17B Exam 1
Corporate Control of the West
*1852, gold rush ends, rest of gold buried, requiring machinery and additional resources, for large scale operations. *Large corporations combined resources to create large mining operations, employing dynamite, flumes, etc. -Large amount of capital was needed by mining corporations for workers, managers, equipment, processing, etc. *Those who have money stood to make more money compared to those without money who were at a disadvantage.
Theodore Roosevelt
*1858-1919. 26th President. Increased size of Navy, "Great White Fleet". Added Roosevelt Corollary to Monroe Doctrine. "Big Stick" policy. Received Nobel Peace Prize for mediation of end of Russo-Japanese war. Later arbitrated split of Morocco between Germany and France. *Served as Asst Sec of the Navy. -Resigned to form the Rough-riders. -Won a few battles in Spanish-Cuban War, emerged as a war hero. *Became gov of NY. *Runs as VP with McKinley. *Became POTUS after McKinley assassination. *Big Stick foreign policy. *Pumped a lot of money into Navy, disperses Navy into the world, increase militarism in America. *Rekindled idea for Panama Canal because it would be great for the economy and provide a military advantage to the U.S. Navy. -Colombia did not want to negotiate with TR for canal building rights, TR tells Panama to declare independence from Colombia and the U.S. will become their ally, Colombia relents, allowing U.S. to build canal.
land speculator
*A person who buys land in the hope that it will increase in value and bring in a profit when RR is completed or town is built. *Lots of opportunity in the West for people with money.
Schism of 1896
*Back Democrats or hold tight? -William Jennings Bryan (Democrat) -Caused a divide in the People's Party. -Opposed Gold Standard. -William McKinley (Republican) -Industry likes. -Monopolies likes. -For Gold Standard.
Battle of Little Big Horn, 1876
*Battle at which *Colonel George Custer*'s forces clashed with nearly 4000 well armed Sioux warriors led by *Crazy Horse* and *Sitting Bull*; Custer and more than 250 of his men were killed; U.S. reinforcements chased Sitting Bull to Canada where he received political asylum until hunger forced him to return. *Major success for indians. *Massacre caused massive backlash, public opinion, back East, changed to, all indians are savage, revenge!
Colonel Richard Pratt
*Bring Native Americans to African American school to learn, to read and write and a willingness to embrace Christianity. *Wanted to turn an abandoned military base in Carlisle into an indian school to transform indians into white guys. *Kill the indian, save the man. *Tom Torlino, a Navajo indian, transformed from indian into a civilized white man. *Cultural genocide.
Rise of Big Business
*Business ethics -Businesses desire growth, cut corner to make a profit -Enron, AIG, BofA, Goldman Sachs, Martha Stewart. *Take capitalism out of health care, military, education. *Disneyland, Eisner, former CEO, grew Disney Corporation, he made 570 million in one year, in compensation, his highest year. *History is a collection of mens decisions over time. *50% of nation's wealth held by top 1%, turn of 19th Century. *Gap between rich and poor widened with government deregulation of businesses.
Farmers and the Road to the Peoples Party
*Cooperative and the Farmers Alliances *Establishment of a third party and the Courting a Broad Alliance. *Western and Southern (cotton producers went on strike against juke bag manufacturers and won) Farm Alliances.
Senator Henry Dawes
*Dawes Severalty Act: sponsored by senate Henry Dawes, provided land grants for indians (160 acres/320 acres). It forced indians to become land owners and farmers in turn severing their tie to tribe. It also entitled them U.S. Citizenship including the benefits of protection and taxes etc *Reservation land not allotted to the Indians under the Dawes Act was to be sold to railroads and white settlers, with the proceeds used by the federal government to educate and "civilize" the native peoples *The forced-assimilation doctrine of the Dawes Act remained the cornerstone of the government's official Indian policy for nearly half a century, until the Indian Reorganization Act (the "Indian New Deal") of 1934 partially reversed the individualistic approach and belatedly tried to restore the tribal basis of Indian life. *Negative Impacts -Native Americans did not know how to farms. -Bureau of Indian Affairs was a corrupt organization, land sale proceeds went into officials pockets and not into indian reservation land improvement. -Most indians on res were living in despondent poverty due to corruption. -Alcoholism became a rampant problem among indians.
Homestead Act of 1862
*Encouraged westward settlement by allowing heads of families to buy 160 acres of land for a small fee ($10-30); settlers were required to develop and remain on the land for five years. Over 400,000 families got land through this law. *Not for the poor, it was for the middle class. You needed a lot of money to start a farm, for supplies, provisions, plows, seed, and tools. *Those without capital, savings, low wages would not support moving West.
