American History: Key Concepts from the Gilded Age

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts from the Gilded Age in American History.

Great American Desert

The nickname for the Great Plains before people realized it could be farmed.

Buffalo herds

Huge bison groups that were the lifeblood of Native Americans but nearly wiped out by settlers.

Cattle drives

Long journeys where cowboys herded cows from Texas to northern railroad hubs.

Frederick Jackson Turner

Historian who argued that the frontier shaped the American character and democracy.

Dawes Act of 1887

A law that broke up tribal lands to turn Native Americans into individual farmers.

Indian Reorganization Act

A 1934 policy that gave Native Americans more control over their land and government.

National Grange Movement

A farmers' organization that fought for lower railroad rates and better education.

Ocala Platform

A list of farmer demands including lower tariffs and government-controlled banks.

Omaha Platform

The Populist Party's plan calling for an 8-hour workday and direct election of senators.

Populist Party

The 'People's Party' formed by farmers and laborers to fight big banks and railroads.

William Jennings Bryan 'Cross of Gold'

A famous speech arguing that the gold standard was 'crucifying' the poor.

Election of 1896 (McKinley)

A turning point where pro-business Republicans beat the pro-farmer Populist movement.

Alexander Graham Bell/telephone

The inventor who patented the first practical telephone.

Henry Bessemer/steel

Developed a cheap and fast way to turn iron into high-quality steel.

Edison/electricity

The inventor who brought electricity and the lightbulb into homes and factories.

Otis elevator

The invention that made skyscrapers practical by allowing easy travel between floors.

Mail-order catalogs (Sears)

A system allowing rural families to buy almost anything through the mail.

Vanderbilt-railways

The business tycoon who built a massive empire by consolidating railroad lines.

Rebate

A secret discount given by railroads to big customers like Rockefeller.

Pools

Informal agreements between companies to keep prices high and stop competing.

J. Pierpont Morgan-banking

The powerful banker who bought out companies and reorganized the economy.

Interlocking directorates

Having the same people sit on boards of 'competing' companies to control an industry.

Carnegie-Steel

The king of the steel industry who used vertical integration.

Rockefeller-Standard Oil

The founder of Standard Oil and master of the corporate trust.

Trust

A giant corporation managed by a single board designed to eliminate competition.

Horizontal integration

Buying up all competitors in the same stage of production to create a monopoly.

Vertical integration

Buying every step of the production process from raw materials to delivery.

Laissez-faire

The idea that the government should stay completely out of the economy.

Social Darwinism

The belief that 'survival of the fittest' applies to business and social class.

Knights of Labor (Powderly)

An early union that welcomed skilled and unskilled workers of all backgrounds.

American Federation of Labor (Gompers)

A union for skilled workers focusing only on higher pay and shorter hours.

Haymarket, Pullman, Homestead Strikes

Violent labor clashes where the government usually sided with business owners.

Old immigrants

People from Northern and Western Europe who arrived before 1880.

New immigrants

People from Southern and Eastern Europe who arrived after 1880.

Chinese Exclusion Act

The first major law to ban a specific ethnic group from entering the U.S.

Political machines (Tammany Hall)

Corrupt city groups that gave help to immigrants in exchange for their votes.

Jane Addams (Hull House)

A reformer who started settlement houses to help poor immigrants in cities.

Melting pot vs. salad bowl

The choice between blending into one culture or keeping unique ethnic traditions.

Interstate Commerce Act

The first federal law aimed at regulating railroad prices and practices.

Sherman Antitrust Act

A law intended to break up monopolies and restore competition.

United States v. EC Knight Co

A Supreme Court case that limited the government's power to stop monopolies.

Civil Service Reform

The movement to give government jobs based on merit rather than political favors.

Pendleton Act of 1881

The law requiring people to pass a test to get certain government jobs.

Soft vs. hard money

Soft money (silver) causes inflation; hard money (gold) keeps prices stable.

Silver Money (Bland-Allison Act)

A law requiring the U.S. Treasury to buy silver and put it into circulation as coins.