Chapter 3

Industry and Technology Advance Rapidly

 Industrialization transformed US into one of the most powerful countries of the world  After the civil war, the majority of Americans farmed; by 1900 farmers were outnumbered 3 to 1  Causes of Industrialization  Physical Geography-provided natural resources such as coal, lumber and oil  Immigrants- from Europe and Asia flooded into the US  Cultural Climate-favorable views of entrepreneurs

Industry and Technology Advance Rapidly

 New Technologies Transform the Economy  The same reasons industrialization expanded were the ones that led to creative inventions  Thomas Edison, invented the light bulb, phonograph  New and better railroads, improvements tot the telegraph and the invention of the telephone

Industry and Technology Advance Rapidly

 The Impact of Industrialization  Raised most American’s standard of living  Cities grew out and up  New production techniques; improvements to travel and communication

The Rise of Big Business

      Pre-Civil War saw most businesses of America as small and family owned Towards the end of 1800’s large corporations began to dominate-owners became super rich Andrew Carnegie-sold his steel co. to US Steel –making him and US Steel very wealthy John D Rockefeller- Standard Oil-gained control of oil industry Gustavus Swift & Philip Armour-dominated meat packing Other industrialists in sewing, tobacco, and farm machinery dominated their fields

The Rise of Big Business

 Rise of the Robber Barons- Owners becoming rich and paying workers their workers low wages, implying they “stole” their wealth  Reason for growth was companies began to form cartels-(associations of producers that coordinate prices and production) and trusts- (companies assign their stock to a board of stock, who combine stock into new organization)

The Rise of Big Business

 Monopolies were formed as companies began to control all aspects of production  This caused competitors to go bankrupt or sell to the trust/cartels at low price  This behavior was explained by Social Darwinism-the fittest survive  Carnegie added the Gospel of Wealth as his reason those who accumulated wealth were to share for the betterment of society

The Rise of Big Business

 Federal Regulations Target Abuse  Most politicians believed Social Darwinism, yet public pressure began to mount against monopolies  The Interstate Commerce Commission was created as small companies began to complain  Sherman Act of 1890-Outlawed mergers and monopolies- reforms had little impact  Laissez Faire-business operates with little or no government interference- was promoted

Workers Organize

 As the US began to industrialize, the corruption that existed in Europe was seeping into the US  Workers Endure Hardships  Most industrial workers endured long days and low pay (6 days/10-12 hours/15 cents)  Workers received no vacation, no insurance, and suffered from periodic layoffs-therefore took little pride performing the same repetitive task every day

Workers Organize

 Women and children worked alongside men  Kids and women paid less than men

Workers Organize

 Labor Unions Promote Workers’ Rights  Workers formed unions to improve working conditions  Knights of Labor-organized all races and sexes  Sought to obtain 8 hour workday-”8 hours of work, 8 hours of sleep, 8 hours for what we will”  Fell apart for many reasons including Haymarket Square riot  American Federation of Labor replace K of L-led by Samuel Gompers-aimed for specific goals such as minimum wage

Workers Organize

 Workers and socialism-besides unions, workers became attracted to socialism  Socialists considered Social Darwinism to be inhumane and antidemocratic  Eugene Debs- demanded government ownership of all railroads  Socialist was popular in local politics but not as popular as Socialism in Europe

Workers and Big Business Clash

 Haymarket Riot-May 4, 1886  Labor rally turned ugly when someone threw a bomb and killed a police officer-many other civilians and officers would die  Government rounds up 8 anarchists-political radicals apposed to any government  They were convicted of conspiracy to commit murder

Workers and Big Business Clash

 1892-fighting broke out at Homestead, PA-called Homestead Strike-ended when National Guard and strike breakers broke union  1894-Pullman Strike-workers rioted as massive pay cuts and layoffs came  President sent federal troops to Chicago to protect the railroads

Immigration and Urbanization

New Immigrants Come to America

 1880s to 1920s-Second wave of immigration  Immigrants coming to the “land of milk and honey” immigrants left homelands because of the hardships they had to endure ad a promise of a better life  18 million immigrants came from Eastern Europe and Asia  Most were Catholic or Jewish  First wave was Western Europeans who were protestant

