Unit 9

Andrew Carnigee Justification/ 1889 Essay

"the rich man was nearly a trustee for his poorer brethren," → rich have to be responsible when they are rich, concentration of wealth is necessary if humanity wants to progress, but need to produce beneficial results for the public a. Andrew Carnigee gave 350 $ million dollars when he dies to libraries b. Vanderbilt gave 1 million out of his 100 million to Vanderbilt c. Standford gives money to Stanford university

The Dawes Severalty Act 1887

(forced assimilation) - the white men wanted to force the Indians to behave like white people. When Indians were forced to reservations, they were given collectively to the tribes. But in 1887, the national government dissolves the tribes as legal entities and gives 160 acre plots of land to Indian families. The Indians were told that if they farmed and behaved themselves for 25 years, the US government would become US citizens. But as the land is split up, it turns out there was more land than there was Indians → white man takes back parts of each of these reservation lands. Collectively, about 50% of the assigned reservation lands was taken back by the white man.

Benjamin Harrison

(republican) becomes president in 1889 republicans are the party of big business

Dry Farming

, people who moved west of the 100th meridian could produce a living but it was horrible for the soil → leads to the dust bowl

The Soux Massecre 1866

- 80 soldiers are massacred by the Soux.

Four Major Strikes in the 19th Century

- in all of them, the gornment sides with the ownders i. railroads - distrubances broke out and about 2.3 of the railroad milage of the country was shut down. Hayes ultimately sent out federal troops to restore order and crush the strike. Hayes argues that it was interfering with the mails and the shipping of troops ii. Silver Mineers Strike in Quaterline ID - government crushed iii. Homestad Steel Plant (Carnigee owned) - company owned town and the compaby had crushed waged → workers went out on strike, hire scabs. Hire detectives to protect the strike breakers → kill detectives → turn to state government for help. iv. The Pullman Palace Car strike

Literacy

1870 20% of the American population was illiterate →1900 11%

Battle of Little Big Horn/ Custer's Last Stand 1876

1876 people find gold on Soux land. Native Americans kill general Custur at this battle, but eventually the white man defeats them

2nd Great Wave of immigration 1880s- early 1900s

2/3 of all immigrants come in greater numbers from southern and eastern Europe (Italian, Greek, Pols, Slovaks, Croacs) people like these had grown up in lands of desperatism, not been able to get an education (→illiterate) did not come from areas of representative government → they settle in parts of cities like little Italy, Little Poland, ect. about 20 million came

1886 Wabash Case

2nd law attempted to outlaw longhaul and shorthaul discrimination. Supreme court said that it could not regulate these prices because they were interstate (all goes back to Gibbens v. Ogtan - steam boat case that said that NY couldn't regulate steam boat that went from NY to NJ) → principle still holds that if its private company in the state, the state can regulate it, but if it's interstate the national government had to regulate it

JP Morgan Interlocking Directories/ Morganizations

As the banks went bankrupt and reorganization happened (nicknames Morganization) and he put men that were loyal to him on the boards of these railroads → companies aren't really competing because there are Morgan men on the boards → appearance of compititions but reality of fixing prices

Pittsburg Plus System

Birmingham Alabama and Steel. Alabama could've compete witht the steel industry in Pittsburg (where Carnegie places his mill). The steel guys in Pittsburg worked together on the railroads to discriminate price rates against Birmingham. They demanded that if they wanted their business, they had to take price actions against Birmingham → The Pittsburg Plus System. → wherever Birmingham steel was shipped, the price was high because they added an additional price → the Pittsburg steel guys extorted the railroads → Birmingham's development is stunted ex. of how the North hindered the south's ability to advance

Large Cities

By 1890, NY, Chicago, and Philadelphia all had 1 million people in them

Denis Kearany/ Kearenites

Chinese immigrants came to CA to look for gold during the gold rush → by 1880, CA made up 9% of CA's population end up working on the transcontinental railroad out west. they work some of the lowest paying hard working jobs : cooks, domestic men, servants → live lonely unhappy lives. they were fiercely resented on the west coast as a source of competition by a group of Irish. gangs of Kearanites terrorized Chinese: tear of pigtails, some were murdered

Corruption

Credit Moblier Securities Fraug Watering Stock Buying and selling of politicians combinations and price fixings discriminate based on location rebates didn't work in the interest of the public and some people argue that railroads were different because than a regular business and shouldn't be run like one because the railroads were a public thing

