Industrial and Gilded Ages Vocabulary

A comprehensive collection of vocabulary terms, historical figures, acts, and concepts from the Industrial and Gilded Ages transcript.

Alexander Graham Bell

Invented the telephone, speeding up communication between businesses and people across the nation.

American Dream

The belief that anyone, regardless of background, can achieve success, prosperity, and upward mobility through hard work and determination.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

A major national labor union founded in 1886, focused on securing better wages, hours, and conditions for skilled workers.

Andrew Carnegie

Leading industrialist and philanthropist who expanded the American steel industry and promoted the "Gospel of Wealth" philosophy.

Angel Island

Immigration station in San Francisco Bay where mostly Asian immigrants were processed, often facing harsh questioning and conditions.

Assimilation

The process by which immigrants or minority groups adopt the language, customs, and culture of the dominant society. Widely pushed on immigrants to America and Native Americans.

Bessemer Process

Made steel production faster, cheaper, stronger and more efficient, fueling industrial growth with railroads and skyscrapers.

Big Business

Large-scale corporate enterprises that dominated major industries such as oil, steel, and railroads during the late 19th century. They had influence over government policies.

Boss Tweed

Corrupt political boss of New York's Tammany Hall, known for defrauding the city through political machines.

Boycotts

Organized refusals to buy or use goods and services as a method of protest or to force political or economic change.

Capitalism

Economic system where private individuals and businesses own production and operate for profit with minimal government interference. Consumer demand drives product creation.

Captains of Industry

Positive term for business leaders whose innovations and philanthropy greatly contributed to economic growth and society.

Child Labor

Children working in mines and factories instead of attending school. Often paid the lowest wages and placed in the most dangerous conditions.

Chinese Exclusion Act 1882

U.S. federal law that prohibited Chinese labor immigration, the first major law restricting immigration by nationality. Passed due to fear of competition for jobs on the west coast, the first time the government tried to restrict immigration.

City Services

Essential public services provided by municipal governments, including sanitation, water supply, and fire protection.

Collective Bargaining

Negotiations between employers and labor unions to determine wages, working conditions, and other employment terms.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

Powerful businessman who built wealth through railroads and shipping, influencing American transportation and commerce.

Electricity

Used to power factories, enabling the invention and use of machinery and the light bulb. It helped to speed up efficiency and production.

Ellis Island

Main immigration station near New York City that processed millions of European immigrant.

Entrepreneurs / Entrepreneurship

Individuals who organize, manage, and assume the risks of starting and operating a business venture.

Ethnic Neighborhoods

Urban areas where immigrants from the same country or culture lived together, preserving traditions and language.

Factory System

Manufacturing that relied heavily on immigrants who were willing to work for low pay, long hours, and in dangerous conditions. Women and children were paid the lowest, and children placed in the most dangerous positions.

Free Enterprise

People can produce products freely with limited to no government intervention. Consumer demand drives product creation and entrepreneurs can start their own businesses.

Galveston Island

Immigration center for European immigrants located in Texas.

Gilded Age

Late 19th-century era of rapid industrial growth, marked by wealth disparity, political corruption, and materialism.

Gospel of Wealth

Philosophy promoted by Andrew Carnegie stating that the wealthy had a duty to use their riches to help the less fortunate. He built libraries to provide a source of free education to the poor.

Great Strike of 1877

Nationwide railroad strike triggered by wage cuts, leading to widespread violence and the intervention of federal troops.

Haymarket Riot/Affair

1886 Chicago labor protest that turned violent after a bomb exploded, harming the labor movement’s reputation.

Homestead Strike

Violent labor strike at Carnegie Steel in 1892 over wage cuts, resulting in a deadly clash between workers and private guards.

Horizontal Integration

Business strategy of merging with competitors to dominate an industry, often leading to monopolies. Example: all of the bakeries in a city

Immigrants

People who move from one country to another seeking better opportunities, safety, or improved living conditions.

Immigration Centers

Facilities like Ellis Island and Angel Island where immigrants were processed before entering the United States. They had to take IQ Tests, prove they were healthy, and that they could support themselves or they would be sent back.

