American Pageant Chapter 28

Roosevelt, Taft, Preservation vs. Conservation of natural landscapes, Election 1904,1908, 1912

Jacob Riis

Jacob Riis

Reporter for New York Sun wrote “How the Other Half Lives“, depicts poor living conditions in NY and treatment of immigrants

Social Gospel

Progressivism based on Christian teaching, attracted all kinds of people (feminists, populaists, etc)

Muckrakers

Journalists who looked to expose corruption, better the people, and succeeded

Lincoln Steffens

Published several articles exposing the corruption of government and businesses, “The SHame of the Cities“

Dr Harvey Wiley

Chief chemist for Department of Agriculture, exposed con artist chemists selling bad/fake medicine

Progressives

Wanted to modernize American institutions to curb monopolies and better the public

Initiative

Directly engaging voters to make change, progressive used it to take back corrupt legislatures

Referendum

Laws put on ballots that people can vote for along with electing an officer

Recall

Allow voters to remove elected officials through voting

Australian Ballot

Private ballots that would prevent bribery from working

Galveston, Texas

Appointed qualified commissioners to manager urban affairs rather than making the positions political

Robert La Follette

Governor of Wisconsin, very progressive militant Republican and returned power of corporation to the people

Womens and Childrens Bureau

Part of Department of Labor, gave women the chance to get involved in government + continue with women’s suffrage

Muller vs. Oregon

Offered specific protections for women in the work force, arguable discriminatory but better than nothing

Lochner vs. New York

Invalidated NY law that established a 10 hr work day, later revoked

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

Caused by building code violations due to laws not being enforced, hundreds of women died, led to workers compensation laws

18th Amendment

Bans consumption and creation of alcohol

Square Deal

By Teddy Roosevelt; Control of Corporations, Consumer Protection; Conservation of natural resources

Coal Strike of 1902

Strike in PA where coal miners were protesting poor treatment from corporations, neither side would budge and winter was approaching so Roosevelt threatened to seize coal mines and draft coal miners to make them work

1902 Coal Strike Compromise

10% pay increase, 9 hr Day, miner union not legally recognized

Elkins Act

Allowed heavy fines on rail roads and shippers, stopped rebates for larger companies and upcharging smaller companies

Hepburn Act

Expanded and empowered the ICC, set rates for railroads

Northern Securities Company

Railroad company by JP Morgan, Roosevelt entered anti-trust suit against him and dissolved the company

Upton Sinclair

Wrote The Jungle which exposed the dirty conditions and poor treatment of laborers in the meat packing industry in Chicago, led to inspection of industry

Meat Inspection Act

Federal supervision and inspection for all meat crossing state lines

Pure Food and Drug Act

Prevented adultering or mislabeling food and medications

Desert Land Act

1st act to preserve natural landscapes

Reserve Act

Allowed presidents to set aside land for national parks and forests

Newlands Act

Allowed Federal Government to collect money from sales of public lands, led to dams and other water supplies being built from money collected

Hetch Hetchy Valley

San Francisco build a dam for a water reservoir, very controversial due to the valley being very beautiful and preservationists wanting to keep it, necessary for people of CA

1907 Panic

Lots of indictments, suicides, and criminal charges that shook Wall Street; public blamed Roosevelt, banks unable to make more money

Aldrich-Vreeland Act

Authorized national banks to issue emergency money

William Taft

Secretary of War, Roosevelt’s successor

WIlliam Jennings Bryan

Democratic nominee for election of 1908, campaigned about Roosevelt being corrupt

Election of 1908

Taft won election because the public didn’t want drastic change from Roosevelt

Dollar Diplomacy

American investors encouraged to invest internationally to boost political influence abroad

Manchuria, China

Railroads controlled by Russia and Japan leading to monopoly over trade, Taft utilized open door policy to reintroduce US trade and prevent strangulation on Chinese economy

Payne-Aldrich Bill

Hundreds of tariff revisions raising the price of almost all goods, Taft signs it

Tennessee Coal and Iron Company

Roosevelt protected it from being dissolved while in office but Taft later dissolved it leading to the two becoming enemies and Roosevelt running for a third term

Election of 1912

Taft vs. Wilson vs. Roosevelt; WIlson won due to Roosevelt and Taft taking votes from each other and Roosevelt being considered corrupt