Urban Revivalists

Dwight Liemen Moddy was like the circuit riders whose circuit as the urban circuit. He proclaimed a gospel of kindness and forgiveness → incorporate religious thought with modern urban life

1886 the American Federation of Labor (AFL) Samuel Gompers

He organized skilled workers because he knew skilled workers could get ahead if they were unionized. He wanted better wages, hours, working conditions, and the closed shop (idea that only union labor could be hired) → tried to develop a sense of common purpose among the workers and tried to convince owners to pay them more

Why people move to cities

Indoor plumbing, telephones, engineering marvels (sky scraper, bridges), department stores

1890 The National American Women Sufferage Association (NAWSA)/ Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Catie Stanton

It was an organization pushing hard for women's rights, specifically the right to vote

Election of 1880

James Garfield becomes president in 1881, Chester Arthor was vice president Garfield - in those days, the desire for spoils really took off after the civil war and there were a lot of republicans that wanted jobs i. Charles Guido - disappointed office seeker didn't get a job→ shoots Garfield a. Guito's lawyers tried to argue that he wasn't guilty because of insanity → development of the insanity defense (but it didn't work)

Women Practitioners of social Work

Jane Addams, Lilian Wald, Florence Kelley. settlement houses became centers for women to become social activist. They did not only help immigrants, but got women active in other social reform areas. Cities opened new possibilities for women in terms of work - the type writer → secretary, department store → clerks, book keepers, seamstresses i. more than 1 million women joined the workforce, a vast majority of women were single

Gospel of Wealth

Jon D. Rockefeler said that "material success was a sign of God's favor" "the good Lord gave me mine money" "Godliness is in lead with riches"

President Hayes

Known as "his forgilency" because of conditions of his presidency (compromise of 1877) Known presidency because of labor disputes → 1877 doesn't only mark the end of reconstruction, but a year of massive railroad strikes

The Guilded Age

Mark Twaine coined this term, guild = golden physad

1879 Carlyle Indian School

More assimilation where Native American children were forced to give up their culture.

Sod busters

Name for Plains farmers, who built their homes from sod.

Manufacturing of Cotton Textiles

Northerners discovered that if they invested in/ owned textile mills in the south, southerners would work for half the price

Thomas Reed

Republican Speaker of the House in 1888, he gained a reputation for an iron grip over Congress and kept Democrats in line.

There were 150 different religious dominations by 1890

Salvation Army 1879 - they implemented practical measures to carry out good works Christian Science/ The Church of Christ Scientist MA 1879, founded by Marry Baker Eddy - they believed that the true practice of Christianity would heal sickness → cure through praye People living in the cities could take part of the YMCA/ YWCA - they combined religious instruction with physical education.

Jane Adams Wholehouse Chicago 1889

Settlement house. She sought that lessons were taught in English, counselors to teach them on how to cope with city life, child care, cultural activities

Edward Belamy "Looking backward, 2000-1887

Takes not on how America is becoming more consolidated and predicted there would be one big trust company

Credit Moblier

The Union Pacific Railroad had formed the Credit Mobilier construction company and then hired themselves at inflated prices to build the railroad line. The company then bought several prominent Republican congressmen with shares of its valuable stock. Only 2 of the corrupt congressman had formal censure.

The Pullman Palace Car Strike

The owners of the company (during the depression) cut wages by 1/3 by holding the rents of their apartments of the same level. → go on strike Eugene Lee Debbs leads it. The federal government was outrages. Olney (general) helps. The federal government asked for an injunction ending the strike → court issued an injunction basing the decision that the railway union violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.

Securities Fraud

The railroad companies sold stock, but the railroad guys did stock watering - artificial inflate about what their assets were worth a. Jay Gould did this - ruthless railroad competitor, had formerly tried to get a corner of the gold market, "the perfect eel"

1886 Haymarket's Square Incident

There was a Haymarket's square riot lead by the Knight's of labor and some workers were kiled --> there was a meeting to discuss this in Chicago. in the middle of the meeting an anarchist hurled a bomb (someone who wants to overthrow the government). Over 20 causalities. 7 of the people who were killed were policemen → hysteria went across Chicago because someone killed policemen. → scorned by the public and began to collapse 2. John Alkgeld - he became governor and examined the Haymarket's Square record, he discovered that the anarchist convicted had nothing to do with the incident → pardons the 3 left. He risked political suicide, and wasn't re-elected.