John D. Rockefeller
*Established the Standard Oil Company, the greatest, wisest, and meanest monopoly known in history. *Borrowed lots of money from banks to start business. *Forced other kerosene companies out of business by undercutting them with low prices. *Hoarded money. *Public Enemy #1. *Employed horizontal integration, owning all parts of kerosene production.
The Peoples Party and the Broad Alliance
*Farmers (Base) -Bi-racial coalition in South. *Not about race but about economic prosperity. *Race issues are downplayed, emphasis on economy. *Distrust among racial lines would cause effort to fail. *Supporters of George's Single Tax. *Members of Bellamy Clubs. *Prohibitionists/Christian Societies (19th Amendment, Women become Politicial). *Industrial Workers (Producer Ethic)(Heroes are producers (farmers) who make things that we need to survive. Villains are capitalists, factory owners, users of products.
Federal Land Grants to Railroads
*Federal gov't provided railroad companies with huge subsidies of loans and land grants recognizing that western railroads would lead the way to settlement. The gov't expected that the railroad would make every effort to sell the land to new settlers to finance construction. The gov't hoped that the railroad would benefit gov't land value and preferred rates for carrying the mail and transporting troops. These grants promoted hasty and poor construction which led to widespread corruption in the gov't. As a result, railroads controlled more than half of the land in some western states. The first continental railroad was a result of a federal grant from Omaha to Sacramento. *For every mile of track, 50 miles on either side of track, RR gets to own land and profit, each RR would have a monopoly on their route. *RR land becomes valuable because of existence of RR. *All RR land owned = size of TX.
Trouble on the Farm
*Hardships -1880, 25 percent of all farms were rented by tenants, many could not afford rent and became farm laborers, by 1900, there were 4.5 million farm laborers in the U.S. -RR Monster -Freight rates kept increasing -RR owned large tracts of land -Protective Tariff -Protected domestic industry against foreign imports. -Tariff was not applied to agriculture products but only to commercially produced goods that were imported which increased global competition resulting in the market being flooded with more crops than people consuming them.
James Weaver
*He was the Populist candidate for president in the election of 1892; received only 8.2% of the vote. He was from the West.
Literary Criticism of the Era
*Henry George, Progress and Poverty. -Newspaper guy, always looking for the next big scoop, runs for mayor of NY. -Progress and Poverty detailed problems with U.s. workers and capitalists. -Class based French revolutionary war, rich vs. poor. -Promoted panasia, or omnicure, a single tax on on unimproved land, high tax, aimed at land speculators. -High tax will force land speculators to sell land. -Cheaper land will draw more people to country. -Market will be flooded with new land = lower land prices. -More opportunities for upper mobility. -Henry would later advocate for keeping Chinese out of labor pool. *Edward Bellamy, Looking Backward, 2000-1887 -Juilan West travels to year 2000. -Capitalism and Christianity do not get along -Book became no. 1 best seller. -Bellamy was a socialist.
Teddy's Legislation
*Hepburn Act (1906). -Attempt to regulate RRs but mostly hollow because the RRs had a lot of money to drag out court processes during which time they could continue to operate with no changes. *Pure Food and Drug Act (1907). -Upton Sinclair published The Jungle, 1906. -Sinclair wrote the novel to portray the lives of immigrants in the United States in Chicago and similar industrialized cities. He exposed the health violations and unsanitary practice of the American meatpacking industry. In response to his novel, it helped to pass the Meat Inspection Act as well as the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. He was shocked at the public outcry being about the poor food quality vs. the impact of health violations on immigrant workers. *Trust-Buster -The break up of Standard Oil. -TR's successor, Taft, used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to break up Standard Oil. *William Howard Taft. -Initially followed TR's policies but eventually decided to be less in line with TR. -Progressive Party called the Bull-Moose Party. -A name given to the Progressive Party, formed to support Theodore Roosevelt's candidacy for the presidency in 1912.
Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919)
*Immigrant from Scotland. *Worked in a factory, sweeping floors. *Took job at a telegraph company. *Took job at RR. *Invested money in the stock market. *Opened a steel factory. *Used vertical integration (Own all parts of manufacturing process). *Wanted to own the land where ore is mined. *Owned key rail lines. *Owned marketing team. *No middlemen, efficient businessman.
Carlisle Indian School
*In 1879 this school in Pennsylvania was funded by the federal government where Native American children were separated from their tribes to be taught English and brainwashed with white ideals. Their motto was "kill the Indian save the man". By the 1890's the school network had expanded. *Many Carlisle grads would return to reservation to try and teach white culture but were rejected by both their former native world and by white culture. *Some Carlisle grads went on to get MDs and higher education.
Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868
*In this treaty, the government agreed not to build the railroad through Sioux territory and to abandon three forts; it included Black Hills and promised a school and other communal buildings. *1865-1877 - U.S. troops in South, keeping South in check, to prevent uprising. *Sioux forbidden from attacking RR construction crews for transcontinental RR. *Establishment of Great Sioux Indian Reservation (contains Black Hills). In exchange, no non-indians can enter reservation. Most of the young Sioux indians bought into. Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull spent time attacking construction crews on RR and hunting buffalo. *Government hired hunters to kill buffalo and bring the skulls to govt officials to get paid, led to near extinction of buffaloes, all meant to punish indians for violation treaty. *U.S. citizens snuck onto Sioux reservation, searching for gold in Black Hills.
Loss of Indian Lands (1850-1890)
*Indians rounded up and placed on reservations. *Indians reservation land area would shrink over time. *Question on policy of indians on reservations.
Two Issues That Made It Difficult to Unite Industrial Workers
*Laborers and Farmers -Tariff reform (industry likes tariff)(Pocket book issues, beneficial to farmers and not industrial workers). -Free and unlimited coinage of silver, Gold Standard kept currency in check, those who benefit from Gold Standard are the wealthy. -Farmers were in debt, facing mounting RR costs, bank loans, bad crop years, etc. -Use silver to also back money.
American Labor
*Late 19th century there was a social disorder, top 1 percent contain nation's wealth. *Erosion of skilled labor -Prior to industrialization, industry relied on skilled labor. The skilled labor system produced goods for local town/community because of lack of transport to other regions. -Apprentice (12-13 y/olds, trivial duties = food, shelter, OJT). -Journeyman (17 y/old, fulfilled duties as apprentice, compensation is tools). -Mastercraftsman (Once journeyman has acquired enough tools and experience, he can open his own shop). *Most expensive cost for manufacturer is labor. -Labor cost can be reduced by making the manufacturing process simple by compartmentalizing each part of the process, one person does one specific job vs. having to know all parts of process.
Western Land Fever
*Moving West -Homesteaders -Corporations and land speculators.
Politicizing Discontent
*New political party created by farmers, normal workers, called the Peoples Party (Populist Movement). *Peoples Party would go after people using society to gobble up wealth such as bankers and rich factory workers. *Small group of people with wealth, haves and have nots. *Rural America will develop a plan to link together to cooperate together to create change to create a political vehicle to wrestle control from govt to the people.
LTC George Custer
*Only good indian is a dead indian, believed in eradicating all indians, they were obstacles to Manifest Destiny. *Published pamphlet extolling the savagery of indians. *Claimed gold in Black Hills which drew more non-indians to indian land.
Omaha Platform
*Political agenda adopted by the populist party in 1892 at their Omaha, Nebraska convention. Called for unlimited coinage of silver (bimetallism), government regulation of railroads and industry, graduated income tax, and a number of election reforms. *Sub-treasury Plan -Farmers want the govt to build large barns/warehouses, in order to store slow to perish/non-perishable goods. The govt would then lend money to farmers, dependent on value of their stored goods, aka commodity credit. *Graduated Income Tax (aka Progressive Income Tax) -More equitable dispersal of nation's resources w/o bloodshed. *Outlaw use of Pinkertons, large standing armies, to put down strikes.
Election of 1912
*Presidential campaign involving Taft, T. Roosevelt, and Woodrow Wilson. Taft and Roosevelt split the Republican vote, enabling Wilson to win
Tournament of Today: Labor vs. Monopoly
*Referee is the govt.
Meet the Walton's
*Sam Walton divided his wealth with wife and 4 children.
Labor Unrest: 1870-1900
*Started in one factory and traveled. *Close to a class based war. *Sit in strikes. *Army called in to restore peace.
Social Darwinism
*The belief that only the fittest survive in human political and economic struggle. *Herbert Spencer -British economist -Advocate for laissez faire. -Adopted Darwin's ideas from the "Origin of Species" to humans. -Notion of "survival of the fittest. *William Sumner -Cannot help the poor because they are degenerates. -The rich are rich because they are intelligent.
Capitalism: What is it?
