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Period: to
The Gilded Age
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Transcontinental Railroad completed
The presidents of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads meet to finally complete the Transcontinental Railroad that connects their railroads and allows people to travel by railroad for the first time. -
Wyoming Territory grants women the right to vote
C.- July 16, 1869 -
Black Friday
Also known as the Fisk and Gould scandal, this was a financial panic caused by two speculators who were attempting to corner the gold market on the New York Gold Exchange. It was caused by Fisk and Gould buying large amounts of gold and keeping it to raise the prices. -
North and South Dakota are admitted to the Union
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Wyoming territory grants women the right to vote
Many states in the West fought for women's suffrage, and while some of it was legitimately for women's independence, mostly it was legislators who wanted publicity for their states. -
15th Amendment passed
Guarantees the right to vote regardless of "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." -
"Boss" Tweed and the Tweed ring
C. 1871- Tammany Hall was one of the greatest political machines in the time of the Gilded Age era as it was the headquarter of the Democratic Party in New York City. Headed by "Boss" Tweed, the political machine used bribery, rigged elections and all kinds of scandals to earn an amount of $200 million. Tweed was eventually convicted of misuse of the funds. -
Credit Mobilier Scandal
The New York Sun reports that Vice-President Schuyler Colfax, and several members of Congress, including future President James Garfield, received what amounted to free stock in return for protecting the Crédit Mobilier, a railroad construction company, from investigation for financial irregularities. -
"The Gilded Age" is published
Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner publish "The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today", a satire of contemporary greed and corruption, coining the label for the period that is now commonly applied to the second half of the nineteenth century. -
Comstock Law is passed
Comstock Law defined contraceptives as illicit and obscene. While the law did not have much attention when it was first passed, 24 states later enacted their own versions of the law. Image of Anthony Comstock- creator of the Comstock Law -
Financial Panic of 1873
5,183 businesses fail. -
WCTU organized
C. Fall 1874The Women's Christian Temperance Union was founded by women who were concerned about the destructiveness of alcohol. They often went on "women's crusades" where they went to saloons and asked the owners to close their establishment. -
Resumption Act passed
The act called for the secretary of the Treasury to redeem legal-tender notes in specie beginning Jan. 1, 1879. The bill also called for reducing the greenbacks in circulation to $300 million and for replacing the fractional paper currency (“shinplasters”) with silver coins as rapidly as possible. -
Civil Rights Act of 1875 is passed
This act guarantees the equal usage of public places of accommodations and amusement . It also forbids the exclusion of blacks from jury duty. -
Telephone is patented
At 19 years old, Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone -
Battle of Little Bighorn
Also known as Custer's Last Stand, this was a battle between Native American tribes and United States Army 7th calvary regiment. The calvary suffered a severe defeat. -
Nez Perce Indian War
C. June-October 1876-- A conflict between several bands and tribes of Indians allied together against United States Army that lasted 5 months, began when several Nez Perce Indian groups decided not to move to the Indian territory in Idaho. After months of battles and being chased by the Army the indians finally gave in. -
Colorado admitted to the Union
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President Hayes begins to withdraw federal troops from the South
This marks the official end to Reconstruction -
The Great Railroad Strikes begin
Begins in Marinsburg, W. Va., after the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad imposes a 10 percent wage cut. -
The phonograph is invented
At 30 years old, Thomas Edison invents the phonograph. -
Woman's suffrage amendment defeated
Congress defeats the woman's suffrage amendment 34-16 -
Christian Science is founded
C. 1879- Mary Baker Eddy founds the Church of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science) after suffering from bad health. Eddy believed that scripture and the practice of Christianity can heal sickness. Eddy spoke of her views in her book "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (1875). By 1910, the religion had reached several hundred thousand worshipers. -
Dumbbell tenement introduced
Dummbell tenements were cheap housing units created to house many people in large cities because of the large growths in population along with the industrial revolution. The land plot for the building was 25 ft. by 100 ft. -
The Salvation Army is founded
C. 1879- The Salvation Army is a Christian based charity organization. -
American Red Cross founded
Founded by Clara Barton, the Red Cross is an emergency assistance humanitarian organization. -
"A Century of Dishonor" is published