Trinity Episcopal Church in NYC

This New York church actually owned some of the city's worst slum property

Boss Tweed

William Tweed, head of Tammany Hall, NYC's powerful democratic political machine in 1868. Between 1868 and 1869 he led the Tweed Reign, a group of corrupt politicians in defrauding the city. Example: Responsible for the construction of the NY court house; actual construction cost $3million. Project cost tax payers $13million.

Charolette Perkins Guilmen - "Women and Economics"

a feminsit work because of her ideas. In her book, she called on women to abandon their dependent status and contribute the larger life of the community though productive involvement in the economy.

The Whiskey Ring

a group of governement insiders who stole million of $$ from the national treasurey from the excise tax on whiskey. Grant's own private secretary was involved

Purposed Literacy Tests

a number of nativist pushed for literacy test because it would favort he old immigrants from the new immigrants (because people from western Europe were mostly literate. 3 presidents vetoed.

Marill Act of 1862

act passed by congress during the civil war. It provided public lands from the national governments which would be given to the states which would support public education → the land grant colleges which are mostly state universities

Henry Lloyd "Wealth Against Common Wealth."

attacks standard oil company and other big tycoons. He was against laissez fair policies and believed in creating legislation to hep the poor.

General Law Against Immigrants

banned undesirables. It barred "puopers, criminals, and convicts" from entering the US.

Ida B. Wells

black feminist who ear an anti-lynching campaign

Frank Norris the Octopus

book about the strangle hold that the railroad had on CA farmers → big business hurting the little guy

Victoria Woodhaul and Tennesee Clafflin

both authors Vicotira Woodhaul was a feminist who believed in free love. First woman to run for president in 1872 under Equal Rights Party Tennesee Claflin Accused Beacher (most famous minister) of being an autdulturer

Buying and selling of politicians

bribe politicians so that they didn't pass laws, judges were bribed to look the other way

Charles Darwin

cause a split in religion fundementalist - conservative group stood firmly behind the literal words of the Bible, directly combats evolution modernist - try to reconcile Darwin's theory with gospel

1878 Bland Allison Act

compromise between the debtors and the creditors. It provided that the government would mint more silver and provided a range between a little more and a lot more silver, and the president would determine which it would be.

The Pendleton Act of 1883

created the Civil Service Commission, which filled some government jobs by examination. Marked the end of the spoils system. but not politicians are going to become more interconnected with business

Mun vs. Illinois 1877

dealt with law passed in IL based on grain elevators (where you store grain) (The Warehouse Act)→ farmers could store grain, but the grain elevator guys charge ridiculous amounts of money because they had a monopoly on the grain elevators → IL tried to regulate the grain elevators saying that they could only charge a certain maximal rate. → Supreme court says "any business that served a public interest was subject to state control," includes railroads and grain houses → upholds the power of states to regulate private property when it is used in the public interest

President Grant

elected in 1868 (1869 1872) Grant was a great general, but an inept politician Inconsistent policy on southern reconstruction - Grant at certain times did try to help the freedmen i. 1870 - 1871 congress passes the three force acts Grant supported them tried to help the freedment ii. the Civil Rights Act of 1875 - he signs it iii. He refuses to send troops to Mississippi when they weren't complying to laws :(

Interstate commerce act 1887 (ICA)

established the interstate commerce commission (ICC). National government had the right to regulate commerce. Said that railroads had to ultimately publish their rates, tried to end discrimination, ect. → but not very enforceable because there are not enough "teeth" on the enforcement provisions. Even though it wasn't very effective, it was important. → it directly challenged the philosophy of laissez fair

Mechanization of agriculture

farmers end up as business people who are tied to bankers and manufacturers combine - with this invention, farmers now had equipment that allowed less people to farm and people to grow more food

1890 Census/ Fredrick Jackson Turner

frontier line was no longer discernable → the fact that the frontier was closed inspired a historian to write an essay "up to our own day AM history has been a history of colonization of the great west" → American history is constantly about moving west (even in Jamestown, afterwards someone moved west). What made Americans Americans was the constant moving west and self reliance. The frontier was more than a place, it was a state of mind and a symbol of opportunity.

