Key Concepts of American History: 19th Century

A comprehensive collection of flashcards covering key vocabulary, terms, and concepts from American history in the 19th century.

Transcontinental Railroad

Connected the East to the West, fulfilling manifest destiny and spurring western expansions.

Interstate Commerce Act

A landmark U.S. federal law designed to regulate monopolistic industries, requiring rates to be reasonable and just.

Homestead Act

Gave 160 acres of public land to settlers for a small fee, requiring them to live on and improve the land for five years.

Government Subsidies

Financial aid from the government to support industries like railroads or agriculture, fostering growth but leading to monopolies.

Morrill Act

Federal laws that transferred public land to states to establish colleges specializing in agriculture and engineering.

Comstock Lode

The first major silver strike in Nevada, creating boomtowns and contributing to Nevada's statehood.

Chinese Exclusion Act

The first major law banning a specific nationality from immigrating, driven by economic fears and racial prejudice.

New Immigrants

Massive wave of immigrants coming from Southern and Eastern Europe and Asia during the late 19th century.

Social Darwinism

Application of Charles Darwin's survival of the fittest theory to human society, arguing wealth reflects inherent superiority.

Laissez Faire

An economic policy of minimal government intervention in the free market, believing supply and demand drive prosperity.

Jacob Riis

Photojournalist and reformer who exposed NYC’s immigrant slums through his book 'How the Other Half Lives'.

Lewis Hine

Socialist photographer who used his camera to expose the harsh realities of child labor in America.

Jane Addams

Prominent progressive era reformer and co-founder of Chicago’s Hull House, serving immigrants and the urban poor.

Andrew Carnegie

Scottish-American industrialist who led the steel industry and became a major philanthropist known for the gospel of wealth.

John D. Rockefeller

Influential industrialist who built the Standard Oil Company into a monopoly using aggressive tactics.

Eugene V. Debs

Labor leader and founder of the American Railway Union who represented radical labor and anti-war sentiments.

Gospel of Wealth

Argument that the wealthy have a moral duty to use their fortunes for the public good.

Robber Barons vs. Captains of Industry

Debate on industrialists viewed positively for benefiting society versus negatively for unethical practices.

Political Machines

Corrupt urban political organizations that controlled city governments through services traded for votes.

Vertical Integration

Business strategy where a company controls all stages of production to cut costs and dominate the market.

Horizontal Integration

Strategy of acquiring or merging with competitors to dominate an industry.

Predatory Pricing

Form of competition where large businesses reduce prices below cost to eliminate smaller rivals.

Labor Unions

Organizations that advocate for workers' rights, with the Knights of Labor being inclusive and the American Federation focusing on specific issues.

Settlement Houses

Community centers providing immigrants and the poor with services like classes and childcare.

Tenements

Overcrowded, poorly built apartments housing working-class immigrants, symbolizing urban poverty.

City Beautiful Movement

Progressive urban planning philosophy aimed at beautifying cities and improving living conditions.

People's Populist Party

Third party representing farmers and laborers against monopolistic practices and advocating economic reforms.

William Jennings Bryan

Dominant orator and presidential candidate known for championing populist causes like the free silver movement.

Gold Standard

Monetary system where paper money is backed by gold, creating a stable but deflationary currency.

Coining Silver

Political fight for unlimited minting of silver coins to increase the money supply and ease farmer debts.

Exodusters

African Americans migrating to the Great Plains seeking freedom from oppression in the South.

Sand Creek Massacre

Brutal attack by U.S. Army on a peaceful Cheyenne and Arapaho village, highlighting conflicts with Native Americans.

Indian Boarding Schools

Institutions aimed at assimilating Native American children by erasing indigenous cultural practices.

Melting Pot vs. Multiculturalism

Debate on cultural blending into a new identity vs. celebration of distinct cultures.

Dawes Severalty Act

Law aimed to assimilate Native Americans by allotting individual plots of land and granting citizenship.

Ghost Dance Movement

Ritual intended to banish white settlers and restore buffalo populations among Native Americans.

Treaty of Fort Laramie

Agreement to end Red Cloud’s War by granting lands to the Sioux but was violated due to gold discoveries.

Battle at Wounded Knee

Final conflict in Indian Wars where U.S. soldiers killed many and marked the end of Native American resistance.

Homestead Strike

Violent labor conflict where workers struck against wage cuts, leading to state militia intervention.

Deskilling

Process of breaking down complex jobs into simple tasks due to mechanization in factories.

Social Gospel Movement

Religious movement applying Christian ethics to address social issues like poverty and labor rights.

Tammany Hall

Powerful political machine in New York that dominated through patronage and corruption.

Boss Tweed

Leader of Tammany Hall, notorious for corruption and defrauding the city through bribery.

Patronage System

Political practice of granting jobs or favors to supporters based on loyalty, leading to corruption.

Pendleton Act

Legislation that shifted federal hiring to a merit-based system, reducing patronage.

Urbanization

Rapid growth of cities influenced by immigration, factory jobs, and new technologies.

The Grange and Farmers Alliance

Organizations uniting farmers against economic exploitation and advocating for political reform.

Seward's Folly

Purchase of Alaska from Russia, initially criticized but later found to be valuable.

Mechanization

Use of machinery in agriculture, boosting production but undermining small farmers.

Collective Bargaining

Process where labor unions negotiate with management for better conditions and wages.

New South

Post-Civil War vision of a modernized southern economy, while often maintaining white supremacy.