Studied by 21 people
Dr. Strangelove
Popular dark comedy that explored the possibility of an “accident” with the bomb
One of several movies that dealt with nuclear tensions in the early 1960s
These films reflected popular concerns about the threat of nuclear war
Transcontinental Railroad
The federal government encouraged the building of a transcontinental railroad route with legislation and land grants
The Union Pacific built west from Nebraska, and the Central Pacific built east from California
The lines met at Promentory, Utah, in 1869
Wade-Davis Act
Congress passed this bill in 1864 in response to Lincoln’s “10 Percent Plan”
Set out much more difficult conditions for Southern reentry into the Union, including requiring that half the white male citizens of a Southern state take a loyalty oath
Lincoln killed the bill with a pocket veto
Civil Service Commission
Created by the Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883
In charge of testing applicants and assigning them to appropriate government jobs
Filling jobs on the basis of merit replaced the spoils system
George Whitefield
Anglican minister who proved to be a dynamic and charismatic preacher during the Great Awakening
Preached to as many as 20,000 people at a time
His 1740 tour of the colonies was the high point of the Great Awakening
National Consumers League
Formed in 1890
Was concerned with improving the working and living conditions of women in the workplace
Settlement Houses
Progressive reformers set up these centers in the poorest sections of American cities
Here workers and their children might receive lessons in English or citizenship, while women learned domestic skills
The first settlement house was Hull House in Chicago, started by Jane Addams in 1889
Slavery
The first African slaves entered Virginia as workers in 1619 when few legal differences existed between black and white workers
By the 1670s and 1680s, African slavery was widespread in the Chesapeake colonies
The trading of slaves became an integral part of the triangular trade system
Ross Perot
Texas multibillionaire who ran for president in 1992 as a third candidate
Spent a lot of money on ads, criticizing special interests and promising to bring “common sense” to the White House
Won nearly 19 million votes, probably taking more votes from George H.W. Bush than Bill Clinton
Suburbia
Area outside of the cities where massive numbers of families flocked, especially in the 1950s and 1960s
Suburban parents often worked in the cities, but the suburban lifestyle shared little with urban life
Critics decried conformity in suburbia
Birth of a Nation
Epic movie released by director D.W Griffith in 1915
Portrayed Reconstruction as a time when Southern blacks threatened basic American values, which the Ku Klux Klan protected
Was lauded by many, including President Woodrow Wilson
Palmer Raids
Part of the Red Scare, these were measure to hunt out political radicals and immigrants who were potential threats to American security
Organized by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer (and carried out by J. Edgar Hoover), these raids arrested 5,500 people
Red Scare
A vigorous repression of radicals, “political subversives”, and “undesirable” immigrant groups took place in the years immediately following World War I
Nearly 6,500 “radicals” were arrested and sent to jail, while nearly 500 immigrants were deported
Harlem Renaissance
Black literary and artistic movement centered on Harlem that lasted from the 1920s into the early 1930s
Both celebrated and lamented black life in America
Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston were two famous writers of this movement
National Origins Act
This very restrictive immigration legislation, passed in 1924, lowered immigration to 2% of each nationality as found in the 1890 census
This lowered immigration dramatically, and, quiet intentionally, almost ended immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe
Dust Bowl
Part of the Great Plains region that suffered severe drought and experienced severe dust storms during the 1930s
Because of extreme conditions, many who lived in the Dust Bowl left their farms and went to California to work as migrant farmers
Second New Deal
Beginning in 1935, the New Deal did more to help the poor and attack the wealthy
One reason for this was to turn Americans away from more radical measures
Key legislative acts of this era were the Social Security Act, the National Labor Relations Act, and the Wealth Tax Act
Jay’s Treaty
A 1794 treaty negotiated by John Jay, designed to ease tensions between the United States and Great Britain
The British agreed to abandon the forts they occupied on American territory in the west
The British refused to make concessions over the rights of American ships
Scottsboro Boys
9 young black men who were accused of raping two white women in a railway boxcar in Scottsboro, Arizona, in 1931
Quick trials, suppressed evidence, and inadequate legal council made them symbols of the discrimination that faced blacks on a daily basis in this era
George Kennan
American diplomat and expert in Soviet affairs
Became the chief formulator of the policy of containment
