HIST 262 - Unit 2
How many people came to the United States 1881-1920?
23+ Million
How did Chinese "paper sons" legally enter the United States?
After the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco destroyed the city's birth records, hundreds of Chinese men successfully claimed that they were American-born, as there was no way to prove otherwise. As citizens they asserted their right to bring their families to the United States, and many brought in "paper sons," boys whose families paid a fee to Chinese men already in the United States to fraudulently claim to be their fathers.++
How did the world situation affect American prospects for creating a formal overseas empire?
Although Europeans obtained economic gains and the opportunity to spread Western culture and values through their empires, they experienced drawbacks as well. They had to defend widely dispersed territories and suppress popular uprisings against colonial rule. This caused Americans to question whether developing an empire was worthwhile. Also, by 1898, much of Africa, East Asia, and South Asia had been colonized by Britain, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. The potential territory for a U.S. empire was therefore limited to China and the Western Hemisphere.
What steps did the United States take to ensure continued influence over Cuba?
Although the United States, in the Teller Amendment, had promised Cuba that it would become an independent nation after the Spanish-American War, the Platt Amendment required Cuba to give the United States the right to maintain a naval base at Guantánamo Bay and to intervene militarily to protect "life, property, and individual liberty." The Cuban government, which granted the United States a privileged trading relationship, would need permission from the United States before entering into treaties with other nations. The former Spanish colony essentially became a U.S. protectorate, a relationship in which a superior power assumes authority over a weaker country or territory to protect it form invasion and dominate its affairs.
How did visual images and investigative journalism transform Americans' views of poverty and corruption?
Artists and journalists used visual images and the media to expose the domination of big business over labor. Images of clashes between government troops and workers provided visual evidence to middle-class Progressives that class tensions were tearing the nation apart. Although they sympathized with the working class, they also valued law and order, and wanted to find a way to end both industrialist exploitation and the strikes that disrupted their daily lives. Political cartoons used negative images of large corporations to show how monopolies controlled the supply and price of products, as well as how government had given in to the strength of these conglomerates. Photographs showing the results unsafe working conditions, such as a young man who had lost a leg at work, led employers to pay more attention to workplace safety. Images showing life for middle-class children were juxtaposed with those illustrating the stark conditions of working-class children, leading to reform of child labor laws and laws requiring school attendance. Written words also inspired readers to lead calls for reform. For example, Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, a novel written to expose work conditions in the meatpacking industry, led to reforms in the food industry. The result was partially unintended, as Sinclair wanted the novel to illustrate the need for socialism in place of capitalism, but the vivid descriptions in the novel of the unhealthy handling of the food they would be eating horrified readers more than the descriptions of the plight of the worker.
How did Progressives reform elections?
At the local level, Progressives turned to commission-style governance in order to get rid of political influence in cities. They also replaced the ward system that let each neighborhood select its own councilman with city councils elected at large. At the state level, in an attempt to reduce the power of corrupt political parties, Progressives convinced many states to eliminate party-identified ballots and institute a secret ballot. Some states also introduced direct primaries in place of letting party leaders choose candidates. A reform measure called the "initiative" provided a way, usually by petition, for the electorate to introduce legislation before state legislatures. The referendum put legislative proposals on the ballot so that voters could decide whether a measure would become law. The recall used special elections to remove unpopular or corrupt officials from office before their term expired.
Why did the United States craft the Open Door Policy in China?
At the turn of the century, leading nations each attempted to claim a sphere of influence, that is, exclusive political and trading rights, in China. The U.S. government was afraid that monopoly over trade in specific regions would turn into a division of China into formal colonies, and that the United States could thereby lose access for missionary and business activities. Secretary of State John Hay laid the foundations for the Open Door Policy, a U.S.-sponsored nonbinding international agreement that kept the Chinese market open to all foreign nations. All nations with a sphere of influence in China agreed to abide by the policy.
Why did Americans take a humanitarian interest in the Cuban rebellion against Spain?
Cuban exiles in the United States drew appealing analogies between their struggle for independence and the American Revolution, highlighting the similar desire of Cuban and American colonists to free themselves from an exploitive ruler and establish democratic self-rule. When Spain created a reconcentration policy to crush the Cuban rebellion, herding peasants off their farms into heavily fortified camps and then destroying the crops that fed the Cuban rebels, it created a humanitarian crisis in Cuba. As famine and disease ravaged the civilian population in Cuba, outraged Americans denounced reconcentration as uncivilized and illegal warfare.