C.1881--This book, written by Helen Hunt Jackson focused on the mistreatment of Native Americans and many broken treaties by government between Native Americans and the Ameriican government. -
President Garfield is shot
President James Garfield is shot by an office-seeker, Charles Guiteau. He dies on September 19th. -
Booker T. Washington opens the Tuskegee Institute
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Standard Oil Company Trust formed
Standard Oil Company was the first company to come up with the idea of a trust. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
A law passed by President Arthur prohibiting the immigration of all Chinese laborers. -
Restricting Immigration
The first restrictive law slowing the mass of immigrants coming to America. It restricted paupers, criminals, and convicts from entering. -
Congress passes the Pendleton Act
This act stated that government jobs should be awarded based on merit, and gave jobs based on competitive exams rather than affiliation and close ties with politicians. -
Brooklyn Bridge completed
C.1883- One of the first suspension bridges in the US, the Brooklyn Bridge is located in New York City. -
Railroads in Canada and the US adopt standard time system
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Cleveland is elected president
Democrat Grover Cleveland defeats Republican James Blaine for the presidency. -
"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" is published
C. December 1884- Mark Twain's book "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is published. -
Prohibition of imported foreign workers under contract
C.June 5, 1885- This was the second resrtrictive law passed involving immigration. Many Americans were pleased with the restrictions because the foreigners were taking their jobs. -
Haymarket Square Bombing
This bombing in Chicago kills 7 police officers and wounds 60 when police officers tried to break up a labor rally. -
The Statue of Liberty arises in New York
The Statue of Liberty is given as a gift to America, from France. On its base the words:
Give me your tired, your poor
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. -
American Federation of Labor is founded
With Samuel Gompers as president, this union was restricted to skilled craftsmen only. -
Interstate Commerce Act
Made railroads the first industry subject to federal regulation in response to public demand. The act established a board called the Interstate Commerce Commission. Because railroads were very important and very relied on after the Civil War, the railroads became monopolies that controlled almost everything, even some politics. So the act was passed to prevent the railroad industry from becoming too much of a monopoly. -
Dawes Severalty Act
This act divides Native American tribes and families and moves them onto separate plots of land. -
Oklahoma opens for settlers
Oklahoma legally opens for about 50,000 "boomers" waiting to cross at the boundary line. However many overeager "sooners" left early. -
Montana admitted to the Union
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Washington admitted to the Union
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People's Party emerges
C. Early 1890-- Also known as the Populist Party, this political party emerged from the Farmer's Alliance. Made up by farmers, the party attacked Wall Street and the "money trust" and called for more things like railroads to be government owned and regulated and an income tax. -
Sherman Act of 1890
The first measure passed by Congress to prevent trusts, this act was based on the Constitutional right of Congress to regulate interstate commerce. -
Mormon church banned polygamy
C. 1890 -
Frontier Line is ended
C. 1890- Census Bureau declares the Frontier Line ended, so there is no longer a discernable frontier line in the West. -
Idaho admitted to the Union
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Wyoming admitted to the Union
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Sherman Silver Purchase Act
The act increased the amount of silver the government was required to purchase on a recurrent monthly basis to 4.5 million ounces. -
Homestead Steel Strike
Henry Frick, Chairman of the Board of Carnegie Steel and plant manager at Carnegie's Homestead steel plant, shuts down the factory and locks out its employees when negotiations with representatives from the Amalgamated Association of Steel and Iron Workers break down. -
Coxey's Army
Led by businessman Jacob Coxey, this was a protest march by unemployed workers to Washington, D.C. because of the economic depression. -
Utah admitted to the Union
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Plessy v. Ferguson
The Supreme Court rules segregation of blacks and whites constitutional, because the places that are segregated are "separate but equal". -
Works Cited
The Gilded Age Timeline. Shmoop. Web. 27 May 2013.
Interstate Commerce Act (1870). Our Documents. Web. 23 May 2013.
People and Events: Anthony Comstock's "Chasity" Laws. PBS. Web. 24 May 2013
Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890). Our Documents. Web. 23 May 2013. -
"Cross of Gold" speech delivered
William Jennings Bryan, democratic nominee for the election of 1896 delivers his famous speech pleading for silver. -
McKinley wins election of 1896
Republican WIlliam McKinley wins the election of 1896 also known as the "free-silver election" was one of the most significant political turning points since Lincoln's victories in 1860 and 1864.
