APUSH Period 6 1860-1890

Buffalo

were hunted by settlers to near extinction and were an important food source for Native Americans

Mechanization

machines such as a the reaper and combine harvester replaced hand-held tools, causing crop production to double between 1870 and 1900. This caused crop prices to decline, undermining small-scale farmers. Most farmers could not afford new machinery, causing them to go out of business

Railroad companies

were overcharging farmers for carrying produce and using their services. The tight supply of currency made it difficult for farmers to pay off debt, driving down prices they received for their crops

The Greenback Party 1878

A political formation that wanted to expand the currency supply. They advocated for paper money not backed by silver or gold

The Grange

An organization of farmers that pushed for state laws to protect farmer’s interests. They fought to pass laws that regulated railroad freight rates and made certain abusive corporate practices illegal

The Granger Laws

state laws passed in the 1860s that regulated the fees that railroad companies charged farmers to be able to transport their goods

Munn V. Illinois 1877

There was an Illinois law that that regulated the rates charged by grain warehouses and elevators, specially addressing a firm of Munn & Scott, which was violating the state’s maximum rate. The issue resided in if the illinois law, which regulated private buisness, was in violation of the fourteenth amendment. The court ruled that state governments had the right to regulate private industries that affect the public interest

Wabash v Illinois 1886

The Supreme Court found that Illinois’ Granger Law, when applied to railroads, was unconstitutional because it controlled interstate commerce, which was to be moderated by the federal government

Land grants to railroads

the USFG encourages economic growth by subsidizing improvements in transportation and communications, encouraging railroad lines to be built

cost of goods came down and standard of living rose

Pacific Railway Act of 1862

Caused land grants given by the governments for new rail lines to be given straight to railroad corporations rather than to statesThis act aimed to promote the construction of the first transcontinental railroad by providing federal land and support to railroad companies in exchange for building railway lines.

Telegraph/telephone

The telegraph network continued to spread throughout the Gilded Age

the first transatlantic cable was laid in 1858

Alexander Grahm Bell was granted a patent for the telephone in 1876 and established the Bell Telephone Company

Homestead Act of 1862

Gave 160 acres of land if settlers lived on and improved it for 5 years. It encouraged settlement of the west, but land was often too small/dry to farm successfully

Timber Culture Act 1873

It gave an extra 160 acres of land to the Homestead Act if settlers planted trees on 40 acres. This was put into place to promote tree growth in the Great Plains. Many people failed at planting these

Desert Land act 1877

Offered 640 acres of land at a cheap price if settlers agreed to irrigate it. This was put into place to settle arid lands of the west, but irrigation was difficult and the Act led to fraud or misuse

Pacific Railroad Acts (1860s)

These gave land and government bonds to railroad companies to build rail lines in the Pacific. It showed federal support of infrastructure and Westward expansion

Transcontinental Railroad

This linked east and west coast and was a huge step for national unity, commerce, and migration, though it devastated Native lands

Great Northern Railway

This was the first major transcontinental line built without federal land grants and was an example of private enterprise success in the Gilded age

Comstock Lode

A major silver mine discovered in Nevada in 1859, significantly boosted the mining industry and spurred westward migration, contributing to the economic development of the region.

Pikes Peak Gold Rush 1859

A significant influx of gold seekers to Colorado that populated the Rockies and cemented US presence in former frontier areas

Ranching

Following the Civil War, there was a high demand for beef in the US and Europe, leading to a cattle boom in the West. Trails like the Chisholm trail would be used by cowboys to drive cattle northward, where they would be shipped by rail to slaughterhouses in the east

decline of open-range ranching

1. barbed wire introduced to enclose land—the wire was cheap, effective, and easy to use, which meant that landowners could enclose vast areas of land and prevent cattle from wandering onto other people’s property

2. The west faced a series of brutal blizzards, causing cattle to die in large numbers

Sodbusters

First generation settlers who built sod homes and went through tough farming conditionsin the Great Plains, often facing droughts, grasshopper infestations, and harsh weather, but contributing to the agricultural development of the region.