Who were the 3 major republican presidents of 1896-1912
Grover Cleveland William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt
Why did the campaign for maximum work hour laws succeed for women?
In Muller v. Oregon, the Supreme Court accepted the argument that protecting women's reproductive health served the public good and thus upheld maximum hour laws for female workers.
What competing rulings did the Supreme Court issue on maximum hour laws for male workers?
In the 1874 Slaughter-House cases, the Supreme Court ruled that a state could not deny individuals control over their own labor, including the right to negotiate wages, hours, and workplace rules. In 1898, the Court upheld an eight-hour day for Utah miners because they worked in hazardous conditions; however, these protections were not extended to other occupations, as seen when the Court ruled in Lochner v. New York (1905) that unless long work hours directly jeopardized workers' health, the government could not abridge an employee's freedom to negotiate his own work schedule with his employer.
Who was responsible for the creation of the Brooklyn Bridge?
John A. Roebling
When was the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire?
March 25, 1911
What did McKinley focus on in his 1900 presidential campaign against William Jennings Bryan?
McKinley emphasized the prosperity that the new American empire brought.
How did the Supreme Court impact unions?
Progressive Era courts nearly always favored industrialists. In one case, the Supreme Court used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, originally intended to curtail the creation of business monopolies, to stop workers from launching sympathy strikes or boycotts to support fellow workers, labeling them "restraints of trade." Another Supreme Court decision allowed employers to fire workers who joined unions.
Why did McKinley finally agree to war with Spain?
Riots in Havana by Cubans still loyal to Spain prompted McKinley to send the Maine battleship to Havana. He hoped its presence would restore calm to Havana, but the ship exploded in the Havana harbor. McKinley continued to resist declaring war, instead trying to convince Spain to grant Cuba independence and to calm calls for war from Congress. When the official naval investigation erroneously blamed a Spanish harbor mine for the Maine disaster and when a senator gave a firsthand account of the starvation, squalor, and sickness he saw in a recent visit to Cuba, many wavering congressmen and Americans were convinced that the country had a humanitarian duty to save Cuba. Accepting that he had failed to settle the crisis, McKinley asked Congress to authorize an armed intervention to end the civil war in Cuba without declaring war on Spain. However, when Spain declared war on the United States, Congress responded with its own declaration of war, dating it retroactively to three days before the Spanish declaration of war.
What compromises restricted Japanese immigration?
Roosevelt had worked hard to maintain friendship with Japan, but came under pressure from Japanese and Korean exclusion leagues, which urged Congress to follow the precedent of the Chinese Exclusion Act and prohibit Asians from entering the nation. When San Francisco segregated its schools and sent Japanese children, along with Chinese and Korean children, to different schools from whites, the Japanese were offended at being lumped together with other Asians. Roosevelt intervened and California agreed to revoke the segregation order if Japanese immigration were ended, but Hawaiian sugar planters protested, as they needed Japanese workers. As a compromise, Roosevelt issued an executive order that allowed Japanese workers into Hawaii but reduced Japanese immigration to the mainland. In the Gentlemen's Agreement, Japan agreed to deny passports to Japanese workers intending to immigrate to the United States. This informal agreement helped Japan escape the indignity of joining China as the only other nation legally banned from sending immigrant workers to the United States.
How did temperance advocates link alcohol to urban corruption?
Saloons served as the headquarters where big-city political machines did business, were where beer-drinking immigrants went during their free time, and contributed to the nation's labor troubles by giving unions a place to meet and recruit.
How did the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco affect Chinese immigration?
Since records were destroyed, many Chinese immigrants were able to claim to be American-born.
How did technology aid the nation's expansionist drive?
Technological innovations encouraged Americans to look beyond their borders. The transatlantic telegraph cables increased the speed and volume of information sent throughout the world. Telegrams accelerated the exchange of diplomatic notes between governments, while dispatches from journalists overseas connected Americans on a daily basis to events around the world. Steam-powered ships dramatically reduced the time needed to move people and goods throughout the world. Americans' growing pride in their nation's economic might and technological prowess encouraged the United States to seek international recognition as a world power.
What factors propelled the United States beyond its borders in the 1890s?
