Semester 2 terms
A Century of Dishonor – A book that exposed how badly the U.S. treated Native Americans.
American Federation of Labor – A group of skilled workers who wanted better pay and working conditions.
Andrew Carnegie – A rich steel businessman who believed in giving money to help others (philanthropy).
Angel Island – The immigration station on the West Coast where many Asians entered the U.S.
Battle of Little Bighorn – A fight where Native Americans defeated U.S. troops led by Custer.
Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show – A traveling show that made the West look exciting and heroic.
Buffalo soldiers – African American soldiers who fought in the West after the Civil War.
Bureau of Indian Affairs – A government group that managed Native American reservations and affairs.
Carlisle Indian School – A school that tried to force Native American kids to adopt white culture.
Chief Joseph – A Native American leader who tried to lead his people to Canada to escape the U.S. Army.
Chinese Exclusion Act – A law that stopped Chinese workers from coming to the U.S.
Chisholm Trail – A major route used to drive cattle from Texas to Kansas railroads.
Comstock Lode – A huge silver discovery in Nevada that brought lots of miners.
Coxey’s Army – A group of unemployed people who marched to demand jobs during a depression.
Dawes Severalty Act – A law that broke up Native American land to make them act more like white farmers.
Ellis Island – The immigration station in New York where many Europeans entered the U.S.
Eugene Debs – A labor leader who fought for workers’ rights and later ran for president as a socialist.
Exodusters – African Americans who moved west after the Civil War to escape racism in the South.
Frederick Jackson Turner – A historian who said the frontier helped shape American democracy and character.
George Custer – A U.S. general who was killed at the Battle of Little Bighorn.
Geronimo – A Native American leader who fought to keep his land but was eventually captured.
Ghost Dance – A Native American religious movement that hoped to bring back their old way of life.
Gospel of Wealth – Carnegie’s idea that rich people should use their money to help society.
Haymarket Affair – A labor protest in Chicago that turned violent and hurt the labor movement.
Homestead Strike – A violent strike at Carnegie’s steel plant that showed tensions between workers and bosses.
Homestead Act – A law that gave free land to settlers willing to farm it for five years.
Industrial Workers of the World – A radical labor union that wanted to unite all workers, skilled and unskilled.
Interstate Commerce Act – A law that tried to control unfair railroad practices.
J.P. Morgan – A powerful banker who helped big businesses grow and saved the U.S. economy more than once.
Jane Addams – A reformer who helped immigrants and the poor by starting settlement houses like Hull House.
John D. Rockefeller – A wealthy oil businessman who used ruthless methods to build a monopoly.
Knights of Labor – A labor union that tried to include all workers and push for big changes.
Mary E. Lease – A Populist speaker who told farmers to "raise less corn and more hell."
New South – The idea of a South with more industry and less dependence on slavery.
People’s (Populist) Party – A political party that wanted to help farmers and workers against big business.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) – A court case that said segregation was okay if things were “separate but equal.”
Pullman Strike – A big railroad strike that stopped trains and was ended by the government.
Samuel Gompers – A labor leader who founded the American Federation of Labor.
Sand Creek Massacre – A surprise attack where U.S. soldiers killed many peaceful Native Americans.
Sherman Antitrust Act – A law meant to stop big companies from becoming monopolies.
Social Darwinism – The belief that rich people were better because they were "fitter" to survive.
Social Gospel – A movement that said Christians should help the poor and fight social problems.
Tammany Hall – A powerful political group in New York City known for helping immigrants but also being corrupt.
Taylorism – A system to make workers more efficient by breaking jobs into simple tasks.
Tenements – Overcrowded and dirty apartment buildings where poor people lived in cities.
The Birth of a Nation – A movie that was praised for its film work but also criticized for being racist.
Vertical v. Horizontal Integration – Vertical means controlling every step of making a product; horizontal means buying out all the competition.
William Jennings Bryan – A famous speaker and Populist who ran for president and supported farmers.
Wounded Knee – The site of a massacre where U.S. soldiers killed many Native Americans in 1890.
Alfred Mahan – A naval officer who believed a strong navy was key to world power.
Booker T. Washington – A Black leader who promoted vocational education and economic self-improvement over immediate civil rights.
Bracero Program – A deal that brought Mexican workers to the U.S. to help with farm labor during World War II.
Carrie Chapman Catt – A women’s suffrage leader who pushed for the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote.
Clayton Antitrust Act – A law that strengthened antitrust rules to break up monopolies and protect workers' rights.
Committee on Public Information (CPI) – A government agency that spread pro-war propaganda during World War I.
