AMH 112 - Period 6

Also be used for APUSH

Mechanization of Agriculture

Mechanization of Agriculture

This period in American history when farming was becoming a task done by machines then the body.

Mechanical Reaper and Combine Harvester

Examples of agruiculture meachanization; Replaced human sweat and animal muscle as the primary means of planting and harvesting crops

Effects of Mechanization of Agriculture

Production of crops doubled between 1870 and 1900, increasing obsolescence of small farmers

Industrial Trusts

Made sure that prices on manufactured goods remained high, farmers struggled to pay for manufactured items as they spent all their time farming

What were the railroad problems during the Mechanization of Agriculture?

Farmers largely relied on railroads and trains to ship their crops to market for sale but in many cases, railroad owners charged unnaturally high prices for this service.

The National Grange Movement 1868

A collective aimed at bringing isolated farmers together for socialization, education but the movement quickly got political.

Granger laws

These laws pushed many Midwestern states to pass laws regulating railroad rates for carrying freight and made abusive corporate practices that were hurting farmers Illegal.

Commerce Act of 1886

Example of a Granger law that required railroad states to be reasonable and just and establish a federal agency to enforce reason and justice, namely the Interstate Commerce Commission.

Pacific Railroad Acts

Acts in which the federal government granted huge swaths of land to railroad companies who would then build a transcontinental railroad.

Transcontinental Railroad.

Frist was built in 1869 in Promontory Summit Utah, golden spike was driven into the meeting of two rails stretched from the east coast to the west coast.

Homestead Act of 1862

This law granted potential migrants 160 acres of Freeland out West on the condition that they would farm it and settle it.

Effects of the Homestead Acts

Failure because small farms were eventually taken over by larger ones and 160 acres out West was not nearly enough land for a farmer to make a living. Many of these farmers ended up broke.

Boomtowns

Sprang up as a result of this new wave of migrants looking to strike it rich (for gold). Were extremely diverse.

Pikes Peaks

In 1869 gold was discovered here and led to an influx of over 100,000 people going into the surrounding regions in the Kanas and Nebraska areas.

Sodbusters

Homesteaders that cut through the soil with their plow

Cowboys

Showed up during the mid to late 1800s. Responsible for the movement and decline of cattle/buffalo

Federick Jackson Turner

Wrote “The Significance of the Frontier in American History” in 1893

What did Federick Jackson Turner argue in “The Significance of the Frontier in American History”?

• That the closing of the frontier was not so much a cause for celebration but rather a cause of concern

• The closing of the frontier was troubling because westward expansion had always been a means of releasing American discontent

• Once the frontier was gone, Americans would devolve into the same class conflicts that plagued Europeans who had no west to push into

Reservation System

indian populations were assigned to live on tracts of land called resverations with strict boundaries, and this didnt suit many Indian populations who had organized their lives around following the buffalo herds( who were now on the brink of extinction). They went to live on federal wards until they could learn to be more like white american society.

Sioux wars

Series of violent protests of being forced off the land into reservations, ranging from 1850s to 1890s. The effect of this was the federal government making more treaties with Indians and trying to restrict them into smaller and smaller reservations

Indian Appropriation Act of 1871

Officially ended federal recognition of the sovereignty of Indian nations and nullified all previous treaties made with them

The Dawes Act of 1887

The Federal government officially abandoned the reservation system and divided the lands into 160-acre plots to be farmed by Indians. Allowed Indians to become American citizens on the condition they settled on that land and assimilated to American culture.

Assimilationist Movement

An attempt to put an end to distinct Indian cultures through education, vocational training, and christening them

Ghost Dance Movement

Founded in 1889 by an Indian prophet named Wovoka. The idea was that if Indians participated in this ritualistic dance, then the ghosts of their ancestors would return and finally drive the white man from their land

Wounded Knee Massacre

The US army was attempting to disarm a group of Lakota Indians and when they tried to perform the ghost dance movement, shots were fired and by the end, the army killed more than 200 men, women, and children—bringing an end to Indian resistance.

The New South

A post-Civil War concept promoting economic growth and modernization in the Southern United States. It emphasized industrialization, urbanization, and diversification of the economy, moving away from reliance on agriculture and slavery. Key figures advocated for a new social order, focusing on education, infrastructure, and increased Northern investment, aiming to reshape the region's identity and improve its national standing.