Destruction of the buffalo

railroad workers and passengers started killing buffalo for food and sport. Industrial uses for their hides put pressure on their numbers. the buffalo nearly went extinct, which weakened the Great Plains natives, who depended on buffalos

Red Cloud’s War (1866-1868)

The Homestead Act and development of railroad lines brought a wave of settlers into the Great Plains region

Fighting occurred in the WY and MO territories between US troops and several native groups like the Lakota and Cheyenne. This conflict arose over land ownership and treaty violations, as settler expansion encroached on Native American territories. The U.S. withdrew and signed the Second Treaty of Fort Laramie, which gave the Lakota much of the disputed territory

Great Sioux War/Little Bighorn

After the discovery of gold in the Black Hills, which was sacred promised land to the Lakota, thousands of white miners flooded the area and demanded that the Lakota sell the Hills. When they refused, the US declared war. This war ended with Colonel Custer’s force being annihilated, showing the powerful resistance of the Natives. However, it also intensified U.S. military efforts to subdue Native American tribes in the region.

Wounded Knee Massacre 1890

• Life on reservations was plagued by poverty, disease, and cultural suppression

• A religious movement called the Ghost Dance spread amongst Plains tribes, promising the return of buffalo and the disappearance of white settlers

• US officials saw it as a threat of uprising

• On December 29, 1890, the US army intercepted a group of Lakota at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakotaresulting in the killing of hundreds of Lakota men, women, and children.

Indian Peace Commission 1867

Congress attempted to negotiate an end of warring on the Great Plains by establishing the Indian Peace Commission. This commission aimed to create a policy of moving Natives ti reservations so that peace could be maintained. Congress wanted to confine Indian groups to reservations to pursue a policy of assimilation, but the commission ultimately failed as fighting on the Plains continued

The Ghost Dance

Began when a Paiute man named Wovoka had a vision about a spiritual revival; if Natives performed the Ghost Dance, the buffalo would return, settlers would return, and Native ancestors would rise again. This dance spread quickly among Plains tribes and became a symbol against the oppression faced by Native Americans. The US say this as a sign of upsrising or war and moved to suppress it, leading to the Wounded Knee Massacre.

Reservation system

Established by the US government during the 1850s-1870s to move Native groups away from expanding settlement. Natives were isolated from settlers and sent to reservations that were underfunded, overcrowded, and lacked resources

Dawes Act 1887

This was passed when settlers believed that Native Americans needed to assimilate into white society to survive. Tribal lands were divided into individual plots and one goal was to erase Native identity by replacing it with European culture like converting to Catholicism

This led to massive land loss

Indian Boarding Schools

The Bureau of Indian Affairs established a series of Indian boarding schools that were designed to assimilate Indian children by stripping them of their culture. Students were forced to cut their hair, rid themselves of traditional clothing, and practice Christianity

New South

Henry Grady argued for a mixed economy in the South that would include industrialization

He wanted to move away from a single-crop plantation agriculture

African Americans continued to toil in sharecropping systems (in which African Americans could farm on planter’s land in exchange for a portion of their harvest) or tenant farming (in which African Americans owned their tools and rented the land at a fixed rate)

Jim Crow Laws

The enforced segregation of public facilities such as railroad cars, restrooms, and schools. African Americans were given second-class status

Plessy V Fergusen

Homer Plessy, who was considered Black because he was 1/8ths African, was arrested for sitting in a “whites-only” portion of a rail car which was illegal in Louisana because of a law that segregated railcars. The SC ruled that the 14th amendment did not protect African Americans from Jim Crow Laws

Separate but Equal

the Court established this doctrine, arguing that segregation was acceptable as long as the facilities for both races were of equal quality

Ida B. Wells

A black woman who sued the Menphis and Charleston Railroad for denying her a seat in the ladies’ car. She won the case, but the railroad won on appeal.

After 3 of her friends were lynched, she wrote against the practice of lynching, arguing that it was a tactic to suppress black political activism

Booker T. Washington

Encouraged blacks to gain training in vocational skills and argued that confrontation with white people would end badly for black people, and instead advocated for cooperation with supportive white people

Steel

Steel production was key to indsutrialization

Steel was more durable, versatile, and useful than iron

The development of the Bessemer process of steel greatly reduced the cost to make it and allowed for mass production, contributing significantly to infrastructure projects

Second Industrial Revolution 1865-1900

Growth of natural resources like iron and coal, large source of labor from immigration, expansion of railroads and innovations in communication, major technological innovations with the development of the modern steel and oil industries

