Chapter 24 + 25 Quiz

What were the advantages and disadvantages of government subsidies for the railroads?

advantages:

• Rapid westward expansion (Subsidies helped railroads build tracks much faster, connecting the East to the West + This made it easier for settlers, farmers, and businesses to move west

• Economic growth (Railroads created jobs like construction workers, engineers, conductors + They boosted industries like steel, coal, timber, and manufacturing)

• and aided in national unity and transportation (Railroads linked regions of the country, helping the U.S. function as a single national economy).

___________________________

disadvantages:

• caused Corruption and fraud (Some railroad companies abused subsidies, building poor-quality tracks just to claim land or money + things like Credit Mobilier showed how railroad executives bribed politicians),

• sometimes people build too much railroad and caused bankrupsies and financial instability,

• and also created a bit of favoritism towards big businesses (Railroads became powerful monopolies and often charged high rates, especially hurting farmers and small businesses which led to public anger).

What different challenges were faced by the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific in building the railroad?

CP:

• difficult terrain (Had to cross the Sierra Nevada Mountains which were steep + rocky, Workers had to blast tunnels through solid granite and Heavy snowfall caused avalanches)

• many labor shortages (Few workers were willing to do the dangerous work so the company hired thousands of Chinese immigrants, who faced Extremely low pay, Dangerous conditions, and Discrimination and violence).

UP:

• dealt with native america resistance (Railroad construction cut through Native American lands, leading to frequent attacks)

• involved in scandals (Credit Mobilier: where executives cheated the government for profit)

• and there was a lot of extreme heat (which slowed production down sometimes).

Why was steel so important to industrialization?

• it was stronger, more flexible, and more durable/reliable than iron, which made it ideal for building the modern industrial world.

• It made large-scale production possible because it allowed for Railroad tracks to last longer and carry heavier trains, Bridges to span wider distances, and for the ability to build Skyscrapers.

• Without steel, tall buildings and massive infrastructure wouldn’t have been possible + drive massive economic growth.

How successful were Southerners at industrializing?

• Southerners had some success industrializing after the Civil War, but overall their efforts were limited and uneven.

• they grew industries like textiles and iron/steel, expanded railroads, and had a “new south” vision (Henry Grady wanted to modernize the south).

• But had a continued reliance on agriculture (through things like sharecropping and tenant farming) and had a lot of cheap labor, not skilled labor.

• overall, industry in the south was slow, and things like roads, schools, and cities developed more slowly than in the North.

Describe the positive and negative effects of the industrial revolution on working Americans.

Positive:

• More jobs (Factories created steady wage-paying jobs, especially in cities + Immigrants, women, and children found employment as well),

• mass production made goods cheaper and more available (clothing, tools, food),

• wages and living conditions improved compared to earlier periods, urban growth, more transportation,

• and especially a rise in labor unions (which fought for things like higher wages and safer conditions for example).

Negative:

• most work conditions were dangerous (unguarded machines, poor ventilation, and frequent injuries)

• workers worked long hours for little pay, there was a lot of child labor (caused a limited education and worsened their health)

• and a lot of cramped living spaces (overcrowded tenemants + lots of disease).

What did the Interstate Commerce Act do? What did it not do?

• the first act that allowed the government to regulate businesses + avoid monopolies and unfair practices.

• It specifically regulated things like railroad rates, required railroads to publish their rates (so they couldn’t secretly overcharge some customers and undercharge others),

• created the Interstate Commerce Commission (to investigate railroad practices),

• and “protected” farmers + small buisnesses from monopolies.

NOT:

• It did NOT strongly enforce regulation (the ICC was weak),

• did NOT lower rates (courts ruled in favor of railroads often),

• and did NOT regulate other industries (law only applied to railroads).

What is the difference between vertical and horizontal integration?

Horizontal integration: a company buys out or merges with other companies doing the same thing to eliminate competition. (Ex. Monopolies)

Vertical integration: a company controls every step of production, from raw materials to distribution.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

• he was a railroad + shipping tycoon who dominated the railroad industry and used horizontal integration to knock out all other competitors.

• He helped build the USA’s railroad system.

Sherman Antitrust Act

• A federal law that made monopolies and trusts illegal and aimed to promote fair competition.

• It banned trusts and combinations that restrained trade, allowed the federal government to break up monopolies, and showed the government’s intent to regulate big business.

• However, it was weakly enforced + Courts often sided with big businesses.

• Ironically, it was sometimes used against labor unions instead of corporations.

Stock watering

• an illegal or unethical business practice where a company issues more stock than it’s actually worth, inflating the company’s value on paper.

• Basically, Companies “watered” their stock by overstating assets, which misled investors and made the company look richer than it really was. Led to corruption + financial instability.

Thomas Edison

• he was a major inventor during the industrial revolution.

• he invented things like the practical electric light bulb, the phonograph, helped develop motion pictures, and built the first electric power system for homes and cities.

• Made electricity usable and affordable for the public.

Andrew Carnegie

• built a huge steel empire and became one of the richest men in history.

• Used vertical integration in his buisnesses, made steel cheaper and more widely available, helping railroads, bridges, and buildings, and known for Gospel of Wealth: gave away most of his fortune to fund libraries, schools, and charities

  
  

John D. Rockefeller

• an American business tycoon in the late 1800s who became the richest man in U.S. history through the oil industry.