Push Pull Factors

 Push: Religious persecution  Pull: Freedom of religion  Push: mandatory military service  Pull: conscientious objection  Push: poor economic conditions  Pull: expanding industrial economy  Hoped for better life for their children

The Immigrant Experience

 Arriving in a new land- Ellis Island-government clerks asked immigrants a series of questions at entry points  If authorities believed immigrants were health risk, they were denied entry  Angel Island- entry point to west coast-usually for chinese who were coming to build rail roads  Some Asians waited months or even years before processing was complete

The Immigrant Experience

 Opportunities and Challenges  Some received aid from fraternal organizations (Irish Hibernian Association, Hebrew Immigration Aid Society, Italian Knights of Columbus)  Immigrants had to adjust to urban life  Living quarters were over crowded  Work was long, dangerous, and poorly paid  Threat of disease was always present

Cities Experience Growth

 Immigrants and Farmers move to Cities  Cities were the center of industry-therefore more jobs  More cosmopolitan lifestyle-attend theater, sporting events, bars, coffee houses, dance halls and shopping  Difficulties of urban life: crime, overcowding, and vice

Cities Experience Growth

 Technology improves urban life  City planners took advantage of new technology as cities grew   Streetcars transported factory employees Elevated railroads and electric trolleys replaced horse and buggy  New forms of travel made it possible to live in residential areas or suburbs.

 Those who could not afford lived in densely populated urban ghettos, likely based on ethnicity

Cities Experience Growth

 Skyscrapers began to rise  Most important advancement was in sewers and water supply

Cities Experience Growth

 Urban Life Creates Problems  Overcrowding-caused by rapid growth and a shortage of housing    Unscrupulous landlords took advantage of immigrants Immigrants often lived in subdivided homes called tenements   Often had poor windows and no sanitation Unhealthy and dangerous Few parks or public squares existed-children could only play in streets  Encountered heaps of garbage, thieves, and or gangs

Social and Cultural Trends

 A New Class Emerges  Came because of demand for white collared jobs  Made money to purchase items only elite could previously  Example-modern department stores

Social and Cultural Trends

 Culture and Entertainment Abound    Growing middle class meant increased education    Graduate courses offered Women went to college Literacy increased Arts thrived  Edith Wharton and Mark Twain, Emily Dickinson and Henry James Mass Entertainment  Sports, amusement parks  Baseball led the way

Social and Cultural Trends

 Religion Attracts Urban Masses  Religious leaders appealed to the urban masses  Liberal theologians stressed the importance of the importance and value of each individual

The South and the West Transformed

The New South

 Coined by Henry Grady, a newspaper editor, the New South was meant to be a resurrected, better south than before-adapting to the growing world  Industries and Cities Grow  The South would grow textile mills and not just provide raw materials as before  While the economy grew, problems persisted   Companies had to borrow from northern banks Illiteracy and rampant discrimination of blacks and immigrants

The New South

 Southern Farmers Face Difficult Times  Due to a dependency on farming one crop-cotton-the South suffered declining crop prices  The Boll Weevil also destroyed entire plantings, forcing farmers to move and look for other jobs  Sharecropping-landowners dictated the crop and loaned land and capital- in return farmer had to pay owner back-Almost always at a lost forcing them to repeat

The New South

 African American Setbacks  After Reconstruction, Whites slowly began to strip away any political and civil rights blacks had gained  The KKK terrorized blacks who sought to exercise their rights

Cultures Clash in the West

 Plains Indians Under Pressure  Indian Removal Act-Forced Indians to move west of the Mississippi River in the 1830s   After the Civil War, the government pushed Indians to move to reservations    “All who cling to the old hunting grounds will be killed off” Indians fell into a cycle of despair and poverty As they tried to revive traditional customs and religious practices – encountered resistance Hunters nearly drove buffalo herds into extinction  Almost Indian traditional way of life

Cultures Clash in the West

 Native Americans Resist  While some moved to reservations, others fought to defend their land  300 arrested and 39 executed  Sioux crushed US Army at Battle of Little Bighorn   US General Custer, along with every soldier dies Exception not the rule-see Nez Perce’