Territorial expansion had long played an important role in defining national identity and providing economic opportunity to Americans. The belief in Manifest Destiny, the quest for economic opportunity, and ideas of racial superiority spurred interest in expanding American influence overseas. In the 1890s, powerful countries including Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Russia, the Netherlands, and Japan had developed a new form of empire building, called imperialism. These countries established business, political, and military control over colonies in Africa, East Asia, and South Asia that allowed them access to the colonies' raw materials and to their markets. The United States was concerned about its standing and its future in a world that seemed smaller than before. Therefore, the United States looked outside its borders to establish itself as a world power, secure its reputation among other powerful nations, and gain the strategic military and economic advantages that a presence in other areas of the world would provide. Prominent businessmen, commercial farmers, and politicians urged the country to seek territory and markets outside the United States. Global markets and colonies would ensure the continued prosperity and economic opportunity at home. Technological innovations also encouraged expansion overseas. Improved communications allowed the sharing of information, diplomatic notes, and news around the world, and new steam-powered ships reduced the time needed to move people and goods. Alfred T. Mahan connected the idea of a strong navy with world power, leading America to replace older wooden sailing ships with the new steam-powered battleship in order to advance U.S. interests in the world. Social beliefs were also used to justify expansion overseas. Social Darwinism, used to justify the dominance of the wealthy and powerful in America, also shaped how Americans viewed the world. In the social Darwinist view, the "racial superiority" of northern Europeans explained why Britain, France, and Germany were world powers that easily colonized nonwhite peoples. To take its rightful place alongside, or even above, these world powers, the United States needed to demonstrate its fitness by entering the global competition for colonies.
How did the United States benefit from the Panamanian revolt against Colombia?
The New Panama Canal Company, which the United States had purchased from a French company, encouraged and financed the rebellion by Panamanian business and political elites who did not want to share revenue from the projected Panama Canal with the rest of Colombia. With America's help, the revolution in Panama succeeded. After the revolt, the United States received perpetual control over a strip of land that contained the Panama Canal in exchange for a one-time payment of $10 million and an annual rent payment to Panama. American engineers then proceeded with building the Panama Canal, which the United States controlled until 1999, when control was turned over to Panama.
What steps did Roosevelt take to protect the Caribbean as a U.S. sphere of influence?
The Roosevelt Corollary of 1904 stated that when confronted with "flagrant cases" of wrongdoing by Latin American nations, the United States would act as an "international police power" in the region. This negated the need for European activity in Latin American nations, which could have led to further European colonization or control in the area. The Roosevelt Corollary established the United States as the dominant power in the area, helping European nations recoup their loans in Central and South America.
How does the image "Hampton Institute Students Building a Staircase" illustrate Booker T. Washington's reform philosophy?
The photograph encapsulated Booker T. Washington's reform philosophy because it showed perfectly groomed, hard-working, and well-trained students working industriously to build a staircase, thus countering stereotypes that portrayed blacks as lazy and dangerous, and implying that with education they would have the skills to advance step-by-step up the "ladder of success."
How does the political cartoon School Begins capture the debate between imperialists and anti-imperialists?
The political cartoon, School Begins, encapsulated the debate between imperialists and anti-imperialists over whether the United States needed the consent of colonized people to govern them. Uncle Sam is portrayed as an annoyed teacher pointing sternly at frightened black pupils representing the Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. A book on self-government is on the desk, and the teacher is telling the students that they will have to learn the lesson even if they do not want to. Other white students appear to be role models for the new "pupils," representing recently added states like California and Nevada. An African American boy washes windows, an Indian sits in the corner reading a book upside down, and a Chinese child is being refused entry to the classroom. All of these races had been previous subjects of missionary zeal, and in the cartoon all appear to be isolated from the main area of the classroom. A sign on the wall shows the precedents for imperialism to govern without the consent of the people, such as the willingness of Britain to govern colonies and the willingness of the Union to govern the former Confederacy.
Why is the Brooklyn Bridge a symbol of the urbanization of the late 19th-early 20th century?
The world's largest suspension bridge. Using steel and constructing the bridge's twin towers out of the ancient building material (stone) and formed them into gothic archways, a style reminiscent of the great medieval cathedrals of Europe.
What persuasive and coercive tactics did the U.S. Army adopt to defeat the Filipino rebellion?
