APUSH- Period 6

“New South”

Date: 1877-1898

Theme: American and National Identity

-The “New South” is a term coined for the post-Civil War South, in contrast to the slavery-based “Old South.”

-Proponents of the New South, such as Atlanta newspaper editor Henry W. Grady, called for a shift from plantations to a mixed economy with increased industrialization.

-Supporters of the New South also rejected the nostalgia for the “Old South” and the “Lost Cause” narrative.

-The hope was that Northern industries and businessmen would flock to the South.

-Plantation owners continued to control the majority of Southern land following Reconstruction.

-An oppressive sharecropping system limited access to land ownership for Black people and poor white people.

Historical Context: Even though enslaved people were emancipated in the South, their integration into Southern society would lead to conflicts with white people over land ownership, political rights, and their place in society.

Gilded Age

Date: 1870s-1890s

Theme: Social Structures

-The term Gilded Age describes the surface-level wealth and extravagance of the era, which covered the underlying poverty and corruption (like gold gilding).

-The phrase was coined by Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens), an American novelist whose works, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), portrayed life and speech of the era.

-During the Gilded Age, America emerged as the world’s leading industrial and agricultural producer.

-Profts became increasingly centralized in the hands of fewer people.

Historical Context: The economy boomed during the Gilded Age; however, racist and nativist sentiments grew, the disparity between the wealthy and the poor increased, and civic debate focused on political corruption.

The Great Railroad Strike of 1877

Date: 1877

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Pay cuts caused labor strikes to spread through the country, beginning in Pittsburgh, PA
-Workers of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad went on strike over a second pay cut

-To protect the interests of the railroad owners and to restore order, President Hayes sent in federal troops after workers were killed.

-In the wake of this conflict, some cities built armories so they could have army troops on hand in urban settings if future violence occured

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions.

Henry George and the “Single-Tax” Proposal

Date: 1839-1897

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Henry George was a writer, economist, and politician.

-He was the author of Progress and Poverty (1879), which promoted his belief in a land value tax (“single-tax”) as a path to economic equality.

-George argued that it is appropriate for individuals to own the value they create, but it is not appropriate for them to own value derived from the land.

-He believed that the economic benefits from the land belong to all in common.

-George’s work influenced economic reform during the Progressive Era.

Historical Context: US thinkers, economists, politicians, and authors debated economic equality and how to achieve it as big business boomed during the latter half of the 1800s.

Social Darwinism

Date: 1880s

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-This is the theory that wealth is based on the survival of the fittest; it is associated with Charles Darwin’s work

-The theory implies that the government should not interfere, suggesting a laissez-faire approach instead

-Wealthy industrial leaders used the doctrine to justify vast differences in classes.

-Its supporters included Herbert Spencer and William Graham Sumner.

-Separately, some in society invoked Social Darwinism to justify racist or imperialist actions, arguing their belief in the supremacy of Anglo-Saxon or Aryan biology and culture

Historical Context: US thinkers, economists, politicians, and authors debated economic equality and how to achieve it as big business boomed during the latter half of the 1800s.

Thorstein Veblen and “Conspicuous Consumption”

Date: 1857-1929

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Thorstein Veblen was an American economist and sociologist who wrote The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899)

-He argued that society was split between those who exploit and those who produce

-He coined the phrase “conspicuous consumption,” meaning extravagant spending by the wealthy in part to make a statement about their accomplishments and class.

Historical Context: Scholars and reformers focused on the disparity between the wealthy and the impoverished as urbanization and industrialization spread.

Captains of Industry/Robber Barons

Date: 1880s

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-During this period, admirers of big businesses praised their efficiency and success; they described corporate leaders as “captains of industry.”

-Critics called these corporate leaders “robber barons” and accused them of using political influence and questionable means to achieve their goals.

-Certain tactics increased profits while concentrating wealth in fewer hands, such as the creation of sizeable trusts and holding companies.

-As large companies gained monopolies, small businesses and laborers increased their demands for government regulation.

-Ida Tarbell criticized John D. Rockefeller’s tactics in The History of the Standard Oil Company.

Historical Context: The US economy changed from agrarian and regional in nature to an industrialized national economy during the late 1800s, as the country’s technology, business practices, and culture evolved.

