Gilded Age and Westward Expansion Flashcards

Key vocabulary and concepts from lecture notes on Westward Expansion, the Gilded Age, Industrialization, Immigration, and Reform Movements in America from 1865-1898.

Mechanization of Agriculture

Transition from manual labor to machinery.

Mechanical Reaper and Combine Harvester

Key machines that dramatically increased crop production in agriculture.

National Grange Movement

Founded in 1868 to unite isolated farmers for socialization and education and advocating for laws regulating railroad rates.

Granger Laws

Legislation aimed at protecting farmers’ interests.

Pacific Railroads Acts

Land grants to railroad companies to build transcontinental railroads.

Homestead Act of 1862

Offered 160 acres of free land to settlers who would farm and settle it.

Commerce Act of 1886

Established the Interstate Commerce Commission to enforce fair railroad rates.

Sodbusters

Homesteaders who settled and farmed the Great Plains.

Frederick Jackson Turner’s Thesis

Argued that the closing of the frontier was a cause for concern, as it was a release for American discontent and a democratizing force.

Indian Appropriation Act of 1871

Ended federal recognition of Indian sovereignty.

Dawes Act of 1887

Divided reservation lands into plots and encouraged assimilation of Native Americans.

Ghost Dance Movement

Aimed to drive white settlers away and culminated in the Wounded Knee Massacre (1890), ending the period of Indian resistance.

New South

Vision for the South post-Civil War, envisioning an economically diverse, industrially developed South with laissez-faire capitalism.

Sharecropping System

Allowed individuals without capital to work on plantation lands in exchange for a share of the harvest, often resulting in a new form of debt bondage.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

Landmark Supreme Court case affirming 'separate but equal' facilities.

Jim Crow Laws

Laws enforced segregation in public spaces following Plessy v. Ferguson.

Ida B. Wells

Editor who campaigned against lynching and Jim Crow laws.

Henry Turner

Founded the International Migration Society in 1894, promoting emigration to Liberia.

Booker T. Washington

Advocated for economic self-sufficiency rather than direct political confrontation.

Industry

Prior to Industrialization: Goods were made for personal use or local/regional sale. Post-Industrialization: Mass production for global markets.

Bessemer Process

Blasting air through molten iron improves steel quality.

Gilded Age

Refers to a period characterized by both wealth and underlying social issues.

John D. Rockefeller

Founder of Standard Oil; used horizontal integration.

Andrew Carnegie

Dominated the steel industry through vertical integration.

Laissez-Faire Policies

Minimal government intervention in business practices.

Social Darwinism

Application of Darwin's theories to economics.

Bourgeoisie

Wealthy business owners.

Conspicuous Consumption

Coined by economist Thorstein Veblen.

Knights of Labor

Founded in 1881, inclusive of all workers. Goals: Abolish child labor, destroy trusts and monopolies.

American Federation of Labor (AFL)

Led by Samuel Gompers, focused on craft workers. Goals: Higher wages and safer working conditions.

Immigration

Movement from one country to another.

Migration

Movement within the same country, from region to region.

Exoduster Movement

Mass migration of Southern Black people to the West (late 1870s).

Nativism

Policy protecting the interests of native-born citizens over immigrants.

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

Banned all further Chinese immigration.

Jane Addams

Established settlement houses (e.g., Hull House in 1889) to support immigrants.

Middle Managers

Referred to as white-collar workers.

Gospel of Wealth

Belief that wealthy individuals should reinvest their riches into society to create opportunities for the less fortunate.

Phoebe Apperson Hearst

Radical philanthropist and advocate for women’s suffrage.

Industrial Capitalism

A significant change in the production of goods, moving from small-scale artisan work to large-scale factory production.

Henry George

Criticized wealth disparity; proposed a single tax on land to address economic inequality.

Edward Bellamy

Wrote Looking Backward (1888), envisioning a socialist utopia in America by the year 2000.

Eugene V. Debs

Founded the Socialist Party of America in 1901.

Social Gospel Movement

Focused on applying Christian principles to societal issues.

Women’s Suffrage

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony founded the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) in 1890 to advocate for women’s right to vote.

Temperance Movement

Addressed the issue of alcohol consumption, which was a significant problem among urban male factory workers.

Carrie Nation

Known for her aggressive stance against alcohol, famously using a hatchet to destroy liquor barrels.

Adam Smith

Authored The Wealth of Nations (1776). Idea: Economy governed best by supply and demand; individuals acting in own interest create societal prosperity via 'invisible hand.'

Pendleton Act (1881)

Established competitive exams for federal jobs to reduce patronage.

Populist Party

Omaha Platform included direct election of senators, initiatives/referendums, unlimited silver coinage, graduated income tax, and 8-hour workday.

Boss Tweed

Led machines; famous example: Tammany Hall in NYC.