Statue of Liberty 1886

gift from a people from France. Words were inscribed (words from Emma Lazereth) "give me your tired you poor your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" → irony because the American government started to bar undesirables and the exclusionary laws grew out of prejudice from the nativist.

1870 State Requirements of Grade School Education

good in crusade against child labor more and more tax supported schools

Railroad Effect Native Americans

i. Beginning of a process that Native Americans die because of diseases ii. Beginning of environmental cycle that began to set Native Americans against each other a. shrinking numbers of buffalo - provided food, clothing, harnesses, tenting materials, fuel, and the native Americans were spiritually attached to the buffalo. In 1865, there were 15 million buffalo. But in 1885, there were less than 1,000. b. Buffalo Bill Cody - hired by railroad companies to kill buffalo for the workers → kill 4,000 buffalo in 18 months c. Whites shoot for game - greed and waste that accompanied the conquest of the continent

Great Railroad Strikes in 1877

i. Presidents of the nation's four largest railroads decided to cut employee's wages by 10% → workers go out on strike ii. Strikes fail - there ended up being massive government intervention iii. The federal courts, armies, state officials, and local police worked on the side of the railroad companies to help the railroads run and the fate of the workers was irrelevant to the big guys in the society iv. Lasted several weeks, about 100 people were killed v. The labor movement for the railroad workers had a lot of weakness vi. racial division between workers (Irish vs. Chinese) vii. President Hayes called out federal troops to help the owners → over years, we will see government aiding the owners at the expense of the workers

Education for Blacks

i. literacy - although there were some gains made during reconstruction , the pace was slow, by 1900 44% of African Americans were still illiterate. ii. Booker T Washington established Tuskegee institute which tried to teach useful trades to young black iii. W.E.B. DeBouise - demanded that the talented tempt of the black commnuoty should be given full access to the main stream of American life. Best way to defeat prejudice was for the college educated balcks to lead movements. He becomes the key figure of the NAACP → Confrontation

Three literally movements

i. realism - seeks to portray society as it actually is ii. naturalism - took fascination with modern life one step further by exploring the determitive experience of heredity and social environment shaping human character iii. regionalism - aspired to capture the peculiarity before national standardization bleached its distinction away

Important Inventions

i. refrigerator car ii. cash register iii. type writer • New Development in steel • Alexander Grahm Bell - phone • Thomas Edison - light bulb 1879, phonograph (record), moving picture, Dictaphone (tape recorder) ect • Pullaman palace car - georgeous traveling hotel → stay in a car with a bed and stuff

Things used Against workers

i. scabs ii. Ask court to issue injunctions - a court order that would order the strikers to cease striking and could request troops to break up the strikes iii. The lockout - owners realize that workers need to save money before they go on strike → pre-emptive strike against the workers (don't pay them) iv. The Yellow Dog Contract - as a condition of employment, promise not to join the union v. The Black List - bad reputations given to workers by owners

Social Gospel

idea that the churches should take on the social issues of the day. The new wave of immigration reawaken the nation's conscience Walter Rouchaboosh, Washington Gladen - ministers who had the same idea to convince others to follow along with the social gospel

Statistics

in 1900 it was estimated that about 10% of the American people owned and controlled 90% of the nation's wealth

The City Beautiful Movement

in the late 1800s, this movements was created by a group of people interested in planting cities and wanted America's urban spaces to look beautiful → copied European styles

1869 The Knight's of Labor

key leader was Hearne Powderly. Mother Jones was involved. It sought to include all workers in one big union (skilled, unskilled, women, blacks, ect). It pushed for things like better wages, better working hours, better positions. However, by the 1880s, its big push was the 8 hour day. Most historians believe that the Knight's of Labors was doomed because of its inclusion of unskilled and skilled workers (unskilled workers are easily replaced by scabs, but skilled workers have a better bargaining position → have different positions on how to get ahead)

US vs. EC Knight Company (1895)

law was bought against the sugar trust because it was retraining trade in the sugar area, but the supreme court did not restrain trade or the trust even though this company controlled about 98% of all sugar refining in the US. → seemed unlikely that any other trust would violate the Sherman Act

America Letters

letters that friends and family wrote back to the old country saying how great America was

Social Darwinist

millionaires were the products of natural selection (Wiliam Sumner)

The Gibson Girl

modern single woman out there in the work force. It was a drawing

Panic of 1873

more silver and gold becomes stagnant (won't help but this is what they want). There was a contraction of the money supply which was leading to deflation → the amount of money per capita in circulation decreased between 1870s and 1880s → less and less physical money in the system.