To combat the guerilla tactics of the Filipino rebels, the U.S. Army used persuasion and coercion. They improved the quality of life in many villages, constructing roads, improving sanitation, providing vaccinations, and establishing schools. However, where these tactics failed, the U.S. Army burned villages and crops to deprive rebels of food and shelter, and tortured and killed suspected rebels.
How did readers misinterpret the purpose of Upton Sinclair's The Jungle?
Upton Sinclair, a socialist, wanted his exposé on the work conditions in the Chicago meatpacking industry to convince Americans that socialism offered the only way to end the rampant capitalist exploitation that ground down the working class. Instead readers focused on the vivid descriptions of rotten meat, workers' fingers, and rat excrement being tossed into the hopper to produce the sausage that Americans ate for breakfast, leading to demands for federal regulation to ensure that the nation's meat supply was safe.
Why did working-class parents often oppose bans on child labor?
Working-class parents were pragmatic; child labor provided one-tenth of family income in the early twentieth century, so families often depended on children's wages. These parents preferred making factories safer places for their children to work over banning child labor. Some immigrants saw nothing wrong with child labor, since it provided needed income and was similar to the work the immigrants had performed when they were children in their home country. For recently arrived immigrant men, their English-speaking children were more likely to be hired than they were, and the children in these families became the breadwinners, a reversal of normal family relations that often created tensions in the home.
Urban neighborhoods dominated by one immigrant group were known as _________.
ethnic enclaves
What is yellow journalism?
journalism that is based upon sensationalism and crude exaggeration. william randolph hearst vs joseph pulitzer (about cuba)
Political Machine
Powerful urban political organization that mobilized large blocs of working-class and immigrant voters and often engaged in corrupt and illegal activity.
What were the negative aspects for workers of Henry Ford's management style?
repetitive work and scrutiny of their private lives
What business system did Frederick Winslow Taylor develop to maximize output and profit?
scientific management
The ideology that "survival of the fittest" influenced human society was known as __________.
social Darwinism
The Chinese crusade against Western domination in 1900 became known as __________.
the Boxer Rebellion
President Theodore Roosevelt negotiated a peace treaty that brought which war to an end?
the Russo-Japanese War
What system, developed by Henry Ford, transformed the workplace?
the assembly line
What caused middle-class reformers to worry about society's future?
the radical working class and the decadent rich
The first baseball cards were created by corporations, especially the __________ industry.
tobacco
Immigration increased crime in American cities during the Gilded Age because it resulted in a disproportionately high population of __________.
young single men
City Beautiful Movement
A movement begun in the 1880s that advocated comprehensive planning and grand redesign of urban space to eliminate pollution and overcrowding.
The Pullman Strike
- Pullman cut workers' wages but did not reduce their rent in company-owned housing -Pullman workers went on strike - The incident developed into a nationwide strike by the ARU - Cleveland was a pro-business conservative, but he worried that many citizens favored strict limits on federal powers and that he would be condemned if the use of troops led to violence **President Cleveland's choices:** -Take no action - Neutrally insist that both sides negotiate - Use the army to end the strike and restart the railroads with strikebreakers **Decision and Consequences** -Cleveland got a court to order the strike to end and then sent the army to enforce order - 13 strikers were killed and railroad property was destroyed - A government investigation concluded that increased regulation of corporate power was needed
New Woman
A phrase used to describe young women in the 1890s and early 1900s that reflected their rising levels of education, economic independence, and political and social activism.
Coxey's Army
A protest march from Ohio to Washington, D.C., organized by Jacob Coxey in 1894 to publicize demands for the federal government to alleviate the suffering brought on by the Panic of 1893.
What percentage of Americans lived in cities by 1900?
40 percent
How did political machines gain the support of working-class and immigrant voters?
: Political machines appealed to the poor by providing jobs and a range of services and favors, including cash handouts, payments for funerals, legal assistance, and seasonal household supplies. They gained the support of immigrants by denouncing nativism and stymieing anti-immigrant legislation such as proposals to deny public jobs to the foreign born. In addition, they acquired and retained power through intimidation and election fraud.
Lochner v. New York (1905)
A Supreme Court ruling that unless long work hours directly jeopardized workers' health, the government could not abridge an employee's freedom to negotiate his own work schedule with his employer.
Open Door Policy
A U.S.-sponsored nonbinding international agreement that kept the Chinese market open to all foreign nations.
Pullman strike
A bitter strike that began on May 11, 1894, at the Pullman Palace Car Company and soon spread nationwide, paralyzing the railroad system. President Cleveland sent in federal troops and broke the strike.