John D. Rockefeller

Date: 1839-1937

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-John D. Rockefeller was the founder of Standard Oil Company

-He used business practices such as horizontal integration, rebates, and the formation of a trust to expand Standard Oil

-Rockefeller also invested in banks, railroads, and timber

-He focused on philanthropy toward the end of his life, and his donations were instrumental in establishing the Rockefeller Foundation and the University of Chicago

Historical Context: New business practices and structures led to tremendous industrial growth and wealth being managed by a small group of businessmen.

Andrew Carnegie and the Gospel of Wealth

Date: 1835-1919

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-After making money through investments in oil and in a sleeping car company, Andrew Carnegie assumed a position in the War Department during the Civil War

-Later, he worked in the iron business and then moved into steel after learning the Bessemer Process, which converted pig iron into steel

-He grew his Carnegie Steel Company through acquisitions

-The Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers held what became known as the Homestead Strike against the Carnegie Steel Company

-He wrote the article “The Gospel of Wealth” for the North American Review, which promoted the belief that the wealthy were merely trustees of their money and that they must use their efforts to build society

-His philanthropic ventures included Carnegie Hall and public libraries

Historical Context: New business practices and structures led to tremendous industrial growth and wealth being managed by a small group of businessmen.

J.P. Morgan

Date: 1837-1913

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-J.P. Morgan was a Wall Street banker whose company financed railroads, banks, and insurance companies

-He and other businessmen purchased Carnegie Steel for nearly $500 million and combined it and other companies to create U.S. Steel

-He turned to philanthropy and pledged money to help shore up the US banking system after the Panic of 1907

Historical Context: New business practices and structures led to tremendous industrial growth and wealth being managed by a small group of businessmen.

Monopolies and Business Consolidation

Date: 1880s-1890s

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Industrialization led to larger, more powerful companies managed by the likes of Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and Cornelius Vanderbilt

-The lack of government regulations allowed for the creation of monopolies, in which single companies controlled the market for a product.

-Carnegie utilized vertical integration, in which he owned all aspects of the steel production process.

-Rockefeller utilized horizontal integration, in which he controlled the majority of the oil processing industry

Historical Context: The US economy changed from agrarian and regional in nature to an industrialized national economy during the late 1800s, as the country’s technology, business practices, and culture evolved.

Mary Harris Jones (Mother Jones)

Date: 1837-1930

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Mary Harris Jones was once known as the “most dangerous woman in America” as she strove to secure more rights for industrial workers

-Jones was an organizer of Coxey’s Army, a group of unemployed men who marched on Washington in 1894

-She later helped organize mine workers to promote union rights

-Jones supported the Steel Strike of 1919 in PA’s steel district

-She co-founded Industrial Workers of the World

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions

William Randolph Hearst

Date: 1863-1951

Theme: American and Regional Culture

-William Randolph Hearst inherited the San Francisco Chronicle

-He built a media empire, which included newspapers, magazines, radio stations, and movie studios

-His media made use of “yellow journalism",” splashy news accounts that sensationalized and exaggerated events

-This “yellow journalism” helped lead the US into the Spanish-America War

Historical Context: The growth of literacy and mass publishing gave the media more influence on public opinion during the Gilded Age

Jim Crow Laws

Date: 1880s-1900s

Theme: American and National Identity

-Jim Crow laws separated white and Black people in public facilities and limited the civil rights of Black Americans, such as the right to vote

-The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of these laws in the Plessy v. Ferguson case (1896), demonstrating the limits of the 14th Amendment

-The name of the laws is said to be derived from a character in a minstrel song

Historical Context: Reconstruction legislation reflected the North’s ideals and sought to give representation to traditionally disenfranchised groups, while the South continued to battle against such changes.

Booker T. Washington

Date: 1856-1915

Theme: Social Structures

-Booker T. Washington was born into slavery and was later emancipated

-He taught at the Hampton Institute and, in 1881, he helped organize a school for Black students in Tuskegee, Alabama

-The Tuskegee Institute emphasized industrial training to assist Black people in improving their economic status

-Washington claimed that it was a mistake for Black people to push for social equality before they had attained economic equality

-His ideas were denounced by some leaders in the Black community as overly accommodating

-He lectured throughout the US and Europe and wrote various works, including his autobiography, Up From Slavery

Historical Context: Black leaders, thinkers, and scholars worked diligently to help Black Americans find a place in the post-Civil War nation

W.E.B. Du Bois

Date: 1868-1963

Theme: American and Regional Culture

-W.E.B. Du Bois was a civil rights leader and author

-He called for full equality for Black people, including social, civil, political, and economic equality

