Period 6 (1865-1898)

The Gilded Age

A period of rapid industrialization, economic growth, and widespread political corruption (1870s–1900).

Industrialization

Growth of factories, mass production, and mechanized labor.

Robber Barons

Wealthy industrialists like Carnegie, Rockefeller, and Vanderbilt criticized for exploitative practices.

Vertical Integration

Controlling every step in production—from raw materials to sale.

Horizontal Integration

Buying out competitors to monopolize an industry.

Trusts

Legal arrangements that allowed companies to control entire industries.

Social Darwinism

The belief that economic success was a result of 'survival of the fittest'—used to justify inequality.

Gospel of Wealth

Carnegie's idea that the rich had a duty to use their wealth for social good.

Laissez-faire

Government hands-off approach to the economy—favored by big business.

Political Machines

Organizations that traded favors (like jobs or housing) for votes.

Boss Tweed

Leader of Tammany Hall in NYC—used graft and patronage to stay in power.

Thomas Nast

Political cartoonist who exposed Tweed’s corruption.

Spoils System

Giving government jobs to political supporters.

Sherman Antitrust Act (1890)

First federal law attempting to limit monopolies, though weakly enforced at first.

Knights of Labor

Inclusive union led by Terence Powderly; declined after the Haymarket Riot.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Led by Samuel Gompers, focused on practical issues like wages and hours for skilled workers.

Great Railroad Strike (1877)

Major strike crushed by federal troops—demonstrated government support for business.

Bread and butter issues

Basic demands—higher pay, better hours, safer conditions.

Social Gospel Movement

Christian-based push to improve social conditions (poverty, slums).

Jane Addams

Opened Hull House in Chicago to help immigrants and the poor.

Settlement Houses

Community centers providing education, health care, and childcare.

Jacob Riis

Author of 'How the Other Half Lives', which exposed tenement living conditions.

New Technologies

Innovations like electricity and the telephone that created new jobs and middle-class growth.

Streetcar Suburbs

Enabled wealthier urban dwellers to move outside city centers.

Old Immigrants

Mostly from Northern/Western Europe (e.g., Ireland, Germany).

New Immigrants

From Southern/Eastern Europe (e.g., Italy, Poland, Russia)—often faced more discrimination.

Ellis Island

Main entry point for European immigrants in NYC.

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

First major U.S. law to ban immigration by race/nationality.

Great Migration

African Americans moved from the rural South to Northern cities to escape Jim Crow.

Henry Grady

Promoted the idea of a 'New South' with industrial growth.

Jim Crow Laws

State and local laws enforcing racial segregation.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Supreme Court case that upheld 'separate but equal' facilities.

Booker T. Washington

Urged African Americans to gain economic self-sufficiency; founded Tuskegee Institute.

Ida B. Wells

Journalist who led an anti-lynching campaign.

Homestead Act (1862)

Offered free land to settlers willing to farm it for 5 years.

Transcontinental Railroad (completed 1869)

Linked East and West, fueling migration and commerce.

Sand Creek Massacre (1864)

Example of U.S. military violence against Native Americans.

A Century of Dishonor

Book by Helen Hunt Jackson exposing U.S. mistreatment of Native Americans.

Dawes Act (1887)

Divided tribal lands into private plots to encourage assimilation.

Carlisle Indian School

Boarding school to 'civilize' Native children—taught English and Christianity.

The Grange / Farmers’ Alliances

Organized to fight high railroad rates and falling crop prices.

Populist Party

Called for bimetallism, direct election of senators, income tax, and railroad regulation.

Omaha Platform (1892)

The Populist Party's key policy list.

William Jennings Bryan

Populist-supported Democratic candidate in 1896; gave 'Cross of Gold' speech.

Election of 1896

Bryan lost to William McKinley, marking the decline of Populism but the rise of progressive ideas.

Pendleton act of 1883

The Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883 was the main legislation that began to dismantle the spoils system. It established a merit-based system for government jobs, requiring competitive exams and protecting employees from being fired for political reasons.