Argued that because of Soviet hostility and insecurity, the U.S. needed to contain communism until it collapsed on its own
Loyalty Review Boards
Established in 1947 in an effort to control possible communist influence in the American government
Investigated “security risks” working for the government, and determined if they should lose their jobs because of political affiliations or sexual orientation
HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee)
Beginning in 1947, this committee investigated possible communist infiltration of the entertainment industry and the government
Its most famous investigations were of the “Hollywood Ten” and Alger Hiss
Consumer Society
Many Americans became infatuated with all of the new products produced by technology and went out and purchased more than any prior generation
Consumer tastes of the 1950s were largely dictated by advertising and television
Bessemer Steel
First produced in 1856 in a converter (furnace) invented by Henry Bessemer
Much more durable and harder than iron
Steel was a critical commodity in the Second Industrial Revolution
Webb Alien Land Law
California law passed in 1913 that prohibited Japanese who were not American citizens from owning land in California
Illustrates the nativist sentiment found in much of American society in the first decades of the 20th century
Historiography
The study of history and how it is written
Students of this analyze various historical interpretations and the views of historians
Is not as concerned with events themselves as with how the events are interpreted
Rio Pact
1947 treaty signed by the United States and most Latin American countries that stated the region would work together on economic and defense matters
Created the Organization of American States to facilitate this cooperation
Temperance Movement
Movement that developed in America before the Civil War that lamented the effect that alcohol had on American society
After the Civil War, members of this movement became concerned about the effects of alcohol on the poor and immigrants
Out of this came a drive for prohibition
Aztecs
Advanced Native American society located in central Mexico
Conquered in 1512 by the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortéz
Their defeat was hastened by smallpox brought to Mexico by the Spanish
Middle Passage
Voyage across the Atlantic taken by slaves on their way to the Americas
Sickness, disease, and death were rampant
On some ships, more than 20% of the slaves who began the voyage were dead by the time the ship landed
Social History
Field of history that analyzes the lives and beliefs of common people in any era
In American history, this field has grown dramatically since the 1960s
Social historians believe that we get a more accurate view of an event by looking at the actions of ordinary people rather than leaders
Ku Klux Klan
Organization founded during Reconstruction by Southerners who wanted to maintain white supremacy
Used terror tactics, including murder
Was revived in the 1920s to oppose immigration and Catholics
The KKK still exists today
Secondary Source
Historical account written after the fact
A historian writing a secondary source would analyze the available primary sources on his/her topic
Examples would be a textbook, a new biography of Lincoln, or a history of slavery
Sharecropping
Form of agricultural labor that emerged in the South after the Civil War
Sharecroppers worked for a landlord, receiving seed and farming implements, and in return for their labor, recieved the profits for a share of the crop
Most became indebted to their landlords
Battle of Gettysburg
Most important battle of the Civil War
July 1863 victory by Union forces prevented General Robert E. Lee from successfully invading the North
Gettysburg, along with the defeat at Vicksburg, turned the tide against the South
“Tight Money”
Governmental policy utilized to offset the effects of inflation
Many times the Federal Reserve Board has increased the interest on money it loans to member banks
When these higher interest rates are passed on, a slowing economy cuts inflation
Gold Standard
Occurs when an economic system bases all currency on gold, allowing paper currency to be exchanged for gold
Business interests in the late 19th century supported this
William Jennings Bryan ran against this in 1896, favoring the free coinage of silver
Scalawags
Term used by Southerners in the Reconstruction era for fellow Southerners who either supported Republican Reconstruction policies or gained economically as a result of these policies
Seen as allies of the carpetbaggers
Port Huron Statement
Manifesto of the Students for a Democratic Society, a radical student group formed in 1962
Called for a greater role for university students in the nation’s affairs, rejected the traditional role of the university, and rejected the current American foreign policy goals
Hull House
The first settlement house in America, established by Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr in Chicago in 1889
Provided services such as reading groups, social clubs, and employment bureau, and a “day care center”
Was copied in other cities
Referendum
A Progressive-era reform designed to improve the political system