Henry Grady

Coined the phrase New South and laid out his vision in many editorials. He envisioned a future for the South based on economic growth, industrial growth, and capitalism.

Plessy v. Ferguson

Supreme Court case in 1896.A law that requires separate rail courts for black and white passengers. In 1892, a man named Homer Plessey was (7/8 white and 1/8 black, under the law, he was considered black) road in a white-only passenger car and was asked to leave he refused and was arrested.

Effect/ruling of Plessy v. Ferguson

Racial segregation was constitutional just as long as the separate facilities were equal and kind and quality, where the phrase “separate but equal” came from. Southerners held on to this separate but equal in the case of white supremacy.

Jim Crow Laws

Result of Plessy V Ferguson, segregated every area of society (mainly in the South)

Lynch mobs

Groups of people who felt that the court system/government did not hand out justice, took it upon themselves to violently lynch black Americans.

Ida B Wells

Editor of a black newspaper based in the South, and in it she fiercely editorialized against lynching and Jim Crow laws.

Henry Turner

Founded the International Migration Society in 1894 which facilitated the migration of black Americans to Africa, specifically Liberia. Wasn't a sustainable venture since Liberian inhabitants often lacked economic opportunity and suffered significant African diseases.

Broker T Washington

He thought that black people did not need to fight for their equality on a political level. Argued that black people needed to become self-sufficient economically and that that would lead to power in the voting booths. Since the political and economic odds weren't in their favor, many deemed Washington's vision impractical.

Changes from industrialization

Prior to industrialization, Americans made things either to use themselves or to be sold locally or at most regionally. During this period, Americans began mass-producing goods to be sold all over the world.

Railroad

Technological Innovation made it quick and easy to transport goods creating the occasion for a national market for sales. It had the effect of opening up mass production and mass consumption.

Government role in railroads

The federal government provided land, through grants, and loan subsidies to railroad companies. By the end of the 1800s, 4 new transcontinental railroads were built, in addition to the first one being built in 1869.

Henry Bessemer

Most famous for patenting a process called the Bessemer process, which created a stronger steel quality.

The Bessemer process

Created in the 1850s, it made the quality of steel stronger by blasting air through molten iron. This new method of steel production enabled manufacturers to produce a far greater quantity and quality of steel than had ever been done before.

Coal

The first major source of energy for industrialization In factories and locomotives.

The Telegraph (in late 1800s)

From 1865 to 1898, the wires multiplied significantly. Communication can travel long distances at the speed of electricity.

Samuel Morse

Invented the Telegraph in 1844.

Transatlantic cable

Connected America to Europe, and created an international market for basic goods like coal, oil, steel, and grain

The Telephone

Invention that led to faster communication between Americans, By the end of the 1800s, there were 50,000 in use in America.

Alexander Graham Bell

Invented the telephone in 1876 and founded the Bell Telephone Company.

The Gilded Age.

During this period in the late 1800s, small locally owned businesses became obsolete and defunct due to the rise of large corporations entrusts that eventually dominated entire industries, especially the railroad, steel and oil industries.

John D Rockefeller.

Owner of Stanford Oil, and as the company grew, he made many shrewd business moves that forced his competitors to sell their companies to him by eliminating the competition. By the late 1800s, Stanford oil controlled almost 90% of the oil industry.

Horizontal integration.

One company eventually buys out all its competitors until there is effectively no competition left.

Andrew Carnegie

Shrewed businessman and grew his company to the point where it dominated the steel industry. Used vertical integration to grow his company.

Vertical integration.

When a company acquires all the company industries that support its businesses.

Lasissez faire government

The government's role is to protect the rights of the individual, rather than regulating business in any way.'Leave alone' when it comes to economic intervention, meaning no taxes, regulations, or tariffs.

Underpaid labor

Industrymen (Rockefeller, Carnegie) heavily relied on, such as immigrants, women, and children, to grow their empires during the Gilded Age.

Social Darwinism

Social construct That said, strong companies should eat weak companies. The world's wealth should be concentrated into the hands of those who were deemed fittest.

