Gilded Age
It meant "hands off" and that govt would stay out of businesses. So child labor and immigratns were at an all time high.
What was the Chinese Exclusion Act?
a set of laws that barred Chinese immigration for 10 years and prevented Chinese already in the country from becoming citizens.
belief that native born people should be treated better than immigrants.
Created the assembly line and mass produced automobiles
He made so many automobiles that the price came way down, making them affordable to the middle class
Paid his workers an astonishing $5 a day (which was very high) but demanded massive amounts of time, effort and dedication from them.
thought that all employees of every company should be able to purchase the product that they make.
is credited with being one of the first to encourage American Consumerism, or desire to purchase the next cool “thing”
Henry Ford
Upton Sinclair wrote...
The Jungle...wanted to expose light on poor working conditions and instead shined light on unsanitary conditions in the meat packing industry (food industry as a whole)
What was the importance of the Transcontinental Railroad?
Goods were able to be shipped faster from coast to coast and it helped with settling out west and through the great plains.
What was Ellis Island?
All immigrants coming from Europe and Countries to the East had to go through this island before entering the United States.
Immigrants must prove they had at least $25, were healthy and could work, and had no felonies. Almost all were accepted
Who are the 4 robber barons at this time and what was their industry?
Rockefeller- Oil
Carnegie- Steel
Vanderbilt- Railroad
Morgan- Loans and Banking
Political Machine
corrupt powerful group that supported a corrupt local political party, usually the same corrupt political party that is allowing them to be powerful.
What is a muckraker?
a person who searches for and tries to expose real or alleged corruption, scandal, or other wrongdoing, especially in politics:The original muckrakers were the journalists who exposed child labor, sweatshops, poor living and working conditions, and government inefficiency in the early 20th century.
What was sharecropping?
a system where the landlord/planter allows a tenant to use the land in exchange for a share of the crop
What was Angel island?
all immigrants coming from Asian nations had to stop at this island off the coast of San Francisco before coming in.
Angel Island was horrible in contrast compared to Ellis island because the Asian immigrants, especially the Chinese, were treated horribly and sometime imprisoned for weeks before even seeing anyone.
What is monopolies?
exclusive control by one company over an entire industry
Boss Tweed (Tammany Hall)
Tammany Hall, New York’s democratic party had Boss Tweed as their leader.
Had many “grafts” or illegal use of political influence for personal gain.
Had the New York County Courthouse built for $13 million, but it really only cost 3 million. The profits went to Tweed. Tweed also controlled the Police in New York.
Once it became clear that Boss Tweed had stolen from the federal government, the federal government had to start cracking down on these political machines.
Horrible working conditions, discrimination, a growing gap between the rich and poor, prohibition and other things in U.S. society between 1890 and 1920 led many people to push for reform known as what era?
The progressive Era
What was the Homestead Act and what did it promise?
accelerated the settlement of the western territory by granting families 160 acres of public land for a minimal filing fee and five years of continuous residence on that land.
was a place that immigrants new to a city could go and learn basic things about America and specific things they needed to know about the city they had just arrived in.
At a settlement house a immigrant could learn English, get help finding a place to live, understand the American culture, and other basic things that a new immigrant would need.
Robber baron is?
negative term given to the leaders of industry like Carnegie or Rockefeller who were considered by the poor working population to be greedy, manipulative, and were keeping other people from achieving the same level of success.
Patronage(Spoils System)
was where a person who just won an election will appoint their supporters to high position of power, regardless of effectiveness.
Graft
Corrupt way of doing things
The use of the steel plow and windmill helped with what?
Cultivating land and watering crops that helped farmers grow more of an abundance of crops
Jane Adams
Gospel of Wealth
article that Carnegie wrote saying the wealthy should use their money for good. Carnegie said that money should not be used to encourage slothful or drunken ways, but to benefit society (this was his rationalization for why he shouldn’t pay his workers more, but should still “give back” much of his money by donating to needs within society.
"Separate but Equal" is referring to what case
Plessy V Ferguson