With the referendum, certain issues would be decided directly by the voters, who were called upon to approve or disapprove specific government programs
Progressives saw this as democratic reform
Initiative Process
A procedure supported b the Populist Party in the 1890s
In states with an initiative process, any proposed law can go on the public ballos so long as a petition with an appropriate number of names is submitted beforehand supporting the proposed law
Internment Camps
The controversial decision to intern Japanese-Americans living on the West Coast in camps was made after Pearl Harbor
President Franklin Roosevelt authorized this with Executive Order #9066
Was validated by the Supreme Court in 1944
Hollywood
The American movie industry achieved unprecedented influence in the 1930s
Going to the movies provided a way for Americans to escape their daily troubles
By 1939, nearly 70% of all adults went to the movies at least once a week
Plush theaters made this a special event
Bear Flag Republic
The name given to the republic created by American settlers when they declared California independent from Mexico in 1846
This act was part of a larger American political and military strategy to wrest Texas and California from Mexico
Battle of Fredericksburg
Fought on December 13, 1862
The Union army commanded by General Ambrose Burnside suffered a major defeat at the hands of General Robert E. Lee’s Confederates
Reconstruction Act
Plan of the Radical Republicans to control the South, approved in March 1867
The former Confederacy was divided into 5 military districts (Tennessee was exempt)
Conventions were to be called to create new state governments, with former Confederate officials ineligible to hold office
Direct Primary
Progressive-era reform adopted by some states
Allowed candidates for state office to be nominated by the rank-and-file party members in statewide primaries instead of by the party bosses who had traditionally dominated the nominating process
Samuel Adams
A leading opponent of British policy in the 1760s and 1770s
Helped organize the Sons of Liberty
A leader in the agitation surrounding the Boston Massacre
Because of the Boston Tea Party, Adams was marked for arrest by the British
Recall
Progressive reformers proposed this as a reform of the government system
By the process of recall, the citizens of a city or state could remove an unpopular elected official from office in midterm
Was adopted by only a small number of communities
Tenure of Office Act
1867 congressional act designed to limit the influence of President Johnson
Stated that Congress had to approve the removal of officials made by the president
Johnson defied the act by firing Secretary of War Edwin Stanton and was impeached
Revenue Act of 1942
Designed to raise money for the war, this bill dramatically increased the number of Americans required to pay income tax
Up to this point, roughly 4 million Americans paid income tax
As a result of this legislation, nearly 45 million paid income tax
Homestead Act
1862 enactment by Congress that gave 160 acres of publicly owned land to a farmer who lived on the land and farmed it for 2 year
Inspired hundreds of thousands of Americans to move westward in the years after the Civil War
Gadsden Purchase
A strip of territory running through Arizona and New Mexico that the United States purchased from Mexico in 1853
President Pierce authorized this purchase to ensure that the southern route of the transcontinental railroad would be in American territory
Seventeenth Amendment
Ratified in 1913, this amendment allowed voters to directly elect U.S. senators
Senators had previously been elected by state legislatures
Reflected the desire of Progressives to put political power in the hands of the citizenry
My Lai Massacre
In 1968, a unit under the command of Lieutenant William Calley killed more than 300 men, women, and children in this small Vietnamese village
The anti-war movement took the attack as a symbol of the “immorality” of United States efforts in Vietnam
Justice Reorganization Bill
Franklin Roosevelt’s plan to increase the size of the Supreme Court
Claimed many of the judges were older and needed help keeping up with the work
Really wanted to “pack the court” because it had outlawed New Deal acts
So many opposed the plan that it failed
Kerner Commission
Established in 1967 to study the reasons for urban riots, the commission spoke at length about the impact of poverty and racism on the lives of urban blacks in America
Emphasized that white institutions created and condoned American ghettoes
Black Power
Movement of Black Americans in the mid -1960s that emphasized pride in racial heritage and black economic and political self-reliance
Term was coined by black civil rights leader Stokely Carmichael
Puritans
Religious dissidents who left England for America to establish a “purer” church
Settled Plymouth Colony in 1620 and the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630
Were heavily influenced by John Calvin and his concept of predestination
New Deal
Series of policies instituted by Franklin Roosevelt and his advisors from 1933-1941 that attempted to offset the effects of the Great Depression on American society
