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Galveston Plan
In 1900, a massive hurricane left Galveston, Texas in ruins. As an emergency measure, Galveston replaced its mayor and board of aldermen with a five-person commission. Each commissioner was an expert in a different area of city affairs. The following year Galveston permanently adopted the commission form of government. Known as the Galveston plan, many other cities decided to take up the commission form of government. By 1918, 500 cities had a form of the plan. -
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Theodore Roosevelt's Presidency
Theodore Roosevelt became the 26th President of the United States upon the assassination and death of President William McKinley. Young and physically robust, he brought new energy to the White House and won a second term on his own merits in 1904. An interesting fact is that early in his presidency, Roosevelt sparked a scandal when he invited African-American educator Booker T. Washington to dine with him and his family; he was the first president to entertain a black man in the White House. -
Lochner v. New York
Progressives persuaded some states to pass laws limiting the workday to ten hours. However, in Lochner v. New York, the Supreme Court ruled that a New York law setting maximum working hours for bakers was unconstitutional. The Court held that the Constitution prohibits states from interfering with most employment contracts because the right to buy and sell labor is a fundamental freedom protected by the Fourteenth Amendment. -
The Niagara Movement
In the summer of 1905, Du Bois and Trotter were especially concerned that all across the South, black men were being denied the right to vote. They and other leading African American leaders met at Niagara Falls. The Niagara Movement, as they called it, denounced the idea of gradual progress. Washington, they said, was too willing to compromise African Americans' basic rights. Despite its bold ideas, the Niagara Movement never grew to more than a few hundred strong. -
Formation of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
The Springfield riot caught the attention of a number of white reformers. They now acknowledged the need to help African Americans protect their lives, win the right to vote, and secure their civil rights. In 1909, several white reformers joined with leaders of the Niagara Movement to form the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). This organization aimed to help African Americans be physically, mentally, politically, and socially free. -
Urban League
In 1911, more than 100 groups in many cities joined into a network called the Urban League. While the NAACP helped middle-class blacks struggle for political and social justice, the Urban League focused on poorer workers. It helped families buy clothes and books and send children to school. It also helped factory workers and domestic servants find jobs. -
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire
In March 1911, a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in New York City shocked Americans and focused attention on the need to protect workers. Workers in the factory had little chance to escape the raging fire because managers had locked most of the exits. The fire killed 146 workers, most of them young Jewish women. Many jumped from the windows. Inside the smoldering ruins, firefighters found many more victims. After the blaze, outraged Progressives intensified their calls for reform. -
Foundation of the Anti-Demation League
Jews in New York had formed the B'nai B'rith in 1843 to provide religious education and to help Jewish families. In response to growing anti-Semitism, the group founded the Anti-Defamation League in 1913. Its goal was- and still is- to defend Jews and others against physical and verbal attacks, false statements, and "to secure justice and fair treatment to all citizens alike..." In this way, the group expanded political rights for Jews and others. -
1916 Presidential Election
This election of 1916 took place while Europe was embroiled in World War I. Public sentiment in the still neutral United States leaned towards the British and French forces, due to the harsh treatment of civilians by the German Army. However, most American voters wanted to avoid involvement in the war and preferred to continue a policy of neutrality. After a hard-fought contest, Wilson defeated Hughes by a narrow margin. Wilson was helped by his campaign slogan "He kept us out of war". -
U.S. enters World War 1
President Woodrow Wilson made the tough decision to propose that the United States declare war on Germany in April 1917. Germany's naval policies, Americans' economic interests, President Woodrow Wilson’s idealism, allied propaganda, and America’s claim to world power all played a role in his decision. -
The Flu Pandemic
In September 1918, an unusually deadly form of the flu virus appeared. Research in recent years shows that the virus was originally a bird flu that mutated to spread to humans. Many historians now believe that the virus originated in the United States, then traveled around the world. As many as 50 million people died, including about 675,000 Americans. This pandemic coming on the heels of the Great War gave a sense of doom and dread to people around the globe. -
Approval of the 19th Amendment
In June 1919, Congress finally approved the Nineteenth Amenedment, which stated that the right to vote, "shall not be denied or abridged on account of sex."