Gospel of Wealth

Argue that those with great wealth have a duty from God to invest their wealth back into society through generous acts of philanthropy.

Who believed in the gospel of wealth?

Andrew Carnegie. He gave away an estimated 350 million to build libraries, concert halls and universities.

Captains of industry.

A positive term used to describe industry owners such as Rockefeller and Carnegie.

Robber Barons

Negative turn used to describe Industry leaders such as Rockefeller, Carnegie, Vanderbilt, etc.

Conspicuous conceptions

Thought out by economist Thornstein Veblan, this new class of rich people sought to show off their wealth.

The Biltmore House

In 1895, construction was completed, became the largest private residence in the nation.Was the Vanderbilt's vacation home and showed how the wealthy class presented their wealth and power.

The Panic of 1873

A financial crisis that triggered a severe economic depression in Europe and North America. It began with the failure of a major bank in Vienna and led to a collapse in the stock market, widespread bankruptcies, and a significant contraction in the economy.

The Panic of 1893

A significant financial crisis in the United States that triggered a severe economic depression, marked by the collapse of the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, leading to bank failures, high unemployment rates, and widespread economic hardship.

Labor unions.

When one worker's voice was irrelevant, they joined together into a large union. Factory owners had to listen to them. Protested by political action, slowdowns and strikes.

The Great Railroad strike of 1877

Railroad companies cut wages to save money during a recession, causing unionized railroad workers to go on strike. The strike shut down more than 60% of the nation's railroads but quickly turned violent, President Hayes sent in federal troops to restore order, but 100 people ended up dying. In the end, the railroad workers were able to negotiate with the employers for their grievances of the laboring class and work to improve their wages and working conditions.

The Pullman strike

The Pullman Company manufactured sleeping cars, and in a panic of 1893, George Pullman decided that the best way to save money was to cut the wages of his workers. The union workers came to bargain, but instead he fired all of them, which caused the rest of the workers to go on strike.Union Leader in Eugene V Debs directed the members of his union not to work on any trains that had Pullman cars in them.Railroad owners came up with a plan that would hook up Pullman cars to trains carrying federal mail.So if the workers interfered, then the government would intervene. In the end, Eugene Debs and other leaders were eventually jailed for hindering rail traffic of federally authorized change, and the strike was broken.

Knights of Labor.

National Union, which opened its membership to anyone, including black laborers and women, went public in 1881. Goals were the destruction of trust and monopolies and the destruction of child labor.

Child labor.

Kids as young as 10, sometimes younger, were members of the industrial workforce.By the end of the 1800s, children between the ages of 10 and 15 constituent 18% of the workforce. Were subjugated to injuries, death as much as the adult workers.

Haymarket Square Riot in 1886.

'Caused the end of the Knights of Labor. Knights of Labor members gathered in Hayman Market Square in Chicago to celebrate the main day labor movement. They protested peacefully for 8 hours, but a bomb then exploded. The American public largely associated this bombing (even though it was likely an anarchist, nothing to do with knights) with the Knights of Labor themselves, and this caused the group to be seen as violent and radical, in which membership  of the knights rapidly declined.

The American Federation of Labor.

Association of craft workers led by the immobile Samuel Gompers. By 1901 they had a million members and the goals were the same of the Knights of Labor, higher wages and safer working conditions.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

A prominent American business magnate who made his wealth primarily in the railroad and shipping industries. He was known for his role in the expansion of the railroad system in the United States and his company, the New York Central Railroad, became one of the largest and most influential railroads during the 19th century. Built the Biltmore Estate.

President Rutherford B. Hayes

The 19th President of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881. He is known for overseeing the end of Reconstruction, promoting civil service reform, and attempting to reconcile the divisions left over from the Civil War.

George Pullman

Founder of the Pullman Company, which manufactured sleeping cars.

Eugene V. Debs

An American union leader and political activist known for his role in the labor movement, particularly as a key figure in the American Railway Union and Pullman strike.

Samuel Gompers

A key figure in the labor movement, he was the founder and first president of the American Federation of Labor (AFL), leading efforts for better wages, hours, and working conditions for skilled workers.