Seventeenth Amendment (1913)
A constitutional amendment that enables voters, rather than state legislatures, to elect federal senators
Panama Canal
A manmade waterway through Panama completed in 1914 to link the Pacific and Atlantic oceans
People's Party
A third party effort launched in 1890 by a coalition of farmer organizations, reformers, and labor unions and dedicated to curbing corporate power and increasing the voice of the masses in politics.
Company town
A town built and owned by a corporation and rented to its employees, reflecting both the corporation's desire to help their workers and to control them.
Treaty of Par
Agreement that ended the Spanish-American War, with Spain relinquishing its claim to Cuba and the United States receiving Puerto Rico and Guam. In return for $10 million, Spain turned the Philippines over to the United States
What grievances led to the rise of farmers' alliances?
Anger against the political system's corruption and failure to act on critical issues like corporate regulation and currency and tariff reform led to a popular reaction. Farmers' alliances formed to alleviate the plight of farmers beset by rising costs and falling prices for the products. The members were outraged by the high interest rates on farm mortgages and the high freight costs charged by railroads for shipping their goods. They also felt they were not getting a fair share of the profits when their goods were sold because commodity brokers on Wall Street were buying their crops at low prices and reselling them at much higher prices.
How did commercial interests shape the new forms of leisure in the Gilded Age?
As industrial life created sharp distinctions between time at work and time outside work, Americans developed the concept of leisure time. City dwellers walked, played games in the streets and local parks, and socialized with neighbors, while many working-class men frequented local saloons. Businesses recognized the potential to make money from more formal leisure opportunities, such as sporting events, and built stadiums, selling both refreshments and trinkets. Corporations also realized the value of celebrity endorsements for their products, which is how baseball cards originated. The theater industry grew as well, ranging from ethnic performances, musical comedies, and vaudeville to opera and classical plays.
Which of the following groups was banned from entering the United States?
Chinese immigrants
Ludlow Massacre (1914)
Colorado state troops set a striking miners' camp ablaze, killing thirteen women and children, an act that outraged laborers throughout the nation
Teller Amendment (1898)
Congressional promise "to leave the government and control of the [Cuban] Island to its people" at the end of the Spanish-American War.
Roosevelt Corollary (1904)
Corollary to the 1823 Monroe Doctrine that announced the U.S. intention to act as an "international police power" in Latin America.
What did Coxey and his followers want from the federal government?
Coxey and his followers wanted the government to abandon laissez-faire and create public works projects such as building roads to alleviate mass unemployment and stimulate the economy.
Why were crime rates so high in cities?
Crime rates were high in cities, especially in tenement districts, because poverty and despair were high. For example, desperate women usually turned to prostitution to survive. Immigration also resulted in a disproportionately high population of young single men, who typically have higher-than-average crime rates. The overall growth, diversity, and mobility of urban populations also contributed to increased crime because these populations fostered anonymity and undermined the ability of communities to prevent potential criminal activity.
Political machines became most closely associated with what political party?
Democratic
What factors led to the demise of the People's Party?
During the election of 1896, the People's Party had expected the Democrats to follow the Republicans and support the gold standard, leaving the silver issue to the Populists, but the Democrats nominated William Jennings Bryan, who was in support of free silver. The People's Party, worried that nominating their own candidate would split the vote and give the election to the Republicans, nominated Bryan as their candidate also, thereby diminishing their standing as an independent party. When McKinley won the election, a political realignment occurred. The Democrats became the party of the South and West, retaining the Populist belief that government needed to support the average citizen and limit the power of big business. The People's Party disintegrated thereafter, but many of its core ideas, such as the graduated income tax and the direct election of U.S. senators, were adopted during the Progressive Era of the next two decades.
Platt Amendment (1901)
Granted the United States the right to maintain a naval base at Guantanamo Bay, to intervene militarily in Cuban domestic affairs, and a privileged trading relationship with Cuba. The Cuban government also needed permission from the United States before entering into treaties with other nations
Who launched a national campaign against lynching?
Ida B. Wells
Settlement House
Institution established in cities beginning in the 1880s and dedicated to helping the poor by providing a wide range of social and educational services.
Which of the following is a late 1800s photojournalist known for images of slum life in New York?
Jacob Riis
Why did Japan take part in a "Gentleman's Agreement" to deny passports to Japanese workers who wanted to immigrate to the United States?
