2/22/13
I.
Intro
o
From the era of
Reconstruction to the end of the 19th century, the US underwent an
economic transformation that involved that maturing of the industrial economy,
the rapid expansion of big business, the development of large scale
agriculture, the rise of national labor unions, and profound industrial conflict
o
The late 19th
century marked an outburst of technology and innovation, which fueled economic
growth and material benefits for many Americans. Yet the advances in production and
extra-active enterprises that Americans were just beginning to confront
o
In the last
third of the 19th century, the rise of the American corporation and
the advent of big business brought about a concentration of the nation’s capacities
in many fewer hands
o
Mechanization
brought farming into the realm of big business, and turned the US into the
world’s premier production of food.
Unprecedented immigration and urbanization were both indispensible to
industrial expansion
§
American society
became more diverse as immigrants arrived from southern and eastern Europe,
Asia, Mexico, and Central America
§
The old
protestant European Americans were no longer the main immigration groups
o
What many
thought was progressive was regarded to many others as retrogressive
§
The disruptive
effects of agricultural modernization on family farms were devastating, and led
American farmers to organize a protest movement
§ The dizzying rate of expansion was accomplished at
the cost of wars against the plains Indians, which introduced the second great
removal of indigenous people from their ancient homelands and ushered in a new
federal Indian policy that would last until the New Deal
§ The social problems that accompanied the nation’s
industrial development fueled the rise of unionism and widened the gap between
capitalist and labor
§ After the Civil War, women reformers suffered
concerning economic and political rights
§
The retching
economic dislocations and the social problems that erupted in world and urban
settings captured the attention of reformers and politicians and gave rise to
third party movements and the progressive movement
II.
Native Americans
III.
Domestic Policy-
mostly economic
A.
Election of 1880
1.
Candidates
a)
Republicans
nominated James Garfield, who was considered a half breed (he wanted civil
service reform and merit appointments for government posts) and his running
mate, Chester Arthur, was a stalwart who favored the spoil system
b)
Democrats
nominated Hancock
c)
Third party-
Greenback Labor Party. Their very
specific platform was public control and regulation of private enterprises
(such as railroads). They thought that
railroads should be treated as a public utility. They nominated Weaver, who only got 3% of the
vote, but they did get 14 members elected to Congress
2.
Garfield won,
but was killed in 1881 by a patronage seeker, so Chester Arthur became
president
B.
The Pendleton
Act
1.
Established
competitive exams for civil service
2.
Arthur supported
this, even though he was a stalwart
C.
Technology grew
rapidly
1.
South built
textile mills
2.
Birmingham,
Alabama became a steel production center
3.
Machine-made
cigarettes gave the Duke family a lot of money
4.
The standard of
living grew sharply, but very uneven
D.
Robber barons
(the really rich guys) needed to find a way to justify what they were doing-
came up with Social Darwinism and the Gospel of Wealth
1.
God had granted
wealth, as he had given grace, for material and spiritual salvation of the
select few
2.
Since G-d
granted them the money, they needed to give some of it back à became philanthropists (but their giving back was
mostly in the form of libraries, schools, medical institutions- is this giving
back going to where it’s most needed?)
E.
Most immigrants who came during this time
period were eastern Europeans
1.
They came to
escape religious and social persecution
2.
Their work ethic
was to take any job, make money, and educate their children
3.
They came to get
a better life not for themselves but for their children
4.
Most of these
people chose to live under the radar and keep a low profile
F.
Bad conditions à unions
1.
National Labor
Union- 600,000 members at its prime
a)
This union
failed partly because immigrants would not join- even though the working
conditions were bad, a job was a job
2.
Knights of Labor
was started, but fell apart after the Haymarket Riot
a)
Chicago- a group
of workers went on strike
b)
Owner of the
company called in the pinkertons (private army) to break up the strike
c)
The strikers
decided to protest in Haymarket Square.
They were doing so in an orderly, organized way. But soon enough, 200 police showed up and a
bomb went off. Six policemen were
wounded and 1 was killed
d)
Six anarchists
were arrested, some of them were executed
e)
Consensus was
that the police did it to discredit the unions and didn’t intend for anyone to
get hurt
3.
Unions were
looked upon as inherently un-American, because free enterprise and
laissez-faire were considered “American”
G.
Election of 1884
1.
Candidates
a)
Republicans
nominated James Blaine, former speaker of the House
b)
Democrats
nominated Grover Cleveland
c)
Third Party the
Mugwumps (independent Republicans who believed in civil service reform)
2.
Cleveland
won. He was the only Democrat president
in the 50 years following the civil war.