-He opposed Booker T. Washington’s “gradual approach” to equality

-Du Bois wanted to leverage higher education to develop leaders among the most capable Black Americans (“The Talented Tenth”)

-He co-founded the Niagara Movement and helped create the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
Historical Context: Black leaders, thinkers, and scholars worked diligently to help Black Americans find a place in the post-Civil War nation

James Garfield

Date: 1881

Theme: Politics and Power

-James Garfield was the 20th president of the US

-He was a former Ohio congressman and Union general

-Charles Guiteau, a disappointed office seeker, shot and killed Garfield

-His assassination spurred the passage of the Pendleton Act

Historical Context: The election and actions of US presidents reflect the major issues concerning the federal government, the country’s stance in the world, political parties, and the American people

Chester Arthur

Date: 1881-1885

Theme: Politics and Power

-Chester Arthur was the 21st president of the US

-He assumed the office when President Garfield was assassinated by Charles Guiteau

-He worked to outlaw polygamy in Utah and to strengthen the Navy

-Arthur supported the Pendleton Act, which established open competitive exams for civil service jobs and officially ended the spoils system that had been popular under Andrew Jackson

Historical Context: The election and actions of US presidents reflect the major issues concerning the federal government, the country’s stance in the world, political parties, and the American people

Chinese Exclusion Act

Date: 1882

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-The Chinese Exclusion Act (Immigration Act of 1882) was a US federal law that prevented Chinese laborers from entering the country

-Prior to its passage, Chinese immigrants in CA represented a large minority

-Chinese workers in America had historically been limited in their opportunities, from laboring in gold mines to dangerous and difficult jobs in the cities

-Some Americans developed xenophobic and racist attitudes toward Chinese immigrants; workers in the West also felt their jobs were threatened by cheaper labor

-The act was a response to these anti-Chinese attitudes; it was the first significant federal law to prohibit immigration by a specific nationality

Historical Context: The economy boomed during the Gilded Age; however, racist and nativist sentiments grew, the disparity between the wealthy and the poor increased, and civic debate focused on political corruption.

Grover Cleveland

Date: 1885-1889 and 1893-1897

Theme: Politics and Power

-Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the US

-Cleveland was the only Democrat elected after the Civil War

-He was the only president elected to two nonconsecutive terms

-He vetoed many private pension bills for Civil War veterans who submitted fraudulent claims

-Cleveland signed the Interstate Commerce Act

-He sent in federal troops to enforce an injunction against striking railroad workers in Chicago

Historical Context: The election and actions of US presidents reflect the major issues concerning the federal government, the country’s stance in the world, political parties, and the American people

The Grange and Granger Laws

Date: 1860s-1880s

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The Grange was an agricultural organization that was established to protect farmers’ rights

-It helped create laws in Midwestern states to regulate unfair pricing and practices by the railroad and by grain elevators

-Initially, these laws were upheld by the Supreme Court in Munn v. Illinois

-Later, they were overturned in Wabash v. Illinois, in which the Court ruled that states couldn’t regulate interstate commerce

Historical Context: The nation moved away from an agrarian society as technology and industrialization evolved, necessitating support for farmers

Colored Farmers’ Alliance

Date: 1886

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Black farmers in the South formed this group after they were barred from the Southern Farmers’ Alliance

-Like the Southern Farmers’ Alliance, the Colored Farmers’ Alliance sought to protect members from the rising costs associated with farming

-Drawing inspiration from Booker T. Washington, the group advocated economic self-sufficiency and uplifting Black Americans through training rather than demands for political equality

-The Colored Farmers’ Alliance dissolved after a failed cotton-picker strike

Historical Context: The nation moved away from an agrarian society as technology and industrialization evolved, necessitating support for farmers

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Date: 1886

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The American Federation of Labor was an association of national craft unions representing labor interests in wages, hours, and safety

-Individuals were members of their local unions, which in turn were members of the AFL

-Unlike the Knights of Labor, which had a broader, more radical political agenda, the AFL focused on establishing a better working life

-Its philosophy was “pure and simple unionism”

-The AFL’s first president was Samuel Gompers

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions

Haymarket Square Riot

Date: May 4, 1886

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The Haymarket Square Riot occurred at the end of a rally in Chicago’s Haymarket Square

-The rally had been in support of the strike at the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company