*The use of private property in an open market for the purpose of profit. *Industrialization 1. Innovation - Laissez Fair (Leave it alone, hands off) -Come up with new ideas, test them, make a profit. -No minimum wage, healthcare system, no environmental regulations. -Rapid growth, groups took advantage of lack of regulations, eventually "top dog" would set the standard in the form of monopolies (Rockefeller, Carnegie, JP Morgan). -Widening of gap between rich and poor. 2. Immigration -Rampant immigration in 19th century meant lots of laborers to build factories/industry, modernizing the country and its economy. -Ireland, Germany, China, most immigrants came from these countries 1850s-1870s. -Large labor pool puts downward pressure on wage pay. Most money is spent on labor, larger labor pool means lower wages and more profit to companies who can then invest and increase growth. 3. Infrastructure -Need a mean to get material and products to market. -Construction of big canals (Erie Canal) in 19th century. -RRs -Incentive to mass produce with means of transporting products to far away markets. -Big business dominates.
The American West
*West - A region where people are competing for resources. *U.S. contains Christians God fearing people *Great Plains - Part of North America where Native Americans resisted incursion by U.S. Government. (Sioux, Nez Perce, Navajo, Cheyenne, Comanche, Arapaho, Apache)
Tabula Rasa
*blank slate idea. *Indians are not savage by nature, it's because they have not been exposed to culture that allows them to be civilized.
The "Gospel of Wealth" 1889
*book written by Andrew Carnegie that described the responsibility of the rich to be philanthropists. This softened the harshness of Social Darwinism as well as promoted the idea of philanthropy, meaning to use their wealth for the benefit of society by sponsoring the arts, science, libraries, etc. Nicer alternative to harsh philosophy of Social Darwinism, but it was still very elitist and gave power over society to rich. *Inequality is inevitable and good. *Wealthy act as "trustees" for their "poorer brethren." *Had 300 million when he died. *Society created the conditions to make him wealthy, moral obligation to give back to society, charity is essential. *Bill Gates , believers in Gospel of Wealth, created Gates Foundation to which Warren Buffet donates.
Theodore Roosevelt's Square Deal
*domestic program formed upon three basic ideas: conservation of natural resources, control of corporations, and consumer protection
Progressive Movement Goals
*protecting social welfare, promoting moral improvement, creating economic reform, fostering efficiency. 1. Problem: Chaos of rapid industrial development. 2. Need: Order, Control, and Efficiency. 3. Solution: Expertise. *Not a uniform Group -Social reformers -Political reformers -Republicans -Democrats -Socialists -Progressives
Frederick Winslow Taylor and Scientific Management
*wrote principles of Scientific Management in 1911. *Would be hired by manufacturers to analyze their processes and provide advice to factory owners on how to cut costs which would save the owners money, increasing their profits.
Primary Source 3: Gospel of Wealth Excerpt
-Article written by Andrew Carnegie, June 1889 Main Points -Problem of our age is proper administration of wealth -Contrast between palace of millionaire and cottage of labor, measures change which has come with civilization -Price which society pays for law of competition, this law is what we owe our material development, which brings improvements -Law of competition may be hard for the individual but good for the race, insures survival of the fittest -We accept great inequality of environment, concentration of business, industrial and commercial, in the hands of few, and law of competition between these beneficial and essential for future progress of race -Three ways surplus wealth can be disposed: 1. Left to families of descendants 2. Bequeathed for public purpose 3. Administered during lives of possessors Although, the first is most injudicious, futile hopes or ambitions, successors impoverished by their follies -Duties of man with wealth. 1. Set an example of modest living, don't live extravagantly 2. Provide moderately for the wants of those depending on them 3. Administer surplus wealth in their best judgment that will produce beneficial results for the community -Main consideration with charity is helping those who want to help themselves -Types of charity, parks/recreation helping body and mind; works of art that give pleasure and improve public taste; public institutions of different types, improving general condition of people
Railroad: America's First Big Business
-Each RR corporation dominates its own area. -RR controls how much they charge to ship goods. -Very lucrative for RRs, incentives from govt to build RR lines. -Lack of predictability with roads, canals, and rivers, RR leads to predictability and ensures profit for companies shipping goods.
