AP US HISTORY Chapter 23 Questions

2) Explain the corruption during Grant's presidency.

During Grant's presidency, politics became really corrupt. Railroad companies, stock-market investors, and political leaders such as judges and legislators that took bribes were corrupt. Two notorious millionaires were Jim Fisk and Jay Gould. They attempted to corner the gold market that would only work if the treasury stopped selling gold, so they worked on President Grant directly and through his brother-in-law, but their plan failed when the treasury sold gold. Also, the Tweed Ring of NYC/Tammany Hall headed by "Boss" Tweed employed bribery, graft, and fake elections to cheat the city of as much as $200 million. Tweed was finally caught when The New York Times secured evidence of his misdeeds. Tweed, despite being defended by future presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden, was convicted and imprisoned. Thomas Nast, political cartoonist, constantly drew against Tammany's corruption. Grant failed to see the corruption going on. The Credit Mobilier and the Whiskey Ring outraged the public.

1) Explain the Election of 1868.

During the Election of 1868, Republicans nominated Ulysses S. Grant, a Civil War Union general, and the Republicans nominated Horatio Seymour as presidential nominees. Ulysses S. Grant was a great soldier but he didn't have political experience. The Republicans got Grant elected by "waving the bloody shirt," or reliving his war victories, to make him popular. His popular vote was only slightly ahead of Democrat Horatio Seymour. He didn't agree with the redemption-of-greenbacks-for-maximum-value platform which resulted in the doom of his party. The Democrats were disorganized because they couldn't agree with anything except for their hate for Reconstruction.

8) Explain the class conflicts and ethnic clashes during the Gilded Age.

During the Gilded Ages, there were class conflicts between railroad worker and railroad companies and ethnic clashes between races and ethnicities such as between the Irish and the Chinese. The presidents of the nation's four largest railroad companies cut wages by 10%. Workers struck back by stopping work and when President Rutherford B. Hayes sent troops to stop this, violence erupted and more than 100 people died. The failure of the railroad strike showed the weaknesses of the labor movement. Labor movements were weak because of racial tensions as well. Congress passes a bill restricting Chinese immigration. Most of the immigrants were male who had come to California but Rutherford B. Hayes vetoed the bill because it violated an existing treaty with China. When Rutherford B. Hayes left office, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was passed, forbidding any Chinese from entering the United States.

9) Describe the election of 1880.

During the election of 1880, Republicans nominated James A. Garfield, a man from Ohio and a general from the Civil War, along with Chester A. Arthur as vice president, a Stalwart from New York. The Democrats chose Winfield S. Hancock, a Civil War general wounded from the Battle of Gettysburg, who was liked by the South and veterans for his fair treatment of the South during Reconstruction and his military experience. The campaign avoided touchy issues. James A. Garfield won and named James G. Blaine to the position of Secretary of the State. James A. Blaine to the position of Secretary of State. Garfield made many anti-Stalwart acts.

18) What caused the depression of 1893? How bad was this depression?

The Depression of 1893 was caused by the draining of gold from the treasury. It was the first panic in the new urban and Industrial Age. 8,000 American businesses and many railroads collapsed. The treasury had to issue gold for the notes that it had paid in the Sherman Silver Purchase Act and according to law, those notes had to be reissued, causing a drain of gold from the Treasury. Cleveland attempted to solve the problem by lowering the tariff with the Wilson-Gorman Tariff. Cleveland had to resort to J.P. Morgan to bail the nation out from the depression

7) Explain the Compromise of 1877 and its consequences for the South.

The Electoral Count Act of 1877 set up an electoral commission that consisted of 15 men selected from the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Supreme Court. In 1877 the Senate and the House met to settle the dispute. The Compromise of 1877 stated that the North would get Rutherford B. Hayes elected president if he agreed to remove troops from South Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana, agreed to a bill that subsidize the Texas and Pacific Railroad line, and end military rule in the South which would end Reconstruction. Its consequence for the South was that the Compromise of 1877 abandoned the blacks in the South by withdrawing troops. The last attempt to give blacks rights was the Civil Rights Act of 1875 but it was vetoed by the Supreme Court. As reconstruction ended and the military was withdrawn from the South, whites reasserted their dominance. Literary tests, voter registration, and poll taxes that targeted blacks emerged. Blacks became sharecroppers or tenant farmers if they could provide their own tools. The Supreme Court ruled in the Plessy vs. Ferguson that ruled "separate but equal" facilities were constitutional. All three factors legalized "Jim Crow" segregation.

3) Who were the Liberal Republicans and what was their goal?