In the end, in was the onset of World War II, and not the New Deal, that pulled the United States out of the depression
Haymarket Square
Location in Chicago of a labor rally called by anarchist and other radical labor leaders on May 2, 1886
A bomb was hurled towards the police, who opened fire on the demonstrators
The many casualties amongst police and workers led to press criticism of unions
Muckrakers
Journalists of the Progressive era who attempted to expose the evils of government and big business
Many wrote of the corruption of city and state political machines
Others wrote about factory conditions and the living and working conditions of workers
Head Start
One of President Johnson’s War on Poverty programs
Gave substantial funding for a nursery school program to prepare children of poor parents for kindergarten
Sit-Down Strikes
Labor tactic where workers refuse to leave their factory until management meets their demands
The most famous sit-down strike occurred at the General Motors plant in Flint, Michigan, beginning in November, 1936
The workers won the strike after 44 days
Morrill Land Grant Act
1862 federal act designed to fund state “land grant” colleges
State governments were given large amounts of land in the western territories
This land was sold to individual settlers, land speculators, and others, and the profits of these land sales helped establish colleges
Yellow Journalism
Uses accounts and illustrations of lurid and sensational events to sell newspapers
Newspapers using this strategy covered the events in Cuba leading up to the Spanish-American War, and shifted American opinion toward desiring war with Spain
Know-Nothing Party
A political party that developed in the 1850s, claiming that the other parties and the whole political process were corrupt
Know-Nothing's believed that immigrants were depressing wages and that Catholics were destroying American democracy
This foreshadowed later nativist groups
Ghost Dances
Religion practiced by the Sioux
Thought that a Native American messiah would come and banish the whites, return the buffalo, and give all land back to the Native Americans
Worried officials ordered Sioux leader Sitting Bull’s arrest and attacked the Sioux at Wounded Knee
Hessians
German troops who fought for Great Britain during the Revolutionary War
Mercenaries sold into British service by German princes who raised money by hiring out their regiments
Loyalists
Colonists who remained loyal to Great Britain during the American Revolution
Many, though not all, Loyalists came from the upper strata of society
Large numbers moved to Canada, the West Indies, or Great Britain during the war
Robert E. Lee
American military officer with a brilliant record in the Mexican War who turned down a high command in the Union army to fight with his native state of Virginia
A great general who won many victories but could not ultimately prevail against Union forces
Andrew Jackson
The first president to come from the West
Achieved fame as a general, fighting the Creeks and winning the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812
Founded the Democratic Party and was hailed as the champion of the common man
Boston Tea Party
In response to the Tea Act and additional British taxes on tea, Boston radicals disguised as Native Americans threw nearly 350 chests of tea into Boston harbor on December 16, 1773
Parliament closed Boston harbor and passed the Coercive Acts
Dominion of New England
A consolidation of the colonies of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Plymouth, and New Hampshire by King James II in 1686
The Dominion ended in April 1689, following the overthrow during the Glorious Revolution
Battle of Vicksburg
Vicksburg, a Confederate city along the Mississippi River, was taken after a lengthy siege in July 1863
Gave the Union virtual control of the Mississippi River and was a serious psychological blow to the Confederacy
Carpetbaggers
Terms used by Southerners to mock Northerners who came to the South to gain either financially or politically during Reconstruction
Referred to carpetbags, a form of luggage
Woodrow Wilson
As president, Wilson helped pass the last major progressive legislation
Led the United States into World War I, and won international fame and a Nobel Peace Prize for his Fourteen Points
Lost his health trying to pass the Versailles Treaty at home in the US
Sedition Act
1918 act that stated it was illegal to criticize the government, the Constitution, the U.S. army, or the U.S. Navy
Socialist leader Eugene Debs received a 3-year sentence for criticizing militarism, and hundreds of others went to prison
Fourteen Points
Woodrow Wilson’s view of a post-World War I world that he hoped the other Allied powers would endorse
Wilson’s vision included elimination of secret treaties, arms reduction, national self-determination, and the creation of a League of Nations
Henry Clay
A leading American statesman from Kentucky who promoted “The American System”
Served as a congressman, senator, presidential candidate, and diplomat
Known as “the Great Pacificator” because of his ability to craft compromises in the Senate
Great Migration
Large numbers of southern blacks moved to midwestern and eastern industrial cities beginning with World War I and continuing into the 1920s