Primary Source 2: "How I Became a Socialist"
-Essay written by Eugene V. Debs, April 1902 Main Points -27 Feb 1875, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen, organized at Terre Haute, IN, by Joshua Leach, Debs admitted as charter member and named secretary -Worked diligently for the brotherhood -Chosen as associated editor of the magazine in 1878 in Buffalo -1880, became grand secretary and treasurer -Became known as an agitator and rode the rails and slept on the trains -Worked around and with working class, nourished at Fountain Proletaire, or working class -Began organizing brakemen, switchmen, telegraphers, shopmen, track hands -1894, American Railway Union was organized -Bent on organization on all railroad men and working class, solidarity, stand as one -Skirmishes lines of A.R.U. well advanced, small battles won with no one loss and corporations made concessions to avoid risk of encounter -Fight on Great Northern, decisive victory by A.R.U. -Pullman Strike, another decisive victory by the A.R.U., combined corporations were crippled -At juncture of Pullman Strike, an army of detectives, "lawful" authorities, arrested and detained leaders of the strike, ending it -Debs was jailed as an anarchist and would be put on trial for conspiract -Chicago jail sentences, followed by 6 months at Woodstock where socialism would lay hold on Debs where he would examine how the workingman, no matter how organized, could be so quickly defeated -A.R.U., defeated but not conquered, hastened the dawn of human brotherhood
Labor Wars
-Haymarket Affair (1886) -Homestead Strike (1892) -Pullman Strike (1894)
Primary Source 1: The Omaha Platform: Launching the Populist Party
-Preamble written by Ignatius Donnelly, July 4, 1892 Main Points Populist Party platform for the 1892 election (running for president-James Weaver, vice president-James Field) in which they called for: free coinage of silver and paper money; Graduated Income Tax; direct election of senators; regulation of railroads; reclamation of excessive land holdings from RRs and corporations; removal of large standing army of mercenaries known as Pinkerton System; other government reforms to help farmers.
The RR and the "Multiplier Effect"
-Provides infrastructure for companies to ship goods. -More demand for coal, steel, glass, leather, wood, all lifting economy.
Primary Source 4: (Social Darwinism) What Social Classes Owe to Each Other
-Written by William Graham Sumner, 1883 Main Points -Commonly asserted in the U.S. that there are no social classes, any allusion is resented -There are classes, "The poor," "the weak," "the laborers" expressions used as an understood definition of classes -Discussions are made upon the assumed rights, wrongs, and misfortunes of certain social classes, all public speaking and writing consists of discussion of general plans for meeting wishes who those unable to satisfy their own desires -Sometimes classes don't know anything is wrong until "friends of humanity" come with offers of aid -Sometimes they claim they have a right to everything, which they feel the need for their happiness on Earth, but God and nature have ordained the chances and conditions of life on Earth once and for all, case is closed -No revision is possible of the laws of human life, we need to learn how to live happily without trying to figure out investigating the laws of nature, consist of labor and self-denial -People who are told to apply themselves become irritated, almost insulted, formulate their claims as rights against society, right to pursue happiness and get it, if not, they have a claim to the aid of other men -If there are groups of people who have a claim to other peoples labor and self-denial and if there are other people whose labor and self-denial are liable to be claimed by the first groups, then there are classes -A man who can command another man's labor and self-denial for the support of his own existence is a privileged person of the highest species possible on Earth -A man whose labor and self-denial may be diverted from his maintenance to that of another man is not free, approaches the position of a slave -It is popular to pose as a "friend of humanity" or a "friend of the working class," relatively exotic in America but borrowed from England where some men have assumed the role with great success, it is disagreeable to assail it -Sermons, essays, and orations espouse the need for the rich to take care of the poor, unquestioned doctrine, churches should collect capital from rich and spend it on the poor -Regardless of personal sentiment, no one challenges conventional theories of social duty, assumptions of social fact pass unchallenged -Certain ills belong to the hardships of life, it is natural, we can't blame our fellow man, other ills are due to malice of men, these ills are an object of agitation and a subject of discussion, first class of ills, met by manly effort and energy, the second, corrected by associated effort -Distinction between class of ills is one belongs to the struggle for existence, those that are due to faults of human institutions -The questions are, whether voluntary charity is mischievous or not, the other question, whether legislation which forces one man to aid another is right and wise, as well as economically beneficial -Human society needs the active cooperation and productive energy of every person in it, a man who is a consumer but does not contribute either by land, labor, or capital, is a burden -There is no definition