• Used horizontal integration: bought out competing oil refineries to create a monopoly (Controlled almost all aspects of refining, transporting, and selling oil).

• He also became a symbol of big business and monopoly power in the Gilded Age + later became a major philanthropist, giving money to education, medical research, and charities.

• He helped industrialize the U.S. by providing cheap, reliable oil + sparked public outrage and led to antitrust laws, like the Sherman Antitrust Act

J.P. Morgan

• he was a banker that Financed and reorganized railroads, steel, and other industries, Helped create U.S. Steel (the first billion-dollar corporation by buying Carnegie Steel), and played a key role in stabilizing the economy during financial crises (like the Panic of 1907).

• Showed how finance and banking could control entire industries.

Haymarket Square

• A violent clash between workers striking for an 8-hour workday and police, which hurt the labor movement.

• Workers held a peaceful rally in Haymarket Square to protest police violence at a strike, but Someone threw a bomb at police and several officers and workers were killed which caused the police to open fire on the crowd.

• This caused public opinion to turn against labor unions, especially the Knights of Labor, highlighted tensions between workers and big business during the Industrial Revolution, and became a symbol for workers’ rights and labor struggles worldwide.

Social Darwinism

• the idea that only the strongest or most “fit” people, businesses, or nations succeed, and that helping the weak interferes with natural progress.

• It’s “survival of the fittest” applied to society and the economy. (Ex. Laissez-faire)

What factors led to the growth of cities in the second half of the 19th century?

• industrialization (Factories were built in cities and offered steady wage jobs + People moved from farms to cities looking for work). Immigration (Millions of immigrants from Europe and Asia arrived and settled in cities).

• Transportation advances (Railroads, streetcars, and subways made it easier to move people and goods).

• New building technology (Steel, elevators, and electricity made tall buildings and dense cities possible).

• Economic opportunity (Cities offered better access to: Jobs, Education, Entertainment, and Social mobility).

Explain the differing philosophies of Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois

• Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois were both important Black leaders, but they strongly disagreed on how African Americans should achieve equality. 

• Booker T. Washington: Believed African Americans should focus on vocational education (learning trades and skills), argued that economic success would eventually lead to social and political equality, and was willing to accept segregation and limited civil rights temporarily.

• W.E.B. Du Bois: Believed African Americans should demand immediate civil rights and full equality, emphasized higher education for the “Talented Tenth” to lead the community, strongly opposed segregation and discrimination, and helped found the NAACP.

What changes were occurring in the women’s rights movement?

• Greater focus on voting rights (The movement increasingly centered on women’s suffrage with Organizations like NAWSA–National American Woman Suffrage Association)

• and a connection to reform movements like temperance, education, labor reform, and settlement houses.

• Expanding education and jobs for women also helped as well. Many states had different suffrage for women as well.

How did the nature of immigration change in the 1870s/1880s?

• Earlier immigrants mostly came from England, Germany, Ireland. Now, more immigrants came from Southern and Eastern Europe, including: Italy, Poland, Russia, and Austria-Hungary.

• These immigrants were often poorer, less educated, and spoke different languages. Increase in Asian immigration: many Chinese immigrants came to work on railroads and in mining.

• This led to strong anti-Asian sentiment. Ethnic neighborhoods formed (little Italy for example) as well. There was also a rise in nativism as well.

Jane Addams

• She was a reformer who helped immigrants and the urban poor through settlement houses.

• She started a hull house which provided things like Education and job training, Childcare, Healthcare, Help for immigrants adjusting to life in the U.S. Helped improve urban living conditions  + Became a symbol of Progressive Era reform.

Settlement houses

• Settlement houses were community centers in poor urban neighborhoods which provided services and education to immigrants and the urban poor to help them adjust to city life like English classes and education, Job training, Childcare and kindergartens, Healthcare and food assistance, and Cultural and social programs.

• Hull house was an example of this.

Dime novels

• inexpensive stories that often cost a dime which were about adventure, crime, romance, or the Wild West.

• Made reading affordable for working-class Americans, helped spread popular culture, and created famous fictional heroes (cowboys, detectives, explorers).

Horatio Alger

• a writer best known for his “rags-to-riches” stories.

• His books were popular dime-novel stories that promoted the idea of the American Dream + reinforced the belief that anyone could succeed through effort.

• His stories supported Social Darwinist ideas and individualism.

Women’s Christian Temperance Movement

• A women-led reform movement that worked to reduce or ban alcohol to improve families and society.

• They argued that alcohol caused poverty, violence, and family/marital problems.

• It also gave women a public voice in politics and reform before they could vote + added to the growing support for Prohibition.

Anti-Saloon League

• A powerful reform organization that worked to ban alcohol in the United States.

• focused specifically on Prohibition, unlike the WCTU but still used political pressure, lobbying, and elections to influence lawmakers.

• It played a major role in passing the 18th Amendment (prohibition).

Mark Twain

• a famous American author who ​​wrote novels that captured American life and society, often using humor and satire.

• Famous works: “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”.

• He criticized society, greed, and inequality through satire.

Social Gospel Movement

• A reform movement that applied Christian ethics to solve social problems like poverty, inequality, and labor abuses.

• Encouraged churches and individuals to address social issues, not just personal salvation.

• Things like Better working conditions, Child labor laws, Housing and education reforms, etc.

• Linked religion and social reform during the Progressive Era.