Industry Vocab
Corporation
company recognized as a legal unit that has rights and liabilities separate from each of its members
Push and Pull Factors (and what are the three categories we talked about in class)
Push - factors that make you want to leave a place
Pull - factors that draw you to live in a place
Social, Economic, Political
Chinese Exclusion Act
1882 law that prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers
Which four labor strikes were the most impactful?
The Great Railroad Strike of 1877, Haymarket Riot, Pullman Strike, Homestead Strike
How did the majority of immigrants travel to the United States?
Most traveled by steamship. More specifically, majority of them traveled in steerage (the worst accomodations on the ship)
Vertical Integration
System of consolidating firms involved in all steps of a product's manufacture
Nativism
Belief that native-born white Americans are superior to newcomers
Interstate Commerce Commission
First federal agency monitoring business operations, created in 1887 to oversee interstate railroad procedures
What is the difference between "Robber Barons" and "Captains of Industry?"
Robbers - squeezed out small businesses and competitors, drained the country of natural resources, pay their workers meager wages, set unfairly high wages
Captains - served the nation positively, gave back to the community through philanthropy, provided jobs
How did city planners try to improve city life?
skyscrapers provided more space, mass transit allowed for people to commute and travel inexpensively, zoning allowed for certain areas to be designated for one function
Horizontal Integration
System of consolidating many firms in the same business
Ellis Island
Knights of Labor
labor union that sought to organize all workers and focused on broad social reforms; functioned as a secret society
What are the five factors of industrialization, as talked about in class?
Natural Resources, Entrepreneurs, Immigrants (Expanding Population), Innovations, Government Regulation (or lack of)
How did Ellis Island differ from Angel Island?
Ellis - located in the New York Harbor for immigrants traveling via the Atlantic Ocean, processed immigrants quickly, seen as welcoming
Angel - located in the San Fransisco Bay for immigrants traveling via the Pacific Ocean, designed to filter out Chinese immigrants, harsher conditions
Protective Tariffs
Tax on imported goods making the price high enough to protect domestic goods from foreign competition
Melting Pot
Sherman Antitrust Act
1890 law banning any trust that restrained interstate trade or commerce; regulated trade between states and ended monopolistic practices
What was the impact of union strikes?
Union membership declined, many Americans viewed unions as radical, Sherman Antitrust Act was used more common against union rather than against monopolies, workers lost bargaining power
How do "new" immigrants differ from "old" immigrants?
New: came from southern and eastern Europe, many were Catholic or Jewish, often unskilled and poor, settled in cities over farms
Old: came from northern and western Europe, protestant, settled on farms, came by family, had a skill/education/ or money
Laissez-Faire
Americanization
Belief that assimilating immigrants into American society would make them more loyal citizens (commonly done through settlement houses)
American Federation of Labor
Labor union that organized skilled workers in specific trades and made small demands rather than seeking broad changes; organized by Samuel Gompers
How did Congress respond to the industrial waste caused by the rapid increase of industrialization?
Congress set aside public land that would be later protected by the National Park System. For example, in 1872, Congress established Yellowstone National Park.
Tenement housing, unpaved streets, trash littered everywhere, lack of sufficient sewer systems, epidemics (cholera), crime increased