American History 2 MIDTERM questions

What was the goal of Charles Macune's proposed "subtreasury system"?

To increase crop prices by temporarily withholding them from market

What was the purpose of the Federal Trade Commission when it was created in 1914?

To investigate corporate activates and prohibit unfair business practices

What was the initial purpose of the Grange movement?

To lessen the isolation of farmers

During the Gilded Age, what was the role of colleges reserved for wealthy women such as Wellesley College?

To make them more accomplished and desirable as spouses

Why did Terence V. Powderly seek the broadest possible membership for the Noble Order of the Knights of Labor in the late 1800s?

To maximize workers' ability to challenge corporate power

What was the purpose of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) after its founding in 1920?

To protect fundamental constitutional rights

Why did many women in the West support the temperance movement in the late 1800s?

To reduce alcohol-influenced violent behavior

What was the goal of vertical integration in the late 1800s?

To reduce costs and undersell the competition

According to Theodore Roosevelt, what made a trust a "good" trust?

"Good" trusts acted responsibly, while "bad" trusts did not.

What factors account for the surge in anti-immigrant sentiment during the 1920s?

Native-born Americans saw immigrants as cultural and economic threats.

What did W. E. B. Du Bois mean by "the Talented Tenth"?

A black intelligentsia that would lift up the rest of the race

How did American businessmen view Asia and Latin America during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century?

A source of potential consumers

What defined Roosevelt's philosophy of "New Nationalism"?

A more active federal government

Why did imperialists claim a right to rule other countries during the late 1880s?

Based on an ideology of racial superiority

Why was expansion of steel production important in the late 1800s?

Because it was cheaper and lasted longer than iron, steel became widely used.

What split in the Democratic Party did the 1924 presidential election expose?

Between native-born voters and urban ethnic voters

What was the difference between Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson's stated approach to foreign policy?

Roosevelt emphasized using power; Wilson emphasized diplomacy and moral persuasion.

Why did the American government intervene in the Cuban struggle for independence just before it ended?

For political and economic reasons

What was the outcome of the Spanish-American War for American geopolitical interests?

The United States gained valuable possessions in the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean.

What was one reason for Indian defeat on the Plains in the late 1800s?

Technological advances allowed the swift deployment of U.S. troops and rapid communication.

What caused Marcus Garvey's eventual downfall?

He was found guilty of corrupt business practices.

In the late 1800s, what was the primary belief of reformers regarding the future of Indians?

Indians should assimilate into white society.

What were the purposes of poll taxes and literacy tests instituted in the South in the late 1800s?

To disenfranchise African Americans in the South

What characterized the people who lived in the West prior to American expansion into the region in the late 1800s?

Diverse native groups who competed for power and resources

What was the difference between W. E. B. Du Bois and Booker T. Washington in their approach to racial discrimination?

Du Bois urged blacks to immediately demand first-class citizenship while Washington urged blacks to adopt a more accommodationist stance.

What was the significance of the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915?

It outraged Americans and led to calls for the United States to enter World War I.

How did the automobile transform the lives of Americans in the 1920s?

It permitted Americans to live and travel farther from cities than they had before.

Why did the Wilson-Gorman Tariff law of 1894 hurt the economic recovery?

It reduced foreign demand for American goods.

What describes the life of the cowboy in the late 1800s?

To encourage white settlement of the Great Plains by providing farm plots

What types of music unique to the South were central to the leisure culture at the turn of the twentieth century?

Blues

How did American politicians justify the United States governing the Philippines?

By claiming that Filipinos were childlike and needed to be governed

How did the assembly line, which was widely adopted in the 1920s, increase the efficiency of industrial production?

By emphasizing repetition, accuracy, and standardization of tasks.

How did the entertainment industry challenge the prevailing moral codes during the 1920s?

By promoting relaxed attitudes toward sexual relations

What was the significance to women of the Muller v. Oregon Supreme Court decision of 1908?

It upheld a ten-hour workday for women.

What was life like for the men who worked in the mature mining industry in the late 1800s?

Conditions were not safe, and men did not earn enough money to cover living expenses.

Where did urban, working-class men and women spend their leisure time at the turn of the twentieth century?

Dance halls

Why did U.S. public opinion eventually turn against American imperialism in the Philippines during the early 1900s?

Mounting casualties and a long, drawn-out battle against Filipinos

What obstacles did workers face when they went on strike in the late 1800s?

Employers recruited strikebreakers and used hired guns against strikers

How did foreign investment fuel development of the West?

European financial houses financed the sale of public bonds and private securities, which led to the expansion of railroads.

Who comprised most unskilled workers in American factories in the late 1800s?

