AQA A-level history - America 1865 to 1975 - society 1890-1920

How much did the U.S. population grow between 1900 and 1920?

The population increased from 76 million to 100 million.

How many migrants arrived in the U.S. between 1890 and 1917, and what percentage were skilled workers?

18.4 million migrants arrived, with only 16% being skilled workers.

What was Ellis Island's rejection rate for immigrants in 1892?

Only 2% of immigrants were rejected at Ellis Island.

How did the settlement pattern of immigrants change during this period?

Unlike earlier waves, most immigrants settled in cities in the Northeast rather than rural areas.

How did immigration affect the size of New York City between 1900 and 1910?

The city's population doubled during this decade.

By 1910, which ethnic group had a significant presence in New York City?

NYC had more Jewish residents than all of Western Europe.

How did German immigrants maintain their culture in Wisconsin?

Wisconsin had 22 German-language newspapers.

What percentage of the population in the 12 largest U.S. cities was foreign-born?

One-third of the population was foreign-born.

How many Japanese migrated to California, and what action did San Francisco take in 1906?

100,000 Japanese migrated, and the San Francisco school board ordered school segregation.

What was the 1907-08 Gentlemen's Agreement?

The Japanese government agreed to stop issuing visas for U.S. migration.

What political party emerged in 1890 and what platform did it adopt in 1892?

The Populist Party emerged, adopting the Omaha Platform in 1892.

How did anti-immigrant sentiment grow after 1910?

Nativism increased as immigrants were less educated and from autocratic, Catholic countries.

How did WWI increase anti-German sentiment?

The Committee of Public Information incited anti-German hatred, promoting "100% Americanism."

What violent act targeted Italian immigrants in 1891?

11 Italians were lynched in New Orleans.

How did the U.S. government attempt to restrict immigration before 1924?

The 1894 Immigration Restriction League pushed literacy tests, but Cleveland, Taft, and Wilson vetoed them.

What were the Espionage and Sedition Acts, and when were they passed?

The 1917 Espionage Act and 1918 Sedition Act limited free speech against the government, targeting immigrants and radicals.

How did the 1924 Immigration Act impact immigration levels?

It extended the Emergency Quota Act, reducing immigration from 800,000 to 150,000 between 1907 and 1914.

What happened during the 1892 Homestead Strike?

13 steelworkers were killed when strikebreakers were brought in at Carnegie Steel.

What was the outcome of the 1893 Great Northern Railroad Strike?

It spread nationwide after 25% wage cuts; federal troops crushed it under President Cleveland.

How did Theodore Roosevelt handle the 1902 Great Coal Strike?

He sent federal troops to break the strike.

How did socialist movements grow in the early 1900s?

In the 1912 election, Socialist Eugene Debs won 900,000 votes (6% of the total), double his 1904 count.

What was the result of the 1919 labor strikes?

The IWW General Strike and Great Steel Strike were violently crushed, nearly destroying the AFL.

What was the impact of the 1894 Pullman Strike?

It spread nationwide after 25% wage cuts; federal troops crushed it under President Cleveland.

How did the 1920 Red Scare affect labor movements?

It led to a decline in momentum for socialism and labor strikes.

What were key labor reforms between 1900 and 1920?

1916 Keating-Owen Act: first federal child labor law.

1916 Adamson Act: 8-hour workday for railroad workers.

• Workman's Compensation Act: provided insurance for workplace injuries.

What prohibition laws were passed during this period?

The 18th Amendment (1919) and the Volstead Act (1920) enforced Prohibition.

How did the women's suffrage movement progress?

NAWSA grew from 17,000 to 2 million members (1905-17), leading to the 19th Amendment in 1920, allowing 8 million+ women to vote.

Where did most African Americans live in 1910?

Three-quarters lived in rural areas, with 90% still in the South. Only 2.5% lived in NYC.

What demographic shift occurred between 1917 and 1920?

Half a million African Americans moved north in the Great Migration.

What event marked the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan?

The 1915 revival was fueled by Wilson’s private screening of Birth of a Nation.

What was the scale of lynchings between 1889 and 1929?

72 lynchings occurred, with 115 in 1900 alone.

What was the most notorious act of racial violence in 1898?

South Carolina Governor Ben Tillman killed a Black postmaster and his two-year-old daughter.

What legal efforts were made against lynching?

A 1901 anti-lynching bill was defeated in Congress.

What role did W.E.B. Du Bois play in African American activism?

He became the first African American to earn a PhD from Harvard and co-founded the NAACP in 1909.

How did the NAACP membership change between 1917 and 1919?

It grew from 9,000 to 90,000.

What was the 1919 Red Summer?

A series of anti-Black riots in 20 towns across the U.S.

What new forms of entertainment emerged during this period?

The rise of nickelodeons (early movie theaters) and skyscrapers as symbols of urbanization.