Big Business

The concentration of wealth in the hands of a small number of large businesses in various industries led to monopolies

Trusts

combinations of businesses designed to maximize profits

Vertical integration

When a company takes over its suppliers and distributors in order to gain total control of the market

Lassiez-Faire

an economic theory that business should not be regulated by government but by the hand of supply and demand

Myth of the Self-Made Man

The idea that a poor man can work his way up the ladder of success to become a millionaire

Social Darwinism

an economic/social philosophy using Darwin’s Survival of the Fittest theory to justify ruthless business practices of robber barons

Dangerous working conditions

factory workers labored 10 hours a day with no minimum wages or benefits and they worked in hazardous working conditions

Female laborers

made up about 17% of the total factory labor force. They were paid much less than men and they only worked in domestic factories such as textile, garment, and food processing industries

why did labor unions emerge?

In reaction to the “Rise of Big Business” and monopolies with exploited the interests of working-class Americans

National Labor Union

A union that pushed for 8-hour work days and higher wages

biggest success: winning 8-hour workdays for federal employees

Knights of Labor

This union had over 700,000 members and was an inclusive group that settled labor disputes through artbitration

American Federation of Labor

This union was founded by Samuel Gompers and was not inclusive. It used a practice called collective bargaining, which was a strategy that encouraged group negotiations between workers and employers for better working conditions

Industrial Workers of the World

Formed by socialists and communists. It was an inclusive union

Socialism

This favored government control of business and property and an equal distribution of wealth

The Great Railroad Strike

This occurred in 1877 when the Eastern Railroad companies cut their workers’ wages by 10%. The strike spread across 11 states and shut down 2/3rds of the country’s rails. Outcome: President Hayes sent troops to break up the strike; 100 people died during the strike. The workers did not win and the strength of the union was broken. Effect: While not successful in its immediate goals, it heightened public awareness of labor unions and the harsh conditions they went through

Haymarket Riot of 1886

Thousands of members of the Knights of Labor Union gathered in Haymarket Square in Chicago to protest for an 8-hour work day. A protester threw a bomb into the crowd, killing seven police officers and four workers. Business owners blacklisted members of the KOL and re-instituted the 10-hour workday, contributing to the dissolution of the KOL union

Homestead Steel Strike 1892

When Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick combated steel workers that went on strike at the Homestead, PA steel plant. Frick lowered wages and tried to break the power of the union. Frick hired scabs and the Pinkerton Detective Agency to keep out the strikers. 10 people were killed during the strike. Effect: Strikers were replaced and criminal charges were put on them. They also lost public support due to the violence surrounding the strike

Pullman Strike (1894)

Occurred when Pullman’s sleeping car company cut workers’ wages. Pullman cut his workers’ wages, but didn’t lower rent for those working in his factory town. Pullman workers appealed to the American Railway Union and its leader Eugene V. Debs, who directed workers not to boycott Pullman cars. The boycott spanned 27 states. The strike ended when President Cleveland sent in troops to stop the strike. Effect: This shows how the government took the side of the labor union

Impact of labor unions

Due to the inability of strikes to achieve significant changes in factory working conditions, only 3% of workers belonged to labor unions

federal government always took the side of Big Business

Sherman Anti-Trust Act

stated that any attempt to interfere with free trade among the states was illegal

made trusts and monopolies illegal

Immigration 1870-1920

Immigrants moved from Europe due to a lack of land, economic opportunities, and to seek religious freedom

Immigrants became a cheap source of labor

Labor Contract Law

allowed businesses to pay for the passage of workers and deduct the amount kater from their wages. This was repealed by nativists who feared that immigrants would take jobs from American workers

New Immigrants

new wave of immigrants in addition to the Irish and German immigrants of pre-Civil war years

Came from southern and eastern europe

Asian immigrants 1851-1883

A pull factor was the California Gold Rush

Chinese immigrants helped build the Railroads in the West and formed ethnic communities called Chinatowns

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882)

• The first law to restrict immigration based on nationality

• Banned all Chinese except teachers, students, merchants, and govt officials. It was enacted due to fears of the Chinese taking over American jobs

Steamships

made it possible for lower classes to book an inexpensive one-way passage in the ship’s steerage compartment. They were forced to sleep in cramped conditions, leading to the spread of disease