European immigrants

In the late 1800s, why did most farmers on the Plains concentrate on cash crop staples like wheat and corn?

Farmers needed cash to meet loan payments.

Which group was a significant part of the industrial workforce during the industrialization of the United States during in the late 1800s?

Farmers who could not make a living farming

What were the central points of Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points?

Freedom of the seas, abolition of secret treaties, free trade, reduction in military spending, and self-determination for colonies

What was the message relayed in the Zimmermann telegram during World War I?

Germany offered Mexico an alliance if the United States joined the Allied powers and further benefits if the Allies lost.

How did Woodrow Wilson change his policies after the congressional election of 1914?

He adopted several positions he had rejected before in the hopes of shoring up his support.

Why was Roosevelt concerned with the Japanese's ability to drive Russia from Manchuria?

He worried about rising Japanese military power.

What economic factors in the United States contributed to the Red Scare of 1919-1920?

High inflation, a shortage of consumer goods, and widespread strikes

How was the "crisis of masculinity" connected to the imperialist spirit in the late nineteenth century?

Imperialists argued that American expansion would be a proof of American manhood.

What was significant about the Comstock Lode, located in the Sierra Nevada?

It was a huge field of silver ore.

How was the Homestead Strike similar to the Haymarket Square incident?

In both cases, violence led to unfavorable publicity that hurt the union and not capitalists.

Why did the number of white-collar workers increase in the late nineteenth century?

Industrialization created a need for managerial, clerical, and technical positions.

What was the impact of industrialization on the U.S. economy in the late 1800s?

Industrialization quadrupled the U.S. gross domestic product and spurred an urban boom.

Why did southern business leaders view industrialization as key to the creation of a "New South" in the late 1800s?

Industrialization would allow the region to be fully integrated into the national economy.

What were the disturbances of 1919 that James Weldon Johnson referred to as "Red Summer"?

Instances of racial violence in cities throughout the country, most notably Chicago.

What was the significance of the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine?

It established the right of the United States to intervene in Latin America if it wished.

How did women political activists threaten American masculinity in the late 1800s?

Men feared that woman suffrage would feminize politics.

Why did the General Federation of Women's Clubs urge local associations to lobby for social justice legislation in the early twentieth century?

Men were focused on business, leaving women to focus on civic matters.

Who staffed most settlement houses such as Hull House?

Middle-class, college educated women shut out of most professions

What was the impact of World War I on women's access to jobs?

More than 1 million women gained access to jobs although women suffered discrimination.

What describes the attitude of Mormon communities toward Native Americans?

Mormon communities were tolerant toward Native Americans and attempted to convert them through learning their languages.

What was the predominant form of business ownership before the boom in forming corporations during the late 1800s?

Partnerships

In his 1889 essay "Gospel of Wealth," what activity did Andrew Carnegie urge the wealthy to undertake?

Philanthropy

What type of reform did Progressives advocate?

Political and economic change that did not disrupt democracy or capitalism

What was the impact of the rural and urban divide on the 1896 election?

Populists were unable to capture the support of industrial workers.

What was Theodore Roosevelt's approach to international affairs as president?

Preserve order

Why did the Haymarket Square incident of 1886 hurt the union movement?

Press coverage blamed the labor movement for the deaths.

How did racial basis shape the Progressives' conservation movement?

Progressives claimed to speak for all Americans but in reality focused on the interests of white Americans.

What arguments did Progressives use in the campaign to eliminate prostitution?

Promoting public health and female virtue

What was the significance of Upton Sinclair's novel The Jungle?

Prompted passage of the Meat Inspection Act

What influenced party allegiance during the late nineteenth century?

Region and religion

How did the election of 1896 impact the political alignment?

Republicans became the majority party.

What decreased the likelihood of the United States ratifying the Treaty of the Versailles when Woodrow Wilson returned home in 1919?

Republicans held a majority in the Senate and opposed ratification.

What describes the ideas of the British economist Adam Smith in The Wealth of Nations?

Self-interest guaranteed economic success.

What was the climate of the Great Plains like before sedentary farmers and pioneers arrived from eastern part of the United States?

Semiarid with sparse vegetation and not many trees

What obstacles did settlers to the Great Plains face?

Small farming, which was central to Jefferson's republican vision of the West, was difficult or impossible to pursue.

What caused agricultural prices to collapse in the late nineteenth century?

Soaring production caused by increased productivity

How did Indians respond to the federal government's attempt at forced acculturation in the late 1800s?

Some Indians embraced acculturation while others rejected it.

What group of workers proved especially resistant to unionizing in the late 1800s?

Southern workers

In the 1900s, who were the Californios?