Industrial Age

Period during the 19th and early 20th centuries marked by the shift from agriculture to industrial production. Problems with political machines, big businesses, and the treatment of workers became major concerns because of this era.

Industrialization

The large-scale development of industries for the mass production of goods, transforming economies and societies.

Jacob Riis

Journalist and photographer who exposed the harsh living conditions of the urban poor in works like How the Other Half Lives.

J.P. Morgan

Influential banker and financier who helped consolidate industries and stabilize the U.S. economy during crises.

John D. Rockefeller

Founder of Standard Oil Company and major figure in the oil industry, known for building a powerful monopoly.

Knights of Labor

Early labor union that welcomed all workers and fought for broad social reforms including an eight-hour workday.

Labor Unions

Organizations formed by workers to advocate for better wages, working hours, and workplace protections. They used collective bargaining to fight for workers’ rights.

Laissez-Faire

The government does not interfere with the economy regardless of whether its going good or bad, it’s hands off.

Light Bulb

Invention perfected by Thomas Edison that made electric lighting widely available. It extended working hours, enabling factories to stay open later, increasing production.

Mines

Sites where minerals and natural resources like coal and gold are extracted from the earth, often under dangerous conditions. Often hired children to work in them during this era.

Monopoly

Complete control of a product or service by a single company, eliminating competition and raising prices. Often achieved by ruthless business tactics.

Nativism

Belief favoring native-born citizens over immigrants, often leading to anti-immigrant policies and sentiment.

Philanthropy

Charitable giving by wealthy individuals to promote social welfare, education, or the arts. Giving back to society.

Political Bosses

Leaders who controlled political machines and influenced city governments through bribery and patronage.

Political Machines

Organized groups that controlled political parties in cities, often corruptly securing votes and power. Immigrants provided them with a steady stream of new voters.

Pull Factors

Positive conditions that attract people to a new country, such as jobs, freedom, and better living standards.

Pullman Strike

Nationwide railroad strike of 1894 that disrupted rail traffic and led to federal intervention against labor unions.

Push Factors

Negative conditions like poverty, war, or persecution that drive people to emigrate from their home country.

Railroad

Major transportation innovation connecting distant regions, facilitating trade, and encouraging westward expansion.

Rapid Urbanization

Quick growth of cities due to industrialization and immigration, often leading to overcrowding and infrastructure challenges. (Problems with sanitation, housing, police, water, etc.)

Robber Barons

Negative term for wealthy and ruthless industrialists who exploited workers and bent rules for personal gain.

Rural

Areas characterized by low population density and agriculture, typically outside of cities and towns. In the countryside with farms and open land.

Samuel Gompers

Labor leader and first president of the AFL who emphasized pragmatic goals like higher wages and shorter workdays.

Sanitation

Systems designed to maintain cleanliness and public health, especially in rapidly growing cities.

Sherman Anti-Trust Act

1890 federal law aimed at breaking up monopolies and restoring competitive markets.

Social Gospel Movement

Reform movement applying Christian ethics to social problems like poverty, inequality, and alcoholism.

Spoils System

Practice of rewarding political supporters with government jobs regardless of their qualifications.

Strikes

Work stoppages organized by labor unions to protest working conditions or demand better working conditions, hours, and wages.

Sweatshops

Factories with poor working conditions, low wages, and long hours, often employing immigrants, women, and children.

Telephone

Invented by Alexander Graham Bell, it allowed people to talk to each other over vast distances. It increased efficiency in businesses with improved communication.

Tenement Homes

Overcrowded, poorly built apartment buildings where many urban poor and immigrants lived. They had no building codes, running water, or electricity.

Terrance Powderly

Leader of the Knights of Labor who advocated for broad reforms and worker cooperatives.

Thomas Edison

Inventor of the first efficient light bulb.

Trust

Legal arrangement where companies turn over stock to a board to reduce competition and control markets. These formed after monopolies became illegal.

Urbanization

The growth and expansion of cities driven by industrialization, migration from rural to urban areas, and increased immigration.

Vertical Integration

Business strategy where a company controls all stages of production and distribution of a product. Ex. Owning the farm, flour mill, bakery, and storefront to sell the baked goods in