-A bomb exploded while police were attempting to disperse the crowd

-As a result of the riot, 11 people were killed and more than 100 were injured

-Eight anarchists were put on trial, and four were executed

-The incident was used to discredit the Knights of Labor

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions

Ida Wells-Barnett

Date: 1862-1931

Theme: Social Structures

-Ida Wells-Barnett was a Black journalist and activist

-She fought an ongoing campaign against lynching and in support of justice for Black people

-She was forcibly removed from a train for refusing to give up her purchased first-class ticket; later, she sued the railroad

Historical Context: Black leaders, thinkers, and scholars worked diligently to help Black Americans find a place in the post-Civil War nation

Interstate Commerce Act

Date: 1887
Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The Interstate Commerce Act established the Interstate Commerce Commission in part to monitor price discrimination within the railroad industry

-It prohibited rebates and pools and required railroads to publish their rates

-It also prohibited unfair discrimination against shippers and outlawed the practice of charging more for short hauls than long hauls

-In its early years, the commission had limited success because it lacked enforcement power and faced court challenges from the railroads

-However, the act would set a precedent for Progressive Era legislation that curtailed large businesses more effectively

Historical Context: Legislation, as well as social and economic reform, was enacted to curb the growth of big business and government corruption

American Protective Association

Date: Founded in 1887

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-The American Protective Association was founded in Iowa to oppose the increase in Catholic immigrants, who were seen as a threat to the members’ political, economic, and social beliefs

-The group feared that the Catholic Church and the Pope as its leader were becoming too influential with the US government

-It advocated immigration reform and free public schools to counter the growth of parochial schools

Historical Context: The economy boomed during the Gilded Age; however, racist and nativist sentiments grew, the disparity between the wealthy and the poor increased, and civic debate focused on political corruption.

“New Immigration”

-Immigrants moved to American industrial centers for economic opportunities

-Prevalent among these groups were immigrants from Southern Europe (most notably Italians), Eastern Europeans (including Jewish people from throughout the region), and immigrants from Scandinavia, Canada, and northern Mexico

-The new immigrants contributed to the US by providing labor for the Industrial Revolution and by adding to the nation’s cultural diversity

Historical Context: Immigration supplied the workers that industrialization required, leading to new cultural influences and urban growth but also to class tensions and lower working wages

Dawes Severalty Act

Date: 1887

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-The Dawes Severalty Act encouraged the breakup of American Indian tribes with the aim of assimilating them into American society

-Helen Hunt Jackson’s A Century of Dishonor was a catalyst, as it depicted injustices to American Indians

-The act distributed the reservation lands of American Indians among individual members of the tribe

-The goal was for American Indians to adopt a form of agriculture similar to that of white farmers

-The act gave each head of an American Indian family 160 acres of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land

-Its effect was to undermine the reservation system, as the remaining tribal lands were made available for sale to white people

Historical Context: The US government used legislation and military force to push American Indians toward assimilation, with significant consequences to native peoples’ culture and landholdings.

Jane Addams

Date: 1860-1935

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-Jane Addams was an American social reformer

-She was a co-founder of the Hull-House in Chicago (1889), which provided social services to immigrants in need

-She was inspired by the “Social Gospel” movement, which applied Christian ethics to addressing challenges faced in immigration and urbanization

-Addams won the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize

Historical Context: The Progressive movement sought to curb corruption and to reform economic and social inequalities through government intervention and the creation of activist organizations.

Benjamin Harrison

Date: 1889-1893

Theme: Politics and Power

-Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd president of the US

-He was a former senator and lawyer

-He was nominated for the presidency on the 8th ballot at the 1888 Republican Convention

-Harrison defeated Grover Cleveland despite receiving fewer popular votes

-He submitted to the Senate a treaty to annex Hawaii, although President Cleveland later withdrew it

-Harrison signed many appropriations bills for naval improvement and internal improvements

Historical Context: The election and actions of US presidents reflect the major issues concerning the federal government, the country’s stance in the world, political parties, and the American people

Wounded Knee Massacre

Date: 1890

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-The Sioux and other American Indian tribes in the west participated in the Ghost Dance movement in the late 19th century

-The movement incorporated traditional practices and was seen by participants as a way to maintain unity in the face of US encroachment

-The federal army believed Chief Sitting Bull was organizing a rebellion, and, acting on the settlers’ fears and suspicions of the Ghost Dance movement, the army captured the Chief

-In a sudden exchange of gunfire between the tribe and the army, Chief Sitting Bull and others were killed

-The remainder of the tribe fled to a camp near Wounded Knee Creek

-When the army reached this camp, a shot was fired, and in reaction, the army killed 200 men, women, and children in what many consider the last battle of the Indian Wars

Historical Context: The US government used legislation and military force to push American Indians toward assimilation, with significant consequences to native peoples’ culture and landholdings.