Japan consented to the agreement to escape the indignity of joining China as the only other nationality barred from sending workers to the United States.
Gentlemen's Agreement (1907-1908)
Japanese agreement to deny passports to Japanese workers intending to immigrate to the United States.
Pure Food and Drug Act (1906)
Law levied federal fines for mislabeling food or medicine.
The belief that the United States had a divine right to expand across North America was known as __________.
Manifest Destiny
How did the White City reflect an optimistic vision of urban life in the future?
Many architects and urban planners believed the problems afflicting American cities could be eliminated through comprehensive planning and grand redesign of urban spaces. The designers of the White City used landscaped grounds featuring waterways and reflecting pools, along with buildings that emphasized logic, harmony, and uniformity, to show the potential glory of the modern city that could be achieved through civic leadership and enlightened urban planning.
How did the depression from 1893 to 1897 affect the American drive toward imperialism?
Many people in business and politics thought that American businesses needed to sell more goods outside of the United States.
Why did nativists oppose immigration?
Nativists in the Gilded Age targeted the so-called new immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe. They saw these new immigrants as bearers of unwanted habits and ideas, such as poverty, disease, anarchy, superstition, intemperance, and Sabbath desecration. As city slums grew, and crime and violence rose, nativists attributed many of the problems to the number of immigrants living in urban areas and became more insistent in their demands for immigration restriction. Some nativists who were particularly fixated on the dangers posed by Catholic immigrants also lobbied for immigration restriction.
What concerns did the middle class have about the upper class?
Middle-class Americans were concerned that the upper 2 percent of the population controlled the nation's banks and industry; flaunted their wealth by leading pleasure-filled lives replete with mansions, yachts, and private art collections; and embraced an ethos of individualism that made each man responsible for his and his family's wealth or poverty. The middle class saw the rich discard the tenets of self-discipline, frugality, and charity that had previously prevented individualism from turning into outright selfishness.
How did Filipinos first react to American involvement in their effort to gain freedom from Spain?
Most Filipinos initially welcomed American assistance.
Why did so many people flock to American cities?
Much of the new urban population came from rural areas within the United States. Rural men migrated to the city looking for work as agriculture became more mechanized and the demand for farm labor decreased, and rural women also sought economic opportunities in the cities as the rise of manufacturing eliminated the need for them to make clothes and other household goods. African Americans also moved to northern cities from the Jim Crow South, in what became known as the Great Migration, in search of better jobs and greater freedoms. The greatest source of urban population growth, however, came from mass immigration from Europe, as well as Latin America, The Caribbean, and Asia. These immigrants, who were trying to escape poverty, warfare, political and religious persecution, and natural disasters in their home countries, were drawn to urban cities in the United States by the promise of economic opportunity and upward mobility
What environmental vision did John Muir promote?
Muir was a preservationist who championed preserving nature in its unspoiled state as a refuge. He accused businessmen of ravaging forests, polluting water, and destroying meadows with little regard for the long-term social costs of ruining the environment.
Tenement
Multiple-family dwelling of four to six stories housing dozens of families that became the most common form of housing for poor city dwellers by the 1860s
How did new modes of transportation promote the development of specialized urban and suburban districts?
New mass transit systems such as horse cars, steam railroads, and trolleys led to urban growth and specialized districts with specific functions, such as downtown central business districts devoted to commercial interests where almost no one lived. These mass transit systems allowed commuters to travel to and from work in the city, and thus suburbs attracted middle-class families who found them attractive for the serenity, cleanliness, and greenery, which stood in contrast to the crime, disease, violence, and noise of the inner city.
Why did immigrants form ethnic enclaves in cities?
One reason immigrants formed ethnic enclaves in cities was to protect themselves from hostility and discrimination from Americans and other immigrant groups. However, the major reason was their recognition that grouping together enhanced their chances of success in America. They could enjoy the comfort and practical benefits of living near other people who spoke their language, obtain help with getting jobs from immigrant aid associations, enjoy fellowship in fraternal organizations, and find solace in neighborhood churches. They also had access to things such as food, books, churches, and theaters that reminded them of home.
Farmers' Alliance
Organization in the 1870s and 1880s dedicated to helping farmers struggling with rising costs and falling crop prices by advocating farmer cooperatives and laws to regulate banks and railroads.