of "poor man," this is an elastic term, but there is the pauper, a person who cannot earn his living, and there is no definition for "the weak." The weak ones are those whom the productive and conservative forces of society are wasted, they neutralize and destroy the efforts of the wise and industrious, they are a dead-weight -Under the names of the weak and the poor, the negligent, the shiftless, inefficient, silly, and imprudent are fastened upon the industrious and prudent as a responsibility and a duty, but, low wage earners are also degraded by this combination -Wealth is seen side by side by those looking at facts of life as they present themselves, find enough which is sad and unpromising in the condition of many members of society, great inequality of social position and social chances, set about devising schemes for remedying what they do not like, forgetting about rights of other classes -The man who, by his own effort, rises above poverty, seems to be of no account while the man who has done nothing to rise above poverty, finds that social doctors flock to him, bringing with them the capital gathered from other classes -State is protector and guardian of certain classes -A and B decides what C shall do for D..D is the poor man and C is the forgotten man, A and B are the noble social reformers -Poverty is the best policy, if you get wealth, you will have to support others, if you do not get wealth, it will be the duty of others to support you -Society was dependent, in antiquity, on status, in our modern state, more so in the U.S., the social structure is is based on contract, with status being least important -Contract is cold, it is rational, realistic, cold, matter of fact, based on sufficient reason, not on custom -Loose thinking which troubles us in our social discussions arises from the fact that men do not distinguish the elements of status and contract which are found in society -Regression to sentimental ties is not optional. Feudal ties cannot be restored, if they were, personal caprice, favoritism, sycophancy, and intrigue would be brought back, farther gains lie in going forward, not going back -A society based on contract is a society of free thinkers and independent men -A society based on contract gives the most rooms for individual development, self-reliance, and dignity of free man -One man in a free state, cannot claim help from and cannot be charged to give help to another
Thinking Like a Historian
1. Accuracy - Not being wrong 2.Objectivity - To be natural. Shelve personal views. 3.Historical Context- Peter Novak/Ronkians-objectivity is possible. Evaluating people or events through the lens of their own time.
Why Study History?
1. History helps us understand change and how the society we live in came to be. 2. History contributes to moral understanding. *Interplay between past, present, and future* -1870-1880s - Rockefeller dominated oil industry, borrowed money and then sold kerosene at super low prices to undercut competitors, drove them out of business. *What is more important, right of the individual or society, as a collective?* 3. History provides ind identity. *Wars were fought that created this country and its boundaries. 4. Studying history is essential for good citizenship. -1950s celebrated glory of U.S., supported military, anti-communist, never question government -1960s-1970s - citizens start to question treatment of blacks, women, Indians, war in Vietnam. A good citizen will participate in making America a better place.
Populist Party Was Not Successful After 1896, but...
16th Amendment (Graduated Income Tax). 17th Amendment (Direct Election of Senators). 18th Amendment (Prohibition, later repealed by 21st Amendment). 19th Amendment (Womens Right to Vote).
% of millionaires in 1900
40 - RR 13 - Inherited 22 - Finance 9 - Retailing 4 - Real Estate 4 - Steel 4 - Other 4 - Timber
Manifest Destiny
A notion held by a nineteenth-century Americans that the United States was destined to rule the continent, from the Atlantic the Pacific. "It is our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions" John O. Sullivan
Richest in the U.S. 2015 (top 3)
Bill Gates - 79.2 billion Warren Buffet - 72.7 billion Larry Ellison - 54,.3 billion
Essay Prompt 2: Who were the Populists, what did they try to accomplish, and to what extent were they successful?
Intro: During America's Gilded Age, industry and the economy were booming in America. Unfortunately, only a small number of people were getting wealthy while others were left to languish in poverty. Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, a social commentator of his day, coined the idea of a Gilded Society. Everything, on the outside of American society, looked good, but underneath lied a serious disparity between the rich and poor. One group called the Populists, suffering at the hands of the rich, would come to the forefront in an attempt to mitigate this disparity of wealth. These Populists would establish the Populist Party and formerly announce their beliefs in Omaha, Nebraska, July 4, 1892, with the Omaha Platform. Although their ideals would not gain much traction during the Gilded Age of the late 19th century, their successors, the Progressives would push some of their ideas into fruition in the form of amendments to the United States Constitution. In my honest opinion, the Populists Party set the framework for some very important rights that we enjoy today. Populists, started out as mid-western farmers, in the late 19th century, who