Spanish and Mexican settlers who had lived in California since the 1700s

Why did sports emerge as a popular pastime in the growth of urban society during the Gilded Age?

Sports provided a means for men to assert their masculinity.

What was the purpose of forming a trust in the late 1800s?

To evade monopoly laws while stifling competition

What was characteristic of the "New Negro" popularized by African Americans in Harlem during the 1920s?

The New Negro refused to accept white supremacy and took pride in a black racial identity

Why was it so difficult for the U.S. to remain out of World War I?

The United States enjoyed greater economic ties with the Allied powers that increased during the war.

What organization spearheaded the prohibition movement in the early twentieth century?

The Woman's Christian Temperance Union

What drove the stock boom of the 1920s?

The ability of investors to purchase stock with little money

What explains the strong growth of the Ku Klux Klan during the 1920s?

The desire to establish perceived white Protestant social purity

What spurred the move to industrial consolidation in the late 1800s?

The desire to minimize competition and maximize profits

What was the significance about the government's use of the Sherman Antitrust Act in the Pullman Strike of 1894?

The government used the act to punish the union

What lesson did Indians learn from the Wounded Knee massacre?

The government's policy was to destroy Indian culture and society

What was the goal of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People?

To fight for the vote and equal access to public facilities

What types of work did women do in mining towns in the late 1800s?

The occupation with the most women workers was prostitution.

How did the war reparations payment plan negotiated between Britain, France, Germany, and the United States ultimately cause problems for the American economy?

The plan resulted in a series of circular payments in which American money was used to help Germany repay Britain and France, which then used the reparations to repay the United States

Why did James Bryce argue that great men in the United States were not chosen as president?

The president functioned mainly as an executor.

What principle governed Republican economic policy during the 1920s?

The principles of laissez-faire

What was the position of businessmen and their conservative allies on the Supreme Court regarding government regulation in the economy?

The right to own and manage property was protected by the Fourteenth Amendment.

What industry dominated southern manufacturing in the late 1800s?

The textile industry

What role did the transcontinental railroad play in the settlement of the West?

The transcontinental railroad was the gateway to the West.

What was the significance of the Scopes Trial held in Dayton, Tennessee, in 1925?

The trial heightened the cultural division between fundamentalists and modern society.

Why did Woodrow Wilson perceive a need to rally support for American involvement in World War I?

The war remained deeply unpopular among Americans.

What was the result of the use of consumer goods by middle-class housewives in the late 1800s?

Their role as workers in the household became invisible while their role as consumers became prominent

How did industrialization impact skilled workers in the late 1800s?

They were increasingly used to service machinery and lost control of work hours and pace.

Which statement describes the mining towns that survived the boom and bust cycle in the late 1800s?

They had settlement patterns similar to those of eastern cities.

Why did prominent progressives seek national leadership positions like the presidency?

They recognized that the problems were national in scope.

Why did most employers refuse to negotiate with unions in the late 1800s?

They took the paternalistic view of the relationship of workers to them.

Why did the Russian Revolution terrify American government officials in its immediate aftermath?

They worried that communism would spread worldwide.

How did some women maintain the Progressive legacy during the 1920s at the national level?

Through the work of the federal bureaucracy

What was the purpose of the Americanization movement of the 1920s?

To assimilate immigrants into American culture

What was the original purpose of adopting the primary election system?

To break the power of political machines

What was the role of the fraternal organizations middle-class men formed in the Gilded Age?

To create a social environment they lacked

What did President Theodore Roosevelt mean when he coined the term muckraker in the early twentieth century?

To criticize journalists for being more interested in sensationalism

What were the goals of Jacob Coxey, leader of Coxey's Army, in the march to Washington in 1894?

To demand public works projects to provide jobs and an increase in the money supply.

Why did Mark Twain coin the term "Gilded Age" for the late nineteenth century?

To describe the lifestyles of the wealthy

What was the purpose of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)?

To foster racial separation and black pride

What was the goal of the Treaty of Fort Laramie of 1851?

To set aside designated areas for Plains peoples only

What describes Taft's "Dollar Diplomacy" strategy?

U.S. banks would invest in Latin America, increasing American influence there.

What did it mean to purchase stock on margin during the 1920s?

Using credit to pay only a fraction of a stock's price

Why did Woodrow Wilson believe that he could easily gain support for his New Freedom measures?

Wilson viewed the president as a leader who would provide his party with a legislative program.

What was Alice Paul's position on women's suffrage?

Women should have the right to vote because they were not inherently different from men.

What types of women generally worked outside the home in the industrial economy in the late 1800s?

Young single women and African American married women