He was also the first president since Andrew Johnson to strengthen the
office
H.
Presidential
Succession Act
1.
Changed from
president pro tem to cabinet officers
I.
Farmer problems
1.
Railroads were
charging a lot for farmers to transport their goods
a)
Interstate
Commerce Act
(1)
A commission
would be established to oversee fair and just railway rates, prohibiting
rebates to end discriminatory practices
(2)
Required annual
reports and financial statements from the railroad companies
(3)
The point of
this act was to make it better for the farmers, but really it did nothing. I was done to appease the farmers.
2.
Low farm prices
(because of no scarcity)
a)
Felt the
government could give them subsidies and lower interest rates to help them out
b)
Started The
Grange (like a union) and Farmers Alliance when the government didn’t help them
J.
American
Federation of Labor was founded
1.
A national labor
union that wanted to raise wages, lower hours, and fix safety conditions
2.
As soon as they announced
this, they were called socialists
K.
Line-o-type
machine was developed, publishing became a big business, Pulitzer created a
newspaper, higher education was expanded, and women’s colleges began to grow,
and literature and art became more realistic
L.
Election of 1888
1.
Grover Cleveland
won the popular vote but lost the electoral vote to Benjamin Harrison
(Republican)
2.
The Republicans
now had control of both houses
M.
Department of
Agriculture was raised to cabinet status
N.
Sherman
Anti-Trust Act was passed in 1890
1.
When
corporations merge, they become trusts
2.
Trusts are
problematic because they control all industries
3.
Trusts are not
illegal, but trusts that are found to be in restraint of trade are
illegal. The act went after these
trusts, but it was difficult and the government did not do it wholeheartedly
O.
Sherman Silver
Purchase Act 1890
1.
Authorized
Congress to buy silver each month at market prices
2.
Issued treasury
notes
3.
An attempt to
help farmers
P.
McKinley Tariff
1890
1.
Extended to
industrial and agricultural goods
2.
Intended to
punish nations that did not have good reciprocal trade with us
Q.
Social culture
1880-1890
1.
The stage became
a legitimate form of entertainment
2.
Circuses and
wild west shows were big in this period
3.
1888 first
professional baseball all-star team
4.
1892 boxers
began wearing leather gloves
5.
1891 basketball
was invented
6.
College sports
and rivalries grew
7.
Child rearing
became less strict (“let children be children”)
8.
Religion took a
backseat to materialism, but Catholicism and Judaism increased because of immigration
R.
Election of 1892
1.
Grover Cleveland
became president again
2.
Cleveland was
economically conservative
a)
Wanted the gold
standard, which brought him the support of big business
3.
Democrats won
both houses
4.
Third Party-
emergence of the Populist Party
a)
Populism was
meant to be the party of the people
b)
Platform
(1)
Coinage of
silver to gold 16:1
(2)
Cheap federal
loans to farmers
(3)
A graduated
income tax
(4)
Private
ownership of railroads under public control
(5)
Public control
of telephones and telegraphs
(6)
No alien land
ownership
(7)
Ban on private
armies
(8)
8 hour workday
(9)
Single 6 year
term for president
(10)
Direct election
of senators
(11)
Right of
initiative and referendum
(12)
Use of secret
ballot
c)
This was
considered radical at the time, but they managed to get 4 senators, 4
congressmen, 150 state senators, and 350 state representatives elected
5.
Cleveland
repealed the Sherman Silver Purchase Act
S.
Election of 1896
1.
Candidates
a)
Republicans
nominated William McKinley
(1)
Maintain the
gold standard
(2)
Protective
tariffs
b)
Democrats
nominated William Jennings Bryan
(1)
Ran as a
Democrat and a Populist
(2)
Bryan made a
famous speech- “America should not be crucified upon a cross of gold”- against
gold standard and big business
2.
McKinley won
a)
Late 1800s
socialism began taking hold, and it was easy to convince people that Bryan was
going to make America socialist
T.
Unions and
Strikes
1.
Homestead Strike
1892
a)
Unions began
taking hold
b)
Iron and steel
workers went on strike against Carnegie steel company, and Carnegie brought him
his army
2.
1893 slight
depression that lasted 4 years
3.
1894 march of
the unemployed
a)
A Populist
businessman, James Coxy, led unemployed workers to Washington to protest
b)
A lot were
arrested and beaten up
4.
Company Town
a)
Company owns
everything in the town (houses, stores, etc)
b)
You were free to
leave, but generally you were in debt because the company paid just enough to
exist and you had to pay back what you owe first
5.