Why did Congress in this period fail to address major social issues?
Political inaction resulted partly from the fact that the electorate was evenly divided between the two major parties. No incumbent president won reelection, and one party rarely controlled both houses of Congress. Also, most politicians were conservative, clinging to long-standing traditions that celebrated small, nonintrusive government, especially at the federal level. Government regulation of business appeared socialistic and harmful to both the economy and republican principles. In addition, corporate interests made huge donations to political parties and bribed lawmakers to stop legislation they deemed harmful to their interests.
Muckrackers
Progressive Era term for investigative journalists who wrote exposes on government and business corruption.
Who wanted to turn the United States into a middle-class paradise where economic security, education, health, and civility flourished?
Progressives
What effect did American soldiers' "no quarter" policy have on Filipinos during the Philippine-American War?
Resentful peasants joined Aguinaldo in fighting the Americans.
What vision did Theodore Roosevelt offer on monopolies and trusts?
Roosevelt believed that there were "good" trusts that benefited the nation through economies of scale and "bad" trusts that threatened the public interest. He earned a reputation for trust-busting by taking steps to break up the "bad" monopolies, but he balanced his trust-busting with regulation to ensure that big business behaved responsibly.
What philosophical differences separated Debs from the other three candidates in the 1912 presidential election?
Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson believed that with regulations in place, capitalism would operate more fairly, whereas Debs, the Socialist Party candidate, proposed transferring ownership of existing railroad, oil, and steel trusts to the government to ensure fair prices and wages. Government-run monopolies would be the first step toward ending the free-market system altogether.
What services did settlement houses provide the urban poor?
Settlement houses provided a wide range of social and education services to the urban poor. Hull House, for example, offered educational classes in literature and art, as well as in more practical subjects such as cooking, sewing, and vocational training. They also opened their doors to labor unions. In addition, workers at settlement houses prodded city authorities to improve tenement laws, increase street cleaning and garbage removal, expand public education, and pass laws against child labor and for improved factory safety.
What was new about the "New Woman"?
She was more educated, engaged in public activism, delayed marriage, and had fewer children. A college education allowed women to leave the domestic sphere to interact with other young women, encountering emerging ideas about women's rights. As women became more involved in charity and social reform clubs, they gained the opportunity to exert political influence, build leadership skills, and learn from networks of other activist, reform-minded women.
The belief that Christians had a responsibility to create an ethically sound and morally upright society was known as the __________.
Social Gospel
After 1880, the sources of immigration to the United States shifted to __________.
Southern and Eastern Europe
The term reconcentration refers to __________.
Spanish troops relocating Cuban peasants into camps and destroying their crops
What were the primary grievances of workers and farmers who supported the People's Party? How did they propose to resolve them?
Supporters of the People's Party were primarily concerned with the political system's corruption and failure to act on issues such as the tariff and currency regulations. The Populist convention adopted a platform with several goals. To eliminate monopolies, Populists called for the abolition of national banks and for government ownership of railroads and telegraphs. Small producers would be protected with the free coinage of silver and the creation of "sub-treasuries" to store surplus farm produce during times of low prices and to allow farmers to borrow money against it at low interest. Democracy would be strengthened by the popular election of U.S. senators and the use of referendum and initiative, and fairness would be promoted by a graduated income tax to make the rich pay more of the tax burden.
What argument did the Anti-Imperialist League use to counter the arguments of advocates wanting America to annex the Philippines?
Taking over an undeveloped country would be more likely to bring maintenance expenses than economic gains, since markets would not be easily accessible.
What benefits did taylorism offer to employers?
Taylor popularized scientific management, which used scientific knowledge to maximize output and profit. Once the optimal time and method was established for a specific task, Taylor argued, employers could then fine or fire unproductive workers who failed to maintain an acceptable pace.
Why was life in tenement districts so difficult?
Tenements were multiple-family dwellings of four to six stories that housed dozens of families. Most apartments consisted of just two or three dimly lit, poorly ventilated rooms. Tenement districts in every city had high rates of disease and death, often due to drinking water being contaminated by bacteria in the poor sewage systems. Horse manure in the streets also spread disease, as vendors sold food and other goods on the sidewalks.
"The white man's burden"
The Anglo-Saxon quest to better the lives of so-called racially inferior peoples by spreading Western economic, cultural, and spiritual values and institutions.
In what way was the Industrial Workers of the World different from the American Federation of Labor?
