P6

1862

Homestead Act,Gave 160 acres to settlers to encourage western expansion and settlement

1862

Pacific Railroad Act,Authorized transcontinental railroad and promoted westward growth

1869

First Transcontinental Railroad completed,Linked East and West; boosted trade migration and industry

1873

Panic of 1873,Major economic depression caused by overproduction and speculation

1875

Civil Rights Act of 1875,Banned racial discrimination in public places before later being overturned

1877

Compromise of 1877,Ends Reconstruction; federal troops leave South and Jim Crow rises

1877

Great Railroad Strike,First major national labor strike; federal troops used against workers

1877

Munn v. Illinois,Supreme Court allowed states to regulate businesses affecting the public

1882

Chinese Exclusion Act,First federal law banning immigration based on nationality/race

1883

Civil Rights Cases,Supreme Court weakens 14th Amendment protections against discrimination

1883

Pendleton Civil Service Act,Created merit-based government jobs to reduce corruption and patronage

1886

Haymarket Riot,Bombing linked labor unions with violence in public opinion

1886

American Federation of Labor (AFL) founded,Major union focused on skilled workers wages and conditions

1887

Interstate Commerce Act,First major federal regulation of business; targeted railroad abuses

1887

Dawes Act,Broke up tribal lands to assimilate Native Americans; caused land loss

1890

Sherman Antitrust Act,First federal attempt to limit monopolies and trusts

1890

Wounded Knee Massacre,Marks end of major Native American resistance on the Plains

1890

McKinley Tariff,Raised tariffs to protect American industry but hurt consumers/farmers

1892

Ellis Island opens,Main immigration processing center for new immigrants

1892

Homestead Strike,Violent steel strike showing conflict between labor and big business

1892

Populist Party formed,Farmers and workers demand economic and political reforms

1893

Panic of 1893,Severe depression causing unemployment and labor unrest

1893

Frederick Jackson Turner Frontier Thesis,Claimed frontier shaped American democracy and was now closed

1894

Pullman Strike,Federal government intervened against labor unions again

1896

Plessy v. Ferguson,Established “separate but equal” segregation doctrine

1896

Election of 1896,McKinley victory supports gold standard and industrial capitalism

1896

Cross of Gold Speech,William Jennings Bryan supports free silver for struggling farmers/debtors