The Progressive Era (1890-1920)

The Progressive Era (1890-1920)

The Gilded Age

  • Images and terms associated with the Gilded Age include:
    • Pullman
    • Survivalist
    • Newspaper
    • Union
    • St. Louis
    • Capitalism
    • Monopoly
    • Plutocracy
    • Wage slavery
    • Low wages
    • High rent
    • Employee
    • "The Condition of the Laboring Man at Pullman"

Key Definitions

  • Populist: A person, especially a politician, who strives to appeal to ordinary people who feel that their concerns are disregarded by elite groups.
  • Socialists: Reform government and business, ensuring decent working conditions and wages, and wanted fair government rule.
  • Muckrakers: Journalists or novelists who exposed corruption in big business and government.
  • Government Reforms: Changes to government policy and practice to help people.
  • Election Reforms: Direct election of senators; secret ballot voting; direct primary voting.
  • Labor Reforms: Better working conditions, shorter hours, and time off.
  • Temperance Movement: A movement to ban the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages.
  • Suffragettes: Women who sought a constitutional amendment to gain the right to vote.
  • NAACP: National Association for the Advancement of Colored Persons. Sought better rights and conditions for minorities in the US. Still active to this day.

Rural vs. Urban Population

  • A graph depicts the shift in population distribution between rural and urban areas from 1880 to 1920.
  • The percentage of the urban population increased, while the rural decreased.
    • Urban
    • Rural

Visual Elements of the Progressive Era

  • Images include:
    • The first picket line
    • College Day in the picket line - Feb. 1917
    • Women holding signs with messages such as:
      • "MR. PRESIDENT HOW LONG MUST WOMEN WAIT FOR LIBERTY"
      • "LELAND STANFORD"
      • "MR. PRESIDENT WHAT WILL YOU DO FOR WOMAN SUFFRAGE"
      • "CBERLIK"