Chapter 6 Test Review- American History

____ was the philosophy that Americans with a great deal of money should use it for social progress.

The Gospel of Wealth

What was the name of the first skyscraper in Chicago?

The Home Insurance Building

Describe Andrew Carnegies' "The Gospel of Wealth"

The Rich would live modest lives and help the community whenever they could

Why were nativists so concerned about Catholic immigrants?

The catholic church would gain too much power

Many labor unions opposed immigration, arguing what about most immigrants?

They would work for low wages

Why was The Workingman's Party of California formed?

To fight Chinese immigration

Why was it important for political machines help city dwellers in late 1800's?

To gain votes and stay in power

Why were Subway systems first developed?

To relieve congestion on city streets

By the 1890s, immigrants made up a significant percentage of some of the country's largest?

cities

Passed in several western states, Granger laws did what in regards to business with the Railways?

limited the rates that railroads could charge

America's industrialization made some people wealthy and grew which social class?

middle class

Most people who lived in "streetcar suburbs" in the early 1900's belonged to the?

middle class

What philosophy stated that some people failed in life because of circumstances beyond their control?

naturalism

The Supreme Court case Wabash v. Illinois established what principle?

only the federal government can regulate interstate commerce

Individualism was the belief that?

people can rise as far as their talents will take them

With the rise of professional spectator sports, what can you conclude about life in the late 1800s?

people had more leisure time available to them

In response to urban congestion, Boston and New York built the first?

subway systems

What is a graft?

the act of getting money through dishonest or questionable means

Political machines provided new city dwellers with necessities such as jobs, housing, and police protection in exchange for what?

votes

Where did many Chinese immigrants settle?

western cities

The world's first skyscraper, built in 1885, Chicago's Home Insurance Building, was how many stories tall?

10 stories tall

What was the typical entry point into the United States for Asian immigrants?

Angel Island

What law prevented Chinese immigrants already in the United States from becoming citizens?

Chinese Exclusion Act

What were reasons for the failure of the Farmers' Alliance cooperatives?

Corruption within them eventually alienated many farmers

SHORT ANSWER Describe four problems people faced living in the cities in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Crime- pickpockets, con men, thieves; Violence- Murder, Arson; Disease- from unsanitary conditions and crowded apartments, pollution from factories, Overcrowding- Streets were unsafe for pedestrians Unsafe housing-cramped, dark, dirty, high risk of fires; Corruption- From grafting political machines.

The processing center for the vast majority of immigrants arriving on the East Coast was at?

Ellis Island

Describe how farmers responded to their situation, both politically and economically, in the late 1800s

Famers tried to organize themselves throughout the country in order to combat the falling prices and disappearing profits. Things such as "The Grange" and "The Famer's Alliance" were formed to gain political support to force Railroads to lower shipping costs for farmers as well as other issues. Finally, the Populist Party was born out of Kansas in order to elect officials with the interests of Farmers into congress.

SHORT ANSWER Explain the meaning of "gilded" and why the period between about 1870 and 1900 was called the "Gilded Age"

Gilded means to have a worthless metal covered in gold to give it an appearance of value. Mark Twain referred to the 1880s-1910s as "The Gilded Age" in America. He used this term to describe how America looked valuable and great from the outside, but if you got past the outward appearance, you could see there were many problems inside America caused by the industrialization and urbanization of the country.

New technology helped farmers produce more crops, which tended to do what to prices?

It lowered prices

SHORT ANSWER Describe four reasons why Europeans immigrated to the United States in the late 1800s

Jobs Available Escape the social class system of Europe Escape Poverty and Famine Avoid Military Service Religious Persecution Moving to America was Easy To live in a Democratic society

Nativism in the late 1800s was focused on Asians, Jews, and?

eastern Europeans

By the 1890s, more than half of all immigrants coming to the United States were from where?

eastern and southern Europeans

What was the most common form of mass transit in the late 1800s?

horsecar

Under the Pendleton Act, some government jobs would be filled by?

job applicants who performed well on competitive written examinations