Untitled Flashcards Set

1. Wabash, St. Louis and Pacific Railroad Company v. Illinois (1886)
A Supreme Court case that ruled states could not regulate interstate commerce; it led to federal control of railroad rates.

2. Interstate Commerce Act (1887)
A federal law that created the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to regulate railroad rates and practices to ensure fairness.

3. Vertical Integration
A business strategy where a company controls all stages of production, from raw materials to distribution (e.g., Carnegie Steel).

4. Horizontal Integration
A business strategy where a company buys out or merges with competitors to monopolize a market (e.g., Standard Oil).

5. Standard Oil Company
Founded by John D. Rockefeller, it became a powerful oil monopoly through horizontal integration and was later broken up under antitrust laws.

6. Interlocking Directorates
The practice of placing the same people on the boards of multiple competing companies to reduce competition.

7. Social Darwinist
Believers in the idea that "survival of the fittest" applied to society and justified inequality and business monopolies.

8. Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890)
A federal law that made it illegal to form monopolies or trusts that restrained trade; often used against labor unions at first.

9. National Labor Union (1866)
One of the first national labor unions in the U.S., which fought for better working conditions and an eight-hour workday.

10. Knights of Labor (1869)
A labor union open to all workers that pushed for labor reforms, including equal pay and the end of child labor.

11. Haymarket Square (1886)
A labor protest in Chicago that turned violent after a bomb was thrown; hurt the reputation of labor unions like the Knights of Labor.

12. American Federation of Labor (AFL, 1886)
A skilled workers' union founded by Samuel Gompers that focused on higher wages, shorter hours, and better working conditions.

13. Closed Shop
A workplace where only union members can be hired, supporting strong union control.

14. Cornelius Vanderbilt
A railroad and shipping magnate who helped consolidate U.S. railroads into powerful networks.

15. Alexander Graham Bell
Inventor of the telephone in 1876, which revolutionized communication.

16. Thomas Alva Edison
Inventor of the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and the electric light bulb; helped industrialize modern life.

17. Andrew Carnegie
A steel tycoon who used vertical integration to dominate the industry and later became a major philanthropist.

18. John D. Rockefeller
Founder of Standard Oil and master of horizontal integration; considered the richest man in history.

19. Samuel Gompers
Founder and longtime president of the AFL; focused on "bread and butter" unionism like wages and hours.

20. New Immigrants
Immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe who arrived in large numbers between 1880 and 1920, often poor and unskilled.

21. Settlement Houses
Community centers in urban areas that helped immigrants and the poor with education, child care, and job training (e.g., Hull House).

22. Tuskegee Institute
A school founded by Booker T. Washington to provide vocational education to African Americans.

23. Yellow Journalism
Sensational and often exaggerated news reporting used to attract readers, associated with Hearst and Pulitzer.

24. National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA)
An organization that fought for women’s voting rights; helped lead to the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920.

25. Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU)
A group that pushed for prohibition and other social reforms, linking women's roles to moral improvement in society.

26. Jane Addams
Founder of Hull House and a leading figure in the settlement house movement and progressive social reform.

27. Booker T. Washington
African American leader who promoted vocational education and economic self-reliance over immediate civil rights.

28. W.E.B. Du Bois
African American scholar and civil rights activist who co-founded the NAACP and pushed for full civil rights and higher education.

29. William Randolph Hearst
Powerful newspaper publisher who used yellow journalism to influence public opinion and politics.