitations

What did the progressives want?

• where were they largely located?
  

“Supported government reform. They wanted wanted to make government more available to citizens (direct primary). They wanted to encourage the government to enact social policies to improve work on crime, illiteracy, alcohol abuse, child labor, and the health and safety of Americans.“

Who were the big names and muckrakers of the era?

• what did they write?

Jacob Riis:

• How The Other Half Lives

• covered the issue of: housing reform in NYC

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Upton Sinclair:

• The Jungle

• covered the issue of: treatment of immigrant workers and the cruel conditions in meat packing plants

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Ida Tarbell:

• The History Of The Standard Oil

• covered the issue of: the business practices of Rockefeller

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Thomas Nast:

• Political Cartoons in Harper’s Weekly

• covered the issue of: the many issues including Reconstruction and “Boss” Tweed in NYC

Teddy Roosevelt as “trust buster”?

• good trust or bad trust?

• “he saw a difference between good trusts & bad trusts. he said good trusts were efficient but bad ones took advantage of workers and cheated the public“

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trust buster: a person who wanted to destroy all trusts

• initiative

• referendum

• recall

• Legislation

• Money Supply

• Food Supply

• Parks

16th amendment

authorizes federal income tax

17th amendment

provided for the direct election of senators

18th amendment

prohibited sale and production of intoxicating liquors

19th amendment

gave women the right to vote

Political Machines:

• what were they

• what did they do

• where were they located

“political machines were organizations tied to a political party that typically held sway over local government”

Immigration

“the movement of people living in one country into another country“

Where were immigrants coming from (old/new)

• why were they welcomed at first?

• why did they change?

“Fleeing crop failure, land and job shortages, rising taxes, and famine, many came to the U. S. because it was perceived as the land of economic opportunity”

• old immigrants could read and write which meant they had a skilled job already

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what the immigrants changed:

• helped increase the population of many cities, and create diversity

What did Congress do to limit immigration

(there are a few laws)

“The Immigration Act of 1924 limited the number of immigrants allowed entry into the United States through a national origins quota. The quota provided immigration visas to two percent of the total number of people of each nationality in the United States as of the 1890 national census.“

How did the Chinese fare?

“building railroads in the American west“

Nativism

“the belief that native-born Americans are superior to foreigners“