Horatio Aldger

new Englander who wrote and sold innumerable books, they emphasized that viture, honesty, and hard work would be rewarded by wealth success and honor (like Andrew Carnigee)

Catie Chapman Cat

new generation in the 1900s believed in idea of giving women the right to vote through a traditional definition of the woman's role.

Henry Grady New South Movement

newspaper man in ATL, he represented a movement the New South Movement which was lead by white southerners who were trying to break away from white southern mentality. They were willing to work with northerners to industrialize. They wanted to compete with north with equal footing.

John D. Rockefeller 1869 standard oil company

oil company OH in Cleveland - he didn't drink, smoke, or swear. He was an extraordinary ruthless competitor and was determined to take out the competition. He knew that there were vey few laws prohibiting him. He operated just to the windward of the law. • He told his agents o sell all the oil that is sold in you district i. employ spies for customers of his compititors to bribe them to buy from his company ii. often bribed politicians to make sure no laws prohibited him iii. extorted secret rebates from the railroads, and he even forced the railroad line to give rebates on his competitors → extorsion • argued that he was putting together an efficient company that would make a beautiful product • son's The American Beauty Speech - "the giant American beauty rose could be produced only by sacrificing the growing buds that were growing around it" • people thought they were living in an "Darwinian world" → survival of the fittest • Rockefeller was doing horizantle integration - out of many companies, you end up with one → monopoly → by 1997 he controlled 95% of the oil companies in the country • He also convinced people to join with him because they could see he would drive them out of business "join together and let us pray (prey)" • He created a trust - synonymous with monopoly. He centralized all diverse oil operations and turns out a superior product, but in the end, he could charge what ever he wants. • Worth 800 million $ • "Wreck-a-fellow"

Oliver Kelly - The Grange

organization found by Oliver Kelly. It's pupose was to provide economical and social opportunities for isolated rural farming communities get idea to get involved in the political process → Granger candidates for political office. i. try to pass laws that outlaw unjust discrimination based on distances (not charge as much money for shorter distances) try to control the national rate (establish reasonable maximum rates)

Cattle Drives/ Stock Watering

people would drive their cattle from TX up to KN. When the cattle arrived at market, you would be paid on how much their cattle weighed → they would feed them salt → cows drink water and get bloated → "stock watering"

Chinese Exclusion Act 1882

prohibits Chinese that can come to US (until 1943 when repealed)

Sherman Anti- Trust Act 1890

proposed by William Tecumseh Sherman's (marched to the sea) brother. Law was vague restrained any combination in the straight of trade. Breaks up a company into smaller units and they can compete with each other. If business had been joined together to monopolize trade in a particular field, they would be broken up into smaller parts.

Comstock Law

pushed for sexual purity

James Duke

puts together the tobacco trust. He took the new technology, applied it to tobacco, mass producing cigarettes

The People's Party/ The Populist Party

reflective of a great deal of agrarian anger of what's going on with the system that seems to favor the big businessmen and the expense of the farmers.

Chautauqua

sent public lecturers round the country giving speeches to the American public to come to learn about history, art, science, literature, ect

Environmental Effects of the Railroad

settlers follow the railroads, they plant their crops and that does things to the land. They built their homes with lumber → forest in Minnesota and Michigan are destroyed. Buffalo are killed off and is replaced with cattle

1884 Sun Dance Law

sun dance was a sacred form of prayer, but banning this was an attempt to disintegrate cultural difference and develop assimulations

Reverend Russel Conwell of Philadelphia/ Acres of diamonds speech

there is not a poor person in the Us who was not made poor except by his own short comings → poor are poor because they are lazy → self justification of the well - to -do always involved some contempt for the poor

Bankruptcy

they end up in bankruptcy court, typically the government would then place the management of the railroads of a appointed receiver (like a lawyer) → find someone to try to buy the railroad line → bigger railroads buy up the bankrupt railroads

1869 Jim Fiske and Jay Gould Scandal

they wanted to corner the gold market and make money off of the manipulation of gold. For their scheme to work they had to convince the people of the nationl treasurey not to sell gold on the particular day that they were scheming. They paid Grant's brother in law $25,000 to convince Grant not to sell gold → president Grant didn't do anything bad but he acted stupidly and indiscetly