Statue of Liberty

A gift from the French in 1882 that served as a beacon of hope for immigrants

Assimilation

Many immigrants faced culture shock when they first got to the US, which was eased when they settled in ethnic neighborhoods

issues with immigration

Immigrants came from war-torn countries in Southern Eastern Europe like Italy, Greece, and Russia. This new group of immigrants were poorer and less educated than Irish and German immigrants. Many of these immigrants were Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Jewish, which added to the anti-immigrant sentiment

Natvism towards new immigrants

nativists were highly prejudiced against new immigrant groups. Precious immigrant groups believed that new immigrants would not be able to become productive citizens

American Protective Association

a secret, anti-Catholic society founded in 1887 by Protestants. It was the largest anti-Catholic movement in the United States during the late 19th century, particularly influential in the Midwest. The APA aimed to protect the nation from what it perceived as Catholic influence and to defend American principles

Immigration Act of 1882

Anyone deemed a “convict, lunatic, idiot, or person unable to take a care of himself or herself without a public charge” was not allowed to land in the US

Immigration Restriction League

Believed that immigrants should be screened through literacy tests to separate the desirable vs indesirable

Urbanization

During the late 19th century, people were drawn to cities because of new forms of transportation, communication, and job opportunities

The Great Migration

The movement of millions of African Americans from the rural South to the Urban north due to the availability of factory jobs

Housing from urbanization

Majority of urban residents could not afford to own a house in the cities so landlords forced many tenants as possible into small, crowded spaces, resulting in slums and overcrowded living conditions

tenements

a multiple family rental building occupied by poor immigrant families

diseases such as tuberculosis and smallpox spread throughout these tight living quarters

Jacob Riis

A Danish immigrant who wrote the book How the Other Half Lives, showing the issues faced by immigrants in crowded tenements. he brought the problems of urban housing to the attention of middle-class reformers

Andrew Carnegie

• Dominated the steel industry by investing in all aspect of steel production

• Carnegie Steel company controlled the mills where steel was made, the coal mines that supplied the coal, and the iron ore mines

• he also controlled the transportation lines

• example of vertical integration; when a company performs all aspects of a business

Rockefeller

An American businessman who founded Standard Oil and became a pioneer in the petroleum industry, known for creating one of the first and largest monopolies through horizontal integration. (merging of companies that create same or similar products)

Panic of 1893

A severe economic downturn beginning with the collapse of the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad and national Cordage, which defaulted on loans and went bankrupt, and a stock market crash followed by a wave of bank closures

the Exoduster Movement

A mass migration of African Americans from the Southern United States to Kansas seeking to escae the KKK, Jim Crow Laws, and the idea of black people as second class citizens

Jane Addams & Hull House

Settlement houses meant to aid immigrants. They offered classes, set up employment bureaus, provided childcare facilities, and helped victims of domestic abuse. Addams founded and ran Hull House in Chicago

“The Gospel of Wealth”

Andrew Carnegie’s philosophy that the rich had a duty to live responsible, modest lives and give back to society. The idea that wealthy individuals should use their fortunes to benefit the greater good and promote social progress.

Challenging Notions of Domesticity

Women began to challenge the cult of domesticity. In the 1880s and 90s, women’s clubs emerged, investigating the issues around poverty, working conditions, and pollution

Temperance - Womeb’s Christian Temperance Union

National Christian Temperance Union

Populist Party

Formed by activists to challenge the growth of corporate power over the agricultural sector; they sought to radicalize redistribution of power and pushed for stronger government intervention in the economy

• increase democracy, graduated income tax, regulation of railroad, and currency reform

• amount of currency in circulation was insufficient, called for “free and unlimited coinage” of silver

Election of 1896

• Demise of the Populist Party

• Willaim Jennings Bryan called for the free ad unlimited coinage of silver and promised not to let the American people be “crucified upon a cross of gold:— endorsed by the Populist party

• McKinley appealed to banking and business interests by keeping the country on the gold standard—won the election

political machines

smooth running organizations whose purpose was to achieve and maintain political power, regardless of political ideology

NYC was dominated by the Democratic Party machine at Tammanny Hall

Boss Tweed

A political leader who led New York City's Tammany Hall and was known for his corrupt practices and influence in the Democratic Party during the 19th century.

Temperance Campaign

Especially popular among women who were troubled by the fact that their husbands drank away their paychecks