The Politics of the Gilded Age

Vocabulary flashcards covering key monetary and tariff topics, parties, legislation, and political trends from the late 19th-century U.S. notes.

Greenbacks

Unbacked paper money issued by the U.S. during the Civil War; supporters favored expanding the money supply while creditors argued it violated natural law.

Specie Resumption Act

1875 law that withdrew all greenbacks from circulation and resumed gold payments, effectively returning the country to the gold standard.

Greenback Party

Political party formed to promote paper money; in 1878 it won nearly 1 million votes and 14 Congressional seats; James B. Weaver was a notable leader.

James B. Weaver

Leader of the Greenback Party from Iowa and a future leader of the Populist Party; presidential candidate in 1878.

Bland-Allison Act

1878 compromise law that allowed limited coinage of silver (between $2 million and $4 million per month) at a silver-to-gold ratio of 16-to-1, passed over Hayes's veto.

Crime of 1873

Coinage Act that stopped the coinage of silver, effectively placing the U.S. on the gold standard and sparking silver backlash.

Unlimited coinage of silver (Free Silver)

Demands by farmers, debtors, and western miners for expanding the money supply by allowing unlimited silver coinage.

Silver-to-gold ratio (16:1)

Fixed ratio used in the Bland-Allison Act to determine the amount of silver coinage relative to gold.

Tariff Issue

Debate over tariff rates; tariffs provided more than half of federal revenue in the 1890s and affected prices, industry, and foreign retaliation.

Protective tariff

Tariffs designed to shield domestic industry from foreign competition; supported by Republicans and some Democrats, but argued to raise consumer prices and provoke retaliation.

Growth of Discontent (1888–1896)

Rising public dissatisfaction with corruption, money policy, tariffs, railroads, and trusts, leading to reform pressures and third-party movements.

Populists (People's Party)

Third party formed to represent farmers and laborers; pushed for monetary and tariff reforms and later influenced national politics.

Nevada silver discoveries

Silver finds in Nevada that revived calls for silver coinage and expansion of the money supply.

Billion-Dollar Congress

The late 1880s Congress under Benjamin Harrison known for large spending and tariffs, earning its nickname from high appropriations.

Election of 1888

Presidential contest dominated by tariff policy; Cleveland proposed lowering rates due to federal surplus, while Harrison won the election.