The IWW accepted unskilled workers and workers of all races.
What was the main goal of Progressivism?
The Progressives wanted to turn America into a middle-class paradise where economic security, education, health, and civility flourished. The tradition of Christian charity also helped shape the Progressive agenda with ideas like the Social Gospel, which was the religious belief that Christians had a responsibility to create an ethically sound and morally upright society.
Muller v Oregon (1908)
The Supreme Court upheld maximum hour laws for female workers because protecting women's reproductive health served the public good.
How did the Spanish-American war affect the U.S. Senate's actions toward the Hawaiian islands in 1898?
The United States needed Hawaii for economic and strategic reasons, and thus assumed sovereignty over it during the war, pushing through annexation with a majority vote.
Federal Reserve Act (1913)
The act creating a federally run Federal Reserve to serve as a "banker's bank" that held a portion of bank funds in reserve to help member banks in time of crisis, set rates for business loans, and issued a new national paper currency.
How did the great displays of wealth in the Gilded Age represent a break with America's republican traditions?
The conspicuous consumption of the wealthy was broadcast through their elaborate balls, weddings, and parties and their construction of opulent mansions in elite urban districts. This display of wealth ran counter to the long-standing American fear and loathing for such undemocratic pretensions and was seen as a rejection of republican simplicity.
Scientific management
The effort to use scientific knowledge to secure maximum output and profit.
What did the Supreme Court hold in Lochner v. New York (1905)?
The government cannot regulate a workers' hours unless long work hours directly jeopardize workers' health
Imperialism
The late-nineteenth-century term for colonizing foreign nations and lands, relying primarily on business, political, and military structures rather than settlers to rule colonized peoples and exploit their resources.
Gilded Age
The name for the period 1977-1900 that suggested the amazing achievements of the period were like a thin gold layer that covered many unresolved social problems
Sphere of Influence
The term used to describe the exclusive political and trading rights that foreign nation enjoyed within another nation's territory
How did reformers' explanation of the causes of poverty differ from traditional explanations?
The traditional view of poverty blamed its cause on the personal or moral failures, such as laziness or drunkenness, of the poor. Thus, the poor could get out of poverty and achieve success by abandoning their dissolute ways. Reformers challenged this view by arguing that factors beyond their control made people poor.
Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914)
This act prohibited interlocking company directories and exempted trade unions from prosecution under the 1890 Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)
This group envisioned "one big union" that welcomed all workers regardless of sex, race, ethnicity, or skill, which would one day take over all means of production.
The fire that resulted in 146 deaths and shed light on the need to reform the workplace was at the __________.
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory
How did urban reformers try to improve the safety and livability of cities?
Urban reformers replaced traditional untrained, unarmed night watchmen with professional police departments; disbanded volunteer fire companies and invested in new fire-fighting technology; and established boards of health and took steps to improve water quality, waste removal, and street cleaning. A movement also rose to build urban parks in hopes of providing the beauty and serenity of nature and offering wholesome and healthy recreation space for urban populations. In addition, urban reformers expanded public education with development of compulsory education laws.
What was the "Open Door Policy"?
a U.S.-sponsored nonbinding international agreement that kept the Chinese market open to all foreign nations
By 1900, women made up what percentage of college graduates?
almost 20 percent
The attire of guests at the Vanderbilt ball in 1883 reflected their __________.
belief that they formed a new American aristocracy
How did the United States try to win over the Filipino people?
by building schools, building roads, and administering vaccinations
What was the primary focus of the Immigration Restriction League?
establishing a literacy test for all new immigrants
By calling the 1899 battle outside Manila between American and Filipino soldiers the Philippine Insurrection, the U.S. government signaled that __________.
it considered the Philippines to be an American colony
Compared to the Spanish-American War, the Philippine-American War was __________.
longer and far deadlier
What was the reason for the surge in public school enrollment from 6.9 million in 1870 to almost 18 million in 1910?
new compulsory education laws, requiring that children attend school until a certain age
Which of the following best characterizes the term "conspicuous consumption"?
opulent displays of wealth among the upper classes
Two years after Queen Liliuokalani became queen of Hawaii, American businessmen and missionaries working on the islands __________.
overthrew her government
Working-class radical leaders during the Progressive Era championed a society that lacked __________.
private property
What was the major emphasis of the programs offered at Hull House?
providing social services