had begun experiencing status anxiety. For 100 years, following the Civil War, farmers had been the backbone of the United States but they began to feel lost, around the 1880's and 1890's, due to an upsurge in productivity. This upsurge was due, mostly, to the implementation of new plows, efficient planting and harvesting techniques, acquirement of new land that could be farmed with the same amount of labor as a smaller plot, all of which required the farmers to borrow, heavily from banks. This upsurge in productivity began to be challenged by international competition which, inevitably, lead to a decrease in consumer need for crops which lead to lower crop prices. This combination of strong international competition, a decrease in crop demand, coupled with lower crop prices, lead to an inability for American farmers to compete. Eventually, large corporate farms began to take over, producing ten times more than private farms which allowed them, the corporate farms, to sell their crops at a cheap amount. With an ever increasing inability to continually compete with all these factors, private farmers would become unable to pay back bank loans, leading to repossession of their farms.Private farmers were further disadvantaged by the growing rail road system in America. Free from government regulation, the rail roads were allowed to consistently change how much they charged to ship freight from year to year. Often the rail roads would charge these large corporate farms much less than a private farm to ship their crops. Additionally, the rail roads were granted massive amounts of land by the government, as an incentive to build more miles of track. So, farmers began to build an alliance to give them a collective voice, with the hope being that there would be cooperation among farmers to give this voice. This cooperation among farmers began on a small scale with the creation of granges. These granges would serve as social gathering spots to share information on new farming techniques and so forth. Unfortunately, as much as they resisted the rail roads, corporate farms, and tried to build a cooperation with other farmers, no one seemed to be listening in politics. These mid-western farmers knew that they stood less than a chance of winning so they started the People's Party. They established a political platform where they outlined their ideas. These Populists reached out to African American farmers, in an attempt to establish a coalition, but were thwarted by Tom Watson, an early leader of the party. The major issues with Watson was the fact he was duplex in his message. While acting as the champion of the poor farmer, he would proclaim the need for unification to African American farmers yet would speak poorly of them to white farmers. African American farmers eventually learned of Watson's mixed messages and would fail to achieve unification with the Populist Party. The Populist Party would continue forward by introducing two candidates for POTUS and VPOTUS. These candidates were Weaver, a former Union General, and Field was a former Confederate General of whom the African Americans disproved of. The African Americans weren't the only group the Populist Party sought to build a coalition with though. The Populist Party would reach out to the industrial workers, telling them that they, the poor farmers and the industrial workers both worked with their hands for the big corporations for low wages and poor working conditions. The Populist Party proposed 8 hour work days, a graduated income tax, and the removal of the Protective Tariff. The removal of the Protective Tariff became a significant issue with the industrial workers because this tariff benefited them as opposed to it having no benefit to the farmers. The Populists would also reach out to women's suffrage workers, most notably, Susan B. Anthony, who was a champion of women's suffrage. Anthony traveled around spreading the Populist platform, incorporating into her message, the Free Coinage or Silver and championing women and their right to vote. Despite their valiant efforts to encourage the unification of farmers, industrial workers, and women's suffrage workers, they would ultimately be fragmented into a powerless entity in 1896 when William Jennings Bryant, an affluent politician and a major advocate for the Populist Party, would run for president under the Democrat Party. Perhaps at this point in history, the Populist Part truly suffered the nail in the coffin, however, many of their ideals that they presented in the Omaha Platform, would be pushed into law by the Progressives. The Populist Party experienced small successes at the local and state level, even managing to win a few Senate seats, but largely, they were not successful. However, as I mentioned, the progressives were able to take some of their ideas and push them into the light of public approval. For instance, the 16th Amendment or the Graduated Income Tax was added to the Constitution. Later, the 17th Amendment would allow for the Direct Election of Senators, followed by the 18th Amendment on Prohibition, later repealed, and the 19th Amendment, allowing women the right to vote. So, the Populist Party was not directly successful in their ideals but it was because of them that we now have some of the laws that we enjoy and value today.
Essay Prompt 1: Compare and contrast Social Darwinism and the Gospel of Wealth during the Gilded Age. Which do you believe is more closely aligned with traditional American values?