Congress on Racial Equality (CORE) – A civil rights group that fought against segregation using nonviolent protests.
D-Day – The massive Allied invasion of Nazi-occupied France on June 6, 1944, that helped turn the tide in World War II.
Dollar Diplomacy – President Taft’s policy of using American money to influence Latin America instead of military force.
Dust Bowl – A period of severe dust storms in the 1930s that ruined farmland and forced many farmers to move.
Eleanor Roosevelt – The First Lady who became a powerful advocate for civil rights, women’s rights, and the poor.
Espionage Act (1917) – A law that punished people for spying or interfering with the U.S. war effort in World War I.
Eugene Debs – A socialist leader who ran for president five times and was jailed for speaking out against World War I.
Executive Order 9066 – FDR’s order that forced Japanese Americans into internment camps during World War II.
Federal Reserve Act – A law that created the Federal Reserve to regulate banks and control the money supply.
Franklin D. Roosevelt – The U.S. president who led the country through the Great Depression and most of World War II.
Fourteen Points – Woodrow Wilson’s plan for world peace after World War I, including the idea of a League of Nations.
Good Neighbor Policy – FDR’s promise to improve relations with Latin America by avoiding military intervention.
The Grapes of Wrath – A novel by John Steinbeck about a poor family fleeing the Dust Bowl for California.
Great Migration – The movement of millions of African Americans from the South to Northern cities for jobs and less racism.
Great White Fleet – A group of U.S. battleships that sailed around the world to show off America’s military strength.
Harlem Renaissance – A cultural movement in the 1920s celebrating Black art, music, and literature, centered in Harlem.
The Jungle – A book by Upton Sinclair that exposed the gross conditions in the meatpacking industry, leading to food safety laws.
Kellogg-Briand Pact – An agreement where countries promised not to use war to solve problems (spoiler: it didn’t work).
Korematsu v. U.S. (1944) – A Supreme Court case that ruled Japanese internment camps were legal during World War II (later criticized).
League of Nations – An international group formed after World War I to promote peace, but the U.S. never joined.
Lend-Lease Act – A law that let the U.S. send weapons and supplies to Allies in World War II without officially joining the war.
Marcus Garvey – A Black nationalist leader who promoted pride, economic independence, and a return to Africa.
Margaret Sanger – An activist who fought for birth control access and founded what became Planned Parenthood.
Manhattan Project – The secret U.S. project to develop the atomic bomb during World War II.
Muckrakers – Journalists who exposed corruption, bad working conditions, and social problems in the early 1900s.
Neutrality Acts – Laws in the 1930s designed to keep the U.S. out of foreign wars.
New Deal – FDR’s programs to help Americans during the Great Depression by creating jobs and reforming the economy.
Nineteenth Amendment – The amendment that gave women the right to vote in 1920.
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) – A Supreme Court case that allowed "separate but equal" segregation (later overturned by Brown v. Board).
Prohibition – The nationwide ban on alcohol from 1920 to 1933, which led to bootlegging and organized crime.
Red Scare – A period of fear that communists were trying to overthrow the U.S. government, especially after World War I.
Roosevelt Corollary – Teddy Roosevelt’s addition to the Monroe Doctrine, saying the U.S. could intervene in Latin America to keep order.
“Rosie the Riveter” – A symbol of women working in factories during World War II to support the war effort.
Schenck v. U.S. (1918) – A Supreme Court case that ruled free speech could be limited if it created a "clear and present danger."
Sedition Act (1918) – A law that made it illegal to speak against the U.S. government during World War I.
Social Security – A New Deal program that provides retirement money, disability benefits, and support for the unemployed.
Square Deal – Teddy Roosevelt’s plan to give everyone a fair chance by busting trusts, protecting consumers, and conserving nature.
Tennessee Valley Authority – A New Deal program that built dams to provide electricity and jobs in the South.
Theodore Roosevelt – A progressive president known for trust-busting, conservation, and his "Big Stick" foreign policy.
United Nations – An international organization created after World War II to promote peace and prevent future wars.
W.E.B. DuBois – A Black leader who pushed for immediate civil rights and helped found the NAACP.
War Production Board – A government agency that oversaw factory production during World War II to make weapons and supplies.
Woodrow Wilson – The president during World War I who pushed for the League of Nations and progressive reforms.
Works Progress Administration – A New Deal program that created millions of jobs building roads, schools, and public buildings.
Yellow Journalism – Exaggerated, sensational news reporting to stir up emotions and sell newspapers, especially before the Spanish-American War.
American Indian Movement (AIM) – A group that fought for Native American rights and protested unfair treatment.