1878 The Greenback Labor Party

tried to unite grievences of the farmers and the grievances of the workers. Elect 14 members to congress and elect James Weaver as a presidential candidate (but only get 3% of popular vote)

the American Protection Association (APA) 1887

try to get voters to support nativist goals spread anti-cahtolic and anti-jewish propaganda

Henry George Progress and Poverty

upset about unearned increments (ike when you buy a property and sit and then sell it and get rich) he thought people should only get rich from manual labor. His book was a best seller

1868 2nd fort Laryme treaty

white men promised to surrender certain lands to the Soux of which they were fighting for. They reiterated that if they stayed on their reservations they would not be bothered

Helen Hunt Jackson

wrote two different sorts of books, both were sympathetic to the native Americans i. Century of Dishonor - trickery, ruthlessness of the white man ii. Ramona - a story that talks about the injustices that the white man carries out against the Native Americans, but the background is a love story → sold over 6,000 copies and inspired some people

Author Presidency

• Becomes president in September of 1881 • He is horrified by Garfield's death → push for Civil service

Developments with Railroad

• Helps in mining - if there is a gold/silver rush you could get there by train • Agriculture - people interested going out west could easily get transported to west • telegraph - key telegraph company was western union company. Railroads had the right of way, and the telegraphs companies saw this as an advantage and the railroad companies let them hang the wires along the railroad, provided them with free transportation to make them and to ship the telegraphs → in return the railroads received free telegraphic service (important for safety)

Why oil was important

• It was originally used for carosine → became the first major product of the infiant oil industry in the US. It was used to light lamps. Originally, lamps had been lit with whale oil important with the contraction of automobile

Election of 1884

• Republicans: James G Blane from Main - he i. Mulligan letters - Blane had entered into a corrupt deal with a Boston business man named mulligan. One of the letters had "burn this letter" at the bottom and it was published in the newspaper → reformer republicans can't support him Mugwumps - Reformer republicans vote democrat • Democrats were hungry to get back in white house (hadn't been elected in the white house since Buchanon) → Grover Cleaveland

Andrew Carnigee

• Slef made man from scotland He was able to integrate every phase of his steel making operation → vertical integration i. He was able to buy the iron ore, ship it from its own ships all to Pittsburg - mining, manufacturing, then actually sell it ii. Adds efficiency and eliminates middle men's fees → turns out a really good product at a reasonable price → good for consumers • Merciless competitor, he would break a contract if he could get away with it, he was also clever about the panic of 1873 i. he bought all of his competitors during the panic of 1873 • he eventually got tired of making steel, so he decided to start philanthropic work. He believed that it was a disgrace to die rich. JP Morgan heard this and so he put together some bankers and he decided to buy out Carnigee's steel. JP Morgan then lead bankers to buy out other steal companies, then he mushed them together → 1901 established the US Steel Cooperation. The world's first billion dollar cooperation. Carnigee gave away a lot of his money. i. he gave some money to universities → Carnigee Melon ii. gave some money to the arts → Carnigee Hall iii. research institutie → Carnigee endowment for interational peace iv. over his last years, he gave away 6 million dollars for public libraries - felt strongly about education

Transcontinental Railroad 1869

• members from congress were interested because it would help America's military needs and it was trying to increase its postal speeds → federal government was willing to donate acres of land and money • The government was able to get the railroad built by giving land (then railroads sell this land and make money off of it) and raising taxes • the government did receive benifical returns - the railroads gave preferential rates to the government for military traffic and postal service. • The transcontinental railroad was supposed to take off from NB to CA, but it would be built in two parts (east → west = union pacific railroad, west → east= central pacific railroad) • Most of the construction was done by Irish Americans - it was hard and dangerous work (be killed with explosions) • 1869 Promontory point Utah, the two railroads met → two engines coming in each direction and their two "cow catchers kiss" i. the last spike was golden and was driven by Stanford • the railroad binds the union together, helps to facilitate trade and sets the stage for trade with Asia, Americans considered this a huge important event like the signing of the Declaration of Independence, they rang the liberty bell • By 1900, there were 5 transcontinental rail roads (2 built to north, two built from the south) i. of the 4 railroads, none of them received the monetary loans, but ¾ got generous grants of land