Intro: During the Gilded Age (1870-1900), one prevailing question came to the forefront. What, if any, responsibility do the wealthy have to give back to society? Two attempts were made to answer this question. These attempts came in the form of Andrew Carnegie's Gospel of Wealth, published in 1889, and William Sumner's, What Social Classes Owe to Each Other, published in 1883. During America's Gilded Age, industry and the economy were booming in America. Unfortunately, only a small number of people were getting wealthy while others were left to languish in poverty. Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain, a social commentator of his day, coined the idea of a gilded society. Everything, on the outside of American society, looked good, but underneath lied a serious disparity between the rich and poor. Captain of industry, such as Carnegie and Rockefeller, were raking in millions each year while the average American worker was making 600-800 per year. It is my view, that society is inherently more closely aligned with Sumner's ideas on Social Darwinism, that there will always be classes in society, and that every man must contribute in order for society to function efficiently and continue its forward progression. William Sumner was a social scientist during the late 19th century who was a major contributor to the ideas of social darwinism. Social refers to the scientific study of society as a whole, how it functions and why. This is what Sumner studied, the science of society. The Darwinism aspect of of this term comes from Charles Darwins's theory of evolution based on his biological examination of various animals and creatures, more in particular, his study of finches in the Galapagos Islands. Darwin was able to determine that finches with longer beaks were able to survive as opposed to finches with short beaks who were forced to leave or die off. "Survival of the fittest" would become a term synonymous with Sumner's view on modern society. Sumner would try to apply Darwin's observations of the animal kingdom to modern society, although Charle's Darwin would oppose this analogy. Sumner believed that if you help the poor, you were actually helping the weak to survive. The weak being those too ill equipped to survive on their own and thus, drag society down as an unnecessary burden. Sumner would create two categories for those in society, those who are fit, the wealthy and self sufficient, and the unfit, the weak and the poor who cannot help themselves. He would also create other categories, A,B,C and D. A and B would be the elite, noble social reformers, who tell C what to give to D, with D being the weak and poor man. He would even say that C is the forgotten class, or the forgotten man. The facts, according to Sumner, are that the wealthy are there for a reason, they were able to shirk off poverty and rise above, becoming fit. The unfit should not complain, it is nature who determines the fit and they should not drag down the fit because they can't obtain wealth on their own. Although Sumner's analysis of society seems rather intolerant to some, he has some valid points. He embraces the realism of modern society, that some are simply destined to be poor or weak. It is their lot, dictated by nature, and who are we to question the way nature intended us to be. Sumner was not the only one with ideas on the disparity of wealth between the wealthy and poor. Andrew Carnegie would create an essay entitled the Gospel of Wealth in which he would outline his own ideas on what responsibility the wealthy have towards the poor. Carnegie immigrated from Scotland as a young man and began working for the rail road as a worker. Over time, Carnegie worked his way up to an RR executive working with the U.S. government during the Civil War. After the war, Carnegie invested money in the steel industry and would travel to Europe to tour steel factories. During his travels he discovered the Bessemer Process for treating steel. This process involved blowing air into the fire during the smelting process, this made the flames hotter and removed impurities in the metal. Taking his new found knowledge, Carnegie employed the Bessemer Process in his factories and soon he had the best steel in America and possibly the world. Carnegie would continue his success by employing vertical integration with his factories, this means he would own all parts of the manufacturing process, allowing him to amass huge wealth during his creation of U.S. Steel. Carnegie's essay, Gospel of Wealth, would explain how he felt about distribution of wealth. He felt that the wealthy do have a responsibility to distribute their wealth and he would outline 3 ways. The first, wealth can be given to your successors after your death, you can bequeath it to the public after your death, or you can administer your wealth during the life of the possessor. He felt that wealth should be distributed in a way that the wealthy saw fit that would do the best good. He felt that the best way do this for his wealth would be through the creation of libraries which would help the less fortunate gain knowledge. Carnegie would also create a foundation in which his daughter would run and he would leave a vast amount of his wealth with this foundation. Although, Carnegie's ideas were that the wealthy had a responsibility to help the poor, he did not want the government to be involved with wealth distribution, additionally, he did not think that his wealth should be taxed. One more important note would be, during the Gilded Age, government regulation was lax and even nonexistent in the form of programs for the poor, food banks, etc. Many were left to starve and when you are starving, learning anything isn't going to happen with much ease. Carnegie's ideas were flawed in this regard, he wanted to help society but only the way he saw fit. Although Carnegie and Sumner have their very specific opinions on the responsibility of the wealthy giving to the less fortunate, I must side with Sumner. I will not downplay the importance of Carnegie's contributions to the public, his money has most assuredly helped many, but his views are too flawed. Where he disagrees with government regulation, the same regulation has allowed for the restriction of monopolies, like U.S. Steel, and has served to help the less privileged gain some financial stability through the use of public assistant programs. However, Sumner's ideas are where I must agree, to an extent. I feel that, regardless of some sentiments, everyone has a place in society. Society does not owe it, to anyone, a free hand out for not applying yourself. Sumner is right, we live in a contract society, not one based on sentiments. You are rewarded for hard work and in a contract society, you can be self-reliant and independent, allowing for upward growth and mobility. He is flawed in saying the poor and weak deserve nothing, I believe some need a chance to be successful, but, only give help to those who take it and use to become something, someone, better.
Horatio Alger
Popular novelist during the Industrial Revolution who wrote "rags to riches" books praising the values of hard work
What Kind of History Do We Study?
Top down history - *White rich men, rich and powerful, kings and queens, Rockefeller and Carnegie. Bottom up history - *Almost a critical obligation to contribute to history. *Studying the world in a particular way will shape the way we view the world. *We virtually must, to gain access...