Workers were needed there originally because of the war and later because of immigration restrictions
Many blacks gladly left the racist South
Zimmermann Telegram
In January 1917, the German foreign minister sent a telegram to Mexico suggesting that the Mexican army should join forces with Germany against the United States and reclaim the American southwest
The British deciphered this and turned it over to the U.S., causing anti-German feeling
Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
In early 1917, Germany announced that U-boats would attack all ships attempting to land at British or French ports
Woodrow Wilson said that this violated the neutral rights of the United States, and America was forced to declare war
Upton Sinclair
Socialist intellectual and muckraking journalist
His powerful 1906 novel, The Jungle, was a denunciation of the capitalist exploitation of workers in Chicago’s meat-packing industry
His descriptions of filthy working conditions led to the Meat Inspection Act
Booker T. Washington
A former slave who became a leading black educator
Founded famous Normal and Industrial Institute at Tuskegee, Alabama
Emphasized education and self-help as the means for black Americans to improve their situation in American society
Socialism
Movement that is critical of the capitalist system, and whose proponents want to replace it with communal ownership of most property
During the Progressive era, the Socialist Party led by union activist Eugene Debs won more votes than any American socialist party before or since
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
Formed in 1909, this organization fought for the rights of blacks in America
Originally went to court for the plaintiff in the Brown v. Board of Education case with Thurgood Marshall as the main attorney
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
Passed during the first hundred days of the Roosevelt administration, this body insured individual bank deposits up to $2,500
Helped restore confidence in America’s banks
Dred Scott Case
Supreme Court case involving a slave who had lived in a non slave state and was now petitioning for his freedom
In 1857 the Court ruled that, as property, slaves could not sue in the courts
The Court also ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional
Freeport Doctrine
Stephen Douglas introduced this in the Lincoln-Douglas debates
He believed that despite the Dred Scott decision, a territory could still prevent slavery by electing anti-slavery officials and enacting laws that would make slavery impossible to enforce
Monroe Doctrine
President James Monroe’s 1823 statement that an attack by a European state on any nation in the Western Hemisphere would be considered an attack on the United States
Monroe’s statement was scoffed at by certain European political leaders, especially those in Great Britain
Fort Sumter
A federal fort located in Charleston, South Carolina, that was fired on by Confederate artillery on April 12, 1861
These were the first shots of the Civil War
A public outcry followed in the Northern states and the mobilization of a federal army began
Missouri Compromise
Henry Clay proposed this 1820 compromise as a way of maintaining a balance between free and slave states
Maine was admitted to the Union as a free state and Missouri as a slave state, while any part of the Louisiana territory north of 36 degrees, 30 inches would be free territory
John D. Rockefeller
Entered the oil business in the 1860s after the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania
Created a trust with his Standard Oil, and for a time controlled most of the refining and transportation of oil in the U.S.
Retired with a $1 billion fortune and set up a number of philanthropical organizations
Gettysburg Address
November 19, 1863, speech made by Abraham Lincoln at the dedication ceremony for a cemetery for Union soldiers killed at the Battle of Gettysburg
Lincoln stated that “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth”
Progressivism
This movement desired political and social reforms and was most influential in America from the 2890s until World War I
Advocated popular progressive causes included reforming city government, better conditions for workers, the education of immigrants, and the regulation of big business
Vertical Integration
Type of industrial organization practiced in the late 1800s and pioneered by Andrew Carnegie and U.S. Steel
Under this system, all the various business activities needed to produce and sell a finished product would be done by the same company
Neutrality Act of 1939
Franklin Roosevelt persuaded Congress to amend the Neutrality Act of 1935
New legislation stated that Britain and France could buy arms from the United States as long as there was cash “up front” for these weapons
Allowed the U.S. to assist the Allies
Timber and Stone Act
1878 bill that allowed private citizens to purchase forest territory in Oregon, Washington, California, and Nevada
Although the intent of the bill was to encourage settlement, lumber companies bought large amounts of these land claims from the original purchases
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