APUSH: Glided Age

Jim Fisk and Jay Gould

Two Gilded Age financiers who attempted to corner the U.S. gold market in 1869, resulting in a financial panic.

John D. Rockefeller

Founder of the Standard Oil Company who created a monopoly in the oil industry through horizontal integration.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

A railroad tycoon known for consolidating control over the U.S. railroad system.

Andrew Carnegie

A steel magnate who utilized vertical integration and became a prominent philanthropist.

J.P. Morgan

A leading Gilded Age banker who consolidated major industries, including the creation of U.S. Steel.

Thomas Reed

Powerful Republican Speaker of the House known for his control over the 'Billion-Dollar Congress'.

Thomas Nast

Political cartoonist who exposed the corruption of Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall.

Upton Sinclair

Muckraking author of 'The Jungle', which revealed unsanitary conditions in the meatpacking industry.

Jacob Riis

Muckraking photojournalist known for documenting the conditions of New York City's tenements.

Ida Tarbell

Muckraking journalist who exposed the predatory practices of Standard Oil Company.

Pendleton Act - Civil Service Reform

1883 law that established a merit-based system for federal employment.

McKinley Tariff Act 1890

Tariff that raised duties on imports to their highest peacetime levels.

Wilson-Gorman Tariff 1894

Tariff act notable for creating a 2% federal income tax, later declared unconstitutional.

Credit Mobilier Scandal

A scandal involving the Union Pacific Railroad that led to bribery of congressmen.

Whiskey Ring

A scandal involving distillers and officials conspiring to defraud the government of liquor tax revenue.

Civil Rights Act of 1875

Law guaranteeing equal access to public accommodations regardless of race, later declared unconstitutional.

Compromise of 1877

The political deal that resolved the 1876 election dispute and ended Reconstruction.

Chinese Exclusion Act

1882 law that banned Chinese immigration and denied citizenship to Chinese residents.

Homestead Steel Strike

1892 labor conflict at a Carnegie steel plant resulting in a major defeat for the union.

Panic of 1873

Financial crisis due to railroad over-speculation that led to a four-year depression.

Depression of 1893

Severe economic depression caused by railroad bankruptcies and weak agriculture.

Farmers' Alliances

Agrarian organizations that united farmers to combat high railroad rates.

Populist Party 1892

Political party formed from Farmers' Alliances advocating for working-class policies.

Jim Crow Laws

Laws enforcing racial segregation in the South.

Plessy v. Ferguson

1896 Supreme Court decision establishing 'separate but equal' doctrine.

Muller v. Oregon

1908 case upholding a state law limiting women's work hours.

Lochner v. NY

1905 ruling striking down a New York law limiting bakers' hours.

Pinkerton detectives

Private security agency used by corporations to suppress union activity.

Wabash Case

1886 Supreme Court decision ruling states could not regulate interstate commerce.

Interstate Commerce Act

1887 law creating the Interstate Commerce Commission to regulate railroads.

Sherman Anti-Trust Act

1890 law prohibiting monopolies and conspiracies restraining trade.

Knights of Labor

A national labor union seeking to organize all workers and advocate for broad social reforms.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Alliance of skilled craft unions focusing on specific labor goals like wages and hours.

Haymarket Square Riot

1886 confrontation during a labor protest that led to backlash against unions.