The Liberal Republicans were people against Grant's presidency. Their goal was to have Horace Greeley win the presidential election against Ulysses S. Grant. The Liberal Republican Party was headed by Horace Greeley. The South liked him. Grant crushed Greeley in the election.

4) Explain the Panic of 1873 and the hard money versus cheap money dispute.

The Panic of 1873 was a harmful panic caused by the creation of too many railroads and factories which was caused by the overloading of too-easy money by the banks. The panic first started with the failure of the New York banking firm Jay Cooke & Company, headed by Jim Cooke, a rich financed during the Civil War. The hard money versus cheap money dispute was the supporters of greenbacks wanted to print more paper money to creat inflation while supporters of hard money, those who wanted gold and silver, persuaded Grant to veto a bill that would print more paper money. The Resumption Act of 1875 stated that greenbacks would be replaced with gold and silver. Debtors complained that silver was undervalued but Grant refused to coin silver dollars. Also new silver discoveries shot down the price of silver. As greenbacks regained their value, less people wanted to to exchange the convenient bills for gold. The Bland-Allison Act instructed the treasury to coin between $2 - $4 million dollars worth of silver. It's affect on creating "cheap money" was minimal. The Republican hard money policy led to the creation of the Greenback Labor Party.

12) Describe the election of 1884.

During the election of 1884, James G. Blaine became the Republican candidate. Some Republican reformers couldn't stand this so they switched to the Democratic Party. They were called Mugwumps. The Democrats chose Grover Cleveland as their candidate. During the Election of 1884, there were political rumors and allegations against the other party. New York was very important for the election. A Republican insulted the Irish of New York and as a result, New York voted for Cleveland. Grover Cleveland was the first Democratic president since James Buchanan. He supported laissez-faire capitalism.

10) What happened to President Garfield?

Garfield was assassinated by Charles J. Guiteau, a failed office seeker. Chester A. Arthur, the Vice President, took over. He wasn't a good fit for presidency. He treated Stalwarts, his supporters, badly. He also called for reform.

6) Explain the Election of 1876.

Grant almost ran for a third term but the House of Representatives didn't allow it. Republicans nominated Rutherford B. Hayes instead because he was unknown and Democrats nominated Samuel Tilden. The election was very close with Tilden winning in the Electoral College, but votes in four states (Louisiana, South Carolina, Florida, and Oregon) were unsure and disputed. The disputed states had sent two sets of returns; one Democrat, one Republican.

17) Who won the election of 1892?

The winner of the election of 1892 was Grover Cleveland.

19) What was the major problem Cleveland faced as president?

When Cleveland entered office, the depression of 1893 struck.

14) Who won the election of 1888?

Benjamin Harrison, grandson of William Henry Harrison, won the election of 1888.

15) Who were the Populists and what did they want?

Populists were agrarians and common people that advocated for the free coinage of silver, inflation, a graduated income tax, and stronger government regulation of railroads, telegraphs/telephones, direct elections of U.S. Senators, a one term limit, a shorter workday, and immigration restriction.

5) Explain the difference between the Democrats and Republicans during the Gilded Age.

The difference between the Democrats and the Republican was that Republicans traced their lineage to Puritanism, Democrats were more like Lutherans and Roman Catholics, Democrats had strong support in the south, Republicans had strong support in the North and West. Republican infighting was caused by Roscoe Conkling (Stalwarts) and James G. Blaine (Half-breeds). Republicans also had support from the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).

11) What effect did the Pendleton Act have on politics?

The effect that the Pendleton Act had on politics was that the Pendleton Act of 1883 awarded government jobs based on ability and merit, not connections or favors. The act also set up a Civil Service Commission that created open competitive services and offices not classified by the president remained fought over. Arthur had classified nearly 10% of all federal offices (14,000).

20) Who are the forgettable presidents and why are they forgettable?

The forgettable presidents were presidents that accomplished little during the Gilded Age. These presidents were Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison, Grover Cleveland, and William McKinley.

16) Why were the Populists not successful?

The populists were not successful because they were disorganized.

13) What problems did Cleveland have as president?

The problems that Cleveland have as president were that he awarded government jobs to democrats, he had to deal with fraudulent military pensions, and he had deal with the tariff. Cleveland names two former Confederates to his cabinet. Military pensions that were supposed to be given to Civil War veterans were used fraudulently to give money to other people. To stop this, Cleveland vetoed a bill that would add several hundred thousand new people on the pension list. Many people wanted to lower the tariff and since there was a surplus of $145 million, Cleveland did some research and decided to allow Congress to decide on lowering the tariff. Big industrialists, Democrats, and Republicans were upset