Capital and Labor: The Second Industrial Revolution Flashcards

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers key events, figures, and ideologies related to the Second Industrial Revolution and the labor movement in the United States.

Second Industrial Revolution

A post-Civil War boom in industry and technological innovation spanning from approximately $1870$ to $1914$.

Depression of 1873

An economic downturn triggered by the collapse of Jay Cooke & Co. that led to widespread bank failures and layoffs.

Great Railroad Strike of 1877

A major labor action that redefined the relationship between Capital and the State, setting a precedent for the use of police and military to intervene in strikes.

Corporation

A legal mechanism created using state incorporation laws that allowed enterprises to marshal vast amounts of capital while limiting the liability of shareholders.

The Gilded Age

A term coined by Mark Twain in his $1873$ novel to describe the period roughly between $1870$ and $1900$ characterized by rapid industrialization and flagrant wealth inequality.

St. Louis General Strike (1877)

One of the first general strikes in the U.S. where workers, organized by the Knights of Labor and the Workingmen’s Party, briefly took over the city.

U.S. Steel

The first billion-dollar company in the United States, which utterly dominated the steel industry at the turn of the century.

John D. Rockefeller

The first American billionaire whose peak net worth in $1913$ was estimated at approximately $418$ billion inflation-adjusted dollars.

Knights of Labor

A labor organization founded in $1869$ that was notable for including both black workers and unskilled laborers; by $1886$, it represented $20\%$ of all workers.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

A federation of craft unions founded in $1886$ primarily for skilled laborers, eventually becoming the largest union group in the first half of the $20^{th}$ century.

Haymarket Riot (1886)

A violent confrontation in Chicago that led to unions being widely associated with radicalism and violence in the public mind.

Thibodaux Massacre (1887)

An event in Louisiana where the militia and local bands killed at least $35$ unarmed black sugar workers striking for a wage of $1.00 per day.

Morewood Massacre (1891)

An armed conflict in Pennsylvania where members of the National Guard fired on striking coke workers, killing nine people.

Pullman Strike (1894)

A nationwide railroad strike where President Grover Cleveland ordered the army to stop the strikers, resulting in $30$ deaths and over $80 million in damages.

Battle of Blair Mountain (1921)

The largest labor uprising in U.S. history, involving $10,000$ armed coal miners confronting strikebreakers and police backed by the U.S. army.

Social Darwinism

An ideology popularized by Herbert Spencer in the $1870s$ arguing that welfare defies the natural order and that social progress comes from the strong overtaking the weak.

Eugenics

A movement introduced by Francis Galton in $1883$ used to justify inequality through "scientific racism" and theories like phrenology and craniology.

Taylorism

Also known as "scientific management," this corporate strategy sought to maximize efficiency by subdividing tasks and utilizing assembly lines, famously implemented by Henry Ford.

Progressive Era Reformers

Upper or middle-class individuals, such as Jane Addams of Hull House, who sought to improve the lives of the poor through park advocacy, immigrant assimilation, and hygiene improvements.

Populist Party

A significant third party comprised of rural farmers and agrarian workers who were distrustful of cities, corporations, and established politicians.

Socialist Party (1901)

A political force led by figures like Eugene V. Debs that drew a diverse constituency of members across race, gender, and class lines.

Bituminous Coal Miners’ Strike of 1894

A general strike involving over $180,000$ miners demanding that wages return to their $1893$ levels.