Cultures Clash in the West

 The Government Promotes Assimilation  After Indian resistance and rights crushed, Americans began experiencing regret  Dawes Act-urged Indians to assimilate  Over next 50 years Indians lost 50% more of their land  Wounded Knee- depressed Indians sought to get in touch with religious side and performed Ghost Dance   Federal officials banned them for fears of insurrection Led of massacre at Wounded Knee-federal cavalry killed 250 Indians

The Transformation of the West

 Miners and Railroaders- good and silver brought many west   Farmers and ranchers also settled Cities sprang up along railroads all the way to San Francisco  Many mining towns became ghost towns when miners left  Gold and silver brought people first, but railroad opened the West to long term economic growth  Transcontinental railroad-Promontory Point, Utah   Western farmers and ranchers used railroad to get goods to market Tensions increased between farmers and rancher and the railroads they charged high rates and there was no other way to get good East

The Transformation of the West

  Ranchers and Farmers-Americans who migrated west encountered strange land   Great Plains had few trees-had to use sod for homes and buffalo chips for fuel Barbed wire for fencing 5 million cattle roamed at end of Civil War-growing population required more food    Led to cattle drives to get cattle to market Cow towns popped up-Dodge City, Abilene, Tombstone and others with railroad depots Cattle drives went through open range-vast area of grass land opened by fed government

Issues of the Gilded Age

Segregation and Social Tensions

  Gilded Age- under the glittery (or gilded) surface of prosperity lurked troubling issues Separate but Equal-After Reconstruction southern states passed laws that separate blacks and whites, known as Jim Crow Laws  Plessy v Fergusson-Supreme Court said separate but equal was legal    Facilities for black almost never equal to whites Southern states enacted poll taxes or literacy tests to keep blacks from voting In spite of setbacks, some blacks did thrive-Booker T. Washington

Segregation and Social Tensions

 Mexican Americans and Chinese immigrants face discrimination- Mexicans struggled to maintain their lands in Southwest  Prominent whites prodded the fed government to grant to grant them land over the Mexicans that lived there before the land became the US   Courts often backed the whites in court cases Some Mexicans resorted to warlike tactics to retaliate-Los Gorras Blancas-White Caps

Segregation and Social Tensions

 Chinese faced persistent discrimination    Western states enacted laws that prohibited Chinese from working certain jobs Mobs of white workers terrorized Chinese migrants 1882-federal government temporarily banned immigration from China for 10 years. Made permanent in 1902

Political Challenges

 Corruption plagues the government- as cities grew , politicians gained power by granting jobs and services in exchange for political support.

 Some politicians defended there actions-Tammany Hall New York

Political Challenges

 Tariffs, Civil Service, and Monetary Policy  Republicans supported high tariffs to protect American jobs-Democrats wanted lower tariffs to keep prices low  Pendleton Act- Government jobs required a person to take a test in order to be placed into a job-prior system relied on who you know to get a government job  Gold Standard-money was guaranteed by gold-not popular with farmers because it drove prices down

Farmers and Populism

 Farmers Face Complex Problems  Farmers moved west expecting to work hard-but thought someday they would have a better life    Some began to wonder if it would happen Prices on main crops began to drop Farmers accumulated debts that were harder and harder to pay

Farmers and Populism

 Farmers Organize and Demand Reforms   Farmers sought to lower shipping and storage rates of grains, either through government regulation of railroads or the use of grain elevators or both Formed Farmers Alliance-eventually formed the People’s Party which became the Populist Party   Chose presidential candidate in 1892 Did well in Plain States and local elections    Began to challenge two big parties Wanted government more government regulation on railroads and banks Sought coinage of silver or “free silver”, secret ballot, direct election of senators and income tax reforms

Farmers and Populism

 Economic Crisis and Populism’s Decline  Populists hoped to gain support of industrial workers as economy got worse  Populist presidential nominee could not convince industrial workers to vote for him (they did not understand free silver) and Populism began to decline  Some populist reforms that did work-direct election of senators, graduated income tax