US HISTORY FINAL UNIT 3

Gilded Age

1870s - 1890s; time period looked good on the outside, despite the corrupt politics & growing gap between the rich & poor

Robber Barons

An American capitalist who acquired a fortune in the late nineteenth century by exploiting others.

Captains of the Industry

A name given company owners such as Carnegie and Rockefeller by people who believed they steered the economy into prosperity.

Gospel of Wealth

The belief that, as the guardians of society's wealth, the rich have a duty to serve society; promoted by Andrew Carnegie; Carnegie donated more than $350 million to libraries, school, peace initiatives, and the arts

Social Darwinism

The belief that only the fittest survive in human political and economic struggle.

Monopoly

Complete control of a product or business by one person or group.

Trusts

A group of corporations run by a single board of directors to reduce competition.

Sherman Antitrust Act

1890 law banning any trust that restrained interstate trade or commerce

Socialism

A system in which society, usually in the form of the government, owns and controls the means of production.

Labor Unions

An organization formed by workers to strive for better wages and working conditions.

collective bargaining

Process by which a union representing a group of workers negotiates with management for a contract.

Strikes

Times when workers refuse to work until owners improve conditions

Intersate Commerce Act

Law granting Congress authority to regulate railroad activities.

Laissez-faire

Idea that the government should interfere as little as possible in the nation's economy.

Pendleton Civil Service Act

Passed in 1883, an Act that created a federal civil service so that hiring and promotion would be based on merit rather than patronage.

President Garfield

Won the election of 1881, promised to end the spoils system, 4 months later he was assassinated for not giving one of his supporters a job in government.

Immigrants

People who have left the country of their birth to live in another country.

Nativism

A policy of favoring native-born individuals over foreign-born ones.

Ellis Island and Angel Island

The two immigration points into the US from overseas.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

Placed a ban on all new immigrants from China.

Political machines

Appealed to immigrants and urban poor; provided services in exchange for support. Think Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall.

Progressive Movement

Aimed to restore economic opportunities and correct injustices in American life.

W.E.B. DuBois

1st African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard. Co-founded the NAACP to help secure legal equality for minority citizens.

NAACP

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Muckrakers

1906 - Journalists who searched for corruption in politics and big business.

Upton Sinclair

Author who wrote a book about the horrors of food productions in 1906 - wrote The Jungle.

Initiative

A procedure by which voters can propose a law or a constitutional amendment.

Referendum

A legislative act is referred for final approval to a popular vote by the electorate.

Recall

A procedure for submitting to popular vote the removal of officials from office before the end of their term.

Teddy Roosevelt

Progressive (26th) president created the square deal program and founded the bull-moose party.

Conservationists

People who favor the protection of natural resources

John Muir

(1838-1914) Naturalist who believed the wilderness should be preserved in its natural state. He was largely responsible for the creation of Yosemite National Park in California.

17th Amendment

Established the direct election of senators (instead of being chosen by state legislatures.)

Suffrage Movement

The movement organized around gaining voting rights for women.

19th Amendment (1920)

Gave women the right to vote.

Alice Paul

A suffragette who believed that giving women the right to vote would eliminate the corruption in politics.

Susan B. Anthony

An American social reformer and feminist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

A prominent advocate of women's rights, Stanton organized the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention with Lucretia Mott.