Arab Oil Embargo – When Arab countries stopped selling oil to the U.S. in 1973, causing an energy crisis.
Bay of Pigs – A failed U.S. invasion of Cuba to overthrow Fidel Castro.
Berlin Airlift – When the U.S. flew supplies into West Berlin after the Soviets blocked the city.
Black Panthers – A group that fought for Black power and defended Black communities from police violence.
Brown v. Board of Education (1954) – A court case that ended school segregation, saying “separate is not equal.”
Burger Court – The Supreme Court under Chief Justice Burger, which made important but more conservative rulings.
Civil Rights Act of 1964 – A law that banned segregation and discrimination based on race or gender.
Cuban Missile Crisis – A tense standoff between the U.S. and Soviet Union over missiles in Cuba.
Dien Bien Phu – A battle where the Vietnamese defeated the French, leading to U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
Dwight D. Eisenhower – U.S. president who ended the Korean War and built the interstate highway system.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – A government group created to protect the environment.
Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) – A proposed change to the Constitution to guarantee equal rights for women, but it was never passed.
Federal Highway Act of 1956 – A law that built highways across the U.S. to improve transportation and defense.
The Feminine Mystique – A book by Betty Friedan that encouraged women to seek more than housework and motherhood.
Freedom Summer – A campaign to register Black voters in the South in 1964.
George Kennan – A U.S. diplomat who came up with the idea of “containment” to stop the spread of communism.
GI Bill – A law that helped World War II veterans pay for college and buy homes.
Great Society – Lyndon B. Johnson’s programs to fight poverty and racism.
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution – A law that gave the president power to send troops to Vietnam without declaring war.
Henry Kissinger – Nixon’s advisor who helped with foreign policy like ending the Vietnam War and improving U.S.-China relations.
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) – A group that investigated suspected communists in the U.S.
Immigration Act of 1965 – A law that ended old immigration quotas and opened the door to more people from Asia and Latin America.
Iran Hostage Crisis – When Iranian students took over the U.S. Embassy and held Americans hostage for over a year.
Jimmy Carter – U.S. president known for promoting human rights but hurt by the Iran Hostage Crisis and economic troubles.
John F. Kennedy – U.S. president who supported civil rights, space race, and was assassinated in 1963.
John Foster Dulles – Eisenhower’s Secretary of State who pushed for strong action against communism.
Joseph McCarthy – A senator who falsely accused people of being communists, creating fear and panic.
Kent State – A protest against the Vietnam War where the National Guard shot and killed four students.
Little Rock Nine – A group of Black students who integrated an all-white school in Arkansas with military protection.
Lyndon B. Johnson – U.S. president who passed major civil rights laws and created the Great Society programs.
Malcolm X – A civil rights leader who believed in Black pride and self-defense.
Marshall Plan – A U.S. plan to give money to help rebuild Europe after World War II.
Martin Luther King, Jr. – A peaceful civil rights leader who gave the “I Have a Dream” speech.
National Organization for Women (NOW) – A group that fought for women’s equality and rights.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) – A military alliance between the U.S. and European countries to stop Soviet aggression.
NSC-68 – A government report that said the U.S. should spend more money to stop the spread of communism.
The Other America – A book that showed how many people in the U.S. were still living in poverty.
Pentagon Papers – Secret papers that showed the government had lied about the Vietnam War.
Richard Nixon – U.S. president who opened relations with China but resigned because of the Watergate scandal.
Roe v. Wade (1973) – A court case that made abortion legal across the U.S.
Silent Spring – A book by Rachel Carson that warned about the dangers of pesticides and pollution.
Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) – A civil rights group led by Martin Luther King Jr. that used nonviolence.
Sputnik – The first satellite in space, launched by the Soviet Union, which scared Americans during the Cold War.
Stonewall Riot – A 1969 protest that started the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement.
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) – A student group that led sit-ins and other peaceful protests for civil rights.
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) – A group of college students who protested war, racism, and injustice.
Tet Offensive – A surprise attack by North Vietnam that showed the U.S. wasn’t winning the Vietnam War.
Truman Doctrine – A policy to give aid to countries fighting communism.
U-2 Crisis – When the Soviets shot down a U.S. spy plane, increasing Cold War tensions.
United Farm Workers – A group started by Cesar Chavez to help farm workers get better pay and conditions.
Voting Rights Act of 1965 – A law that protected the right to vote and banned unfair rules like literacy tests.
Warren Court – The Supreme Court under Earl Warren that expanded civil rights and liberties.
Watergate – A political scandal where Nixon’s team spied on rivals, leading to his resignation.