1894 Pullman Car
Company
a)
Owned a company
town and lowered wages but didn’t lower rent
b)
American Railway
Union went on strike and were led by Eugene V. Debs
c)
President
Cleveland sent in federal troops to break the strike (because his supporters
weren’t workers)
U.
Social History
1.
Literature
became more realistic
a)
Portrayed darker
sides of life
2.
Anti-Saloon
League
a)
Headed toward
prohibition
b)
Anti- drinking
3.
Chicago World’s
Fair 1893
IV.
Foreign Policy
post Civil War
A.
In 1881,
Secretary of State James Blaine advocated the creation of an international
bureau of American Republics (north, south, and Latin America) to stabilize the
Western hemisphere
1.
Finally in 1889
this was established
2.
In 1910 it
became the Pan-American Union
3.
From 1948 to
this day it’s the OAS- Organization of
American States
B.
Spanish American
War
1.
Background
a)
America always
wanted Cuba, but it was owned by Spain
(1)
Strategic
location
(2)
Only 90 miles south of Florida
(3)
Big sugarcane
and tobacco industries
(4)
Havana was
considered America’s playground
b)
In 1895 Cuba
revolted against Spain and there was a Civil War between the two, and McKinley
decided we will not get involved
c)
How and why,
then, did we get involved in the Spanish American War?
2.
Causes
a)
Yellow
Journalism- exaggerated stories to sell newspapers
(1)
Exaggerated
stories
(a)
People thought
everything in the newspaper was true
(b)
Exaggerated the
atrocities that Spain was doing to the Cubans
(c)
Ignored the fact
that the Cubans were not nice to the Spanish
(d)
Printed what was
convenient and supported
(2)
Delone Letter
(a)
Private letter
from the Spanish minister to his friend in Cuba where he belittled McKinley,
calling him weak and incompetent
(b)
The letter was
published in the newspaper
(3)
Sinking of the
Maine
(a)
Maine was an
American ship in Havana harbor that blew up from spontaneous combustion (it was
an accident)
(b)
Headlines (p7)
created panic
b)
Economic
Interests
(1)
Americans traded
100 million dollars a year with Cuba
(2)
Individuals and
government had 50 million invested in Cuban sugar and tobacco plantations
(3)
If Cuba won its
independence, they might not give us the lucrative trade agreements we had at
that point
(4)
If the war
didn’t end soon the plantations would be destroyed and we would lose our
investments
c)
Humanitarian
(1)
We couldn’t not
support a country trying to get its independence after we did
(2)
Reports came out
after civilians being put into concentration camps
3.
On March 27th,
1898, McKinley asked for an armistice but Spain and Cuba refused. He wanted them to mediate the dispute and
America would act as a mediator. Spain
said no, so we declared war on Spain in favor of Cuban independence
4.
Results
a)
Cuba won its
independence
b)
US gained the
Philippines, and Hawaii and Wake Island
c)
Platt Amendment issued
1901
(1)
Cuba could not
make a treaty with any foreign country
(2)
Cuba could not
run up an excessive public debt
(3)
Cuba could allow
the US to preserve law and order on Cuba
(4)
Cuba could lease
the US a naval base for 99 years
o
Cuba in modern
times
§ For a long time, Cuba was controlled by a dictator
named Batista
§ Fidel Castro, after not making it in the MLB, overthrew
Batista with US help because he portrayed himself as a freedom fighter
§
Not long after
Castro took office, we wanted to remove Castro à Bay of Pigs
· We had a plan to join Cuban freedom fighters to
overthrow Castro
· The Cuban freedom fighters were betrayed, and the
plan failed
·
Cuba still
accepted our apology, but this incident finished off American relations with
Cuba
§
Cuban Missile Crisis
· We discovered that Russia was building long range
missiles on Cuba with enough power to reach as north as Canada and as west as
Washington DC
· A picture of Castro and Khrushchev with their arms
around each other appeared in the newspaper, with Castro stating that he was a
Marxist
· Kennedy was advised to put a blockade around Cuba,
and any attack on the blockade by anybody would be considered an act of war
· Khrushchev wrote a nasty letter to Kennedy, and then
immediately sent an apology letter. The
US agreed to remove missiles from Turkey and Russia agreed to remove from Cuba
·
SALT- Strategic
Arms Limitation Talks
o
Began the talks
of dismantling nuclear power
§
Modern Cuba- we
have odd relations with Cuba
·
You can fly from
the US to Cuba if you are on a religious or educational mission, but if you
want to go as a tourist you have to go from another country
V.
Immigration (sheet
6-6A)
VI.