Immigration

A group of people moves from one country to another

Migration

A group of people that moves within the same country, from region to region.

Tenements

Crowded buildings/residential areas of immigrants. Were poorly constructed and ventilated. Caused a frequent outbreak of diseases such as Cholera, typhus, and Tuberculosis.

Exoduster Movement

Mass migration of Southern black people into the west

Nativist (late 1800s)

A policy of protecting the interests of native-born people (Americans) against the interests of immigrants (hated them, wanted them gone)

Henry Cabot Lodge

A protestant minister who argued that white Anglo-Saxon Americans were committing “race suicide” by allowing members of “inferior races” to marry/mate with pure-blooded races.

American Protective Association

Nativist sub-group that was a powerful organization against Catholics. Believed that the Irish Catholics were evil, and they should leave America. Feared a catholic church takeover.

Why did Labor Unions dislike immigrants?

They feared that immigrants who were desperate for work and would be hired for low wages would take their jobs. Also feared that they couldn’t strike because their boss could just fire them and hire immigrants to work for cheap.

Social Darwinists on immigration

Immigrants, especially Irish, were racially inferior to the true standard of American whiteness, if immigrants and Americans mixed, the gene pool would be degraded. Believed that the Irish were a different race altogether (even though they were both white).

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

The law banned any further Chinese immigration to the United States. Represents the only law in U.S. History to target a specific nationality to be excluded from immigration.

Jane Addams

Saw that immigrants were struggling and brought the solution of settlement houses. Built the Hull House which greatly benefited immigrants.

Settlement Houses

Purpose was too help immigrants better assimilate into american society. So they could find better economic and social opportunties.

The Hull House

A specific settlement house founded by Jane Adams. Taught immigrants English, provided education for immigrant children, taught democratic ideals, gave opportunities to attend events such as Theaters.

Structure in large companies

The workforce was divided into three groups: executives, managers, and laborers.The manager part was new during the Gilded Age.

Managers/white-collar workers

Day operations of the company included accountants, legal services, health care workers, and clerical workers. Gave women the chance to work in industry as clerical secretaries. Made enough money to be In the lower working class, however, they also didn't make enough money to be in the elite upper class.

Middle class.

Tended to rise more sharply than the working class and they had a shorter working days. Increase in leisure time activities.

Leisure time activities examples.

Coney Island, the largest amusement park in the US at the time, had new tech like electrical lights and roller coasters. PT Barnum Circus and new spectator sports like baseball and American football.

Carnegie's Gospel of Wealth

Created the occasion for some among the lower classes to have a chance at a more comfortable middle-class life

How did Carnegie achieve the Gospel of Wealth?

He didn't give out money to the poor. He believed that using money to create opportunities for the poor to better themselves was the best way to rise in social class.

Phoebe Apperson Hearst

Radical philanthropist and a crusader for the women's suffrage movement. In her mind, the poor ought to be better educated at the exact same level as the upper class. She established schools to achieve this.

Henry George

Politician and economist who thought that it was Foolish as so much wealth could be generated by a nation while at the same time, so many of its citizens lived in abject poverty. Proposed the single tax to fix it.

Single tax

Proposed by Henry George. According to him, the elite people who owned large tracts of land were gaining disproportionate amounts of wealth based on the increasing value of that land. Therefore they needed to be taxed more to even it out between the rich and the working class.

Edward Bellamy.

Wrote a novel in 1888 called Looking Backward. In the book, A Man Goes to Sleep in 1887, only to wake up in 2000 and find that America had been transformed into a socialist utopia where capitalism had been crushed if everyone's needs were met.

Socialism.

The opposite of capitalism gained traction during this time. All the means of production in society should be owned and regulated by the community and benefit everyone more or less equally.

Socialist Party of America.

Eugene V Dubs and others formed this party in 1901. Believed in socialism.

Social Gospel.

Christians in America always believe that repentance and reform ought to be applied to one's own self. However, during this time, Christians Thought that the principle should be applied to not just oneself but to cure the ills of society as well. Crusaded for social justice for the urban poor. Urge the middle class to take on the mantle of solving urban poverty as their Christian duty.

National American Women's Suffrage Association.

Formed by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony worked tirelessly to secure women the right to franchise.