National American Woman Suffrage Association

Date: Formed in 1890

Theme: Social Structures

-The National American Woman Suffrage Association was created by the merger of the National Woman Suffrage Association and the American Woman Suffrage Association

-It fought for a woman’s right to vote on the local, state, and federal levels

-Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the organizer of the Seneca Falls Convention, and Susan B. Anthony, a women’s rights leader, served as the first 2 presidents
Historical Context: In the Progressive Era, advocates used legislation to promote social reforms and to broaden democratic representation

Sherman Antitrust Act

Date: 1890
Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The Sherman Antitrust Act was based on Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce

-It declared every contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of interstate trade to be illegal

-Monopolies found to be in violation of the law were subject to federal prosecution

-The Supreme Court applied the act to both labor unions and corporations

Historical Context: The unsavory link between big business and the government at the end of the 1800s brought with it the demand for reform, which came through legislation and new political parties

Populist Party

Date: 1892

Theme: Politics and Power

-The Populist Party was founded to advance the interests of farmers

-Members who met in Nebraska wrote their “Omaha Platform”

-The demands of the platform included free and unlimited coinage of silver, a graduated income tax, and government ownership of the telephone, telegraph, and railroad industries

-Many of these ideas were later adopted by the Progressive Party

Historical Context: The unsavory link between big business and the government at the end of the 1800s brought with it the demand for reform, which came through legislation and new political parties

John Muir and the Sierra Club

Date: May 28, 1892

Theme: Geography and the Environment

-John Muir and other “preservationists” believed that nature should be protected from human interference

-This was in contrast with “conservationists” like Theodore Roosevelt, who wanted to safeguard the environment but use its resources to benefit society

-Muir helped to organize the Sierra Club and develop Yosemite National Park from a state park

-The Sierra Club attempted to check the federal government’s expansion efforts

-Its early goals included establishing Mount Rainier Park

-Muir and the preservationists came out against the development of a dam in the Hetch Hetchy Valley

-While the federal government eventually enabled the dam’s creation, the incident raised the profile of the preservationist movement

Historical Context: The Progressive movement brought with it the desire to protect the nation’s natural resources through legislation and social action

Homestead Strike

Date: 1892

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-The Homestead Strike was an iron and steel workers strike against Carnegie Steel Company in Pittsburgh to protest salary reductions

-Henry Clay Frick hired Pinkerton security guards to protect Carnegie’s plant, but fighting resulted in deaths among both the protesters and the guards

-The PA State Militia was brought in to take control

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions

Eugene V. Debs

Date: 1855-1926

Theme: Work, Exchange, and Technology

-Eugene V. Debs became the president of the American Railway Union in 1893

-He led successful strikes against the Great Northern Railway and against the Pullman Palace Car Company

-He was a founder of the Socialist Party of America

-Debs ran for president as a Socialist candidate 5 times between 1900 and 1920

Historical Context: Unions, community leaders, and workers clashed with management over wages and working conditions

Las Gorras Blancas and Las Manos Negras

Date: 1880s-1890s

Theme: Migration and Settlement

-Las Gorras Blancas is Spanish for “The White Caps,” and Las Manos Negras is Spanish for “The Black Hands.”

-After the Mexican American War, Mexican and American Indians began to lose their lands as Anglo Americans moved in and fraudulent claims over land ownership occured

-Both groups resisted the taking of their lands by Anglo Americans and held raids to intimidate new immigrants

Historical Context: The rights of native landowners versus recent migrants became a growing issue in the latter part of the 1800s

Progressivism

Date: 1890-1914

Theme: Poliics and Power

-Progressivism was social, political, and economic reform that came as a response to problems caused by industrialization, urbanization, and immigratio

-Democratic reforms were made on both the state and federal levels

-Reforms led to the 16th, 17th, and 19th Amendments

Historical Context: The Progressive movement sought to curb corruption and to reform economic and social inequalities through government intervention and the creation of activist organizations