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The Granger Movement
The Granger movement was a group of farmers from the middle west that fought against exploitative grain transportation practices. This event led to the passing of a bill that limited the amount railroads and grain storage facilities could charge. -
The Coinage Act
The first coinage act was passed in 1792 which established the US mint and set the dollar as the official currency of the United States. Until 1873 the US used a system called bimetallism which set gold and silver equal to certain values of US tender. The coinage act edited the laws to change the country from silver to the gold standard making silver not worth money. -
The Cash Register
The Cash Register was invented by the Ritty brothers on their third prototype. They patented the design which was the first ever mechanical cash register. This led to the widespread use of the Cash Register. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
The Chinese Exclusion Act was the first law to restrict immigration into the United States. This law was signed by president Chester A. Author in the spring of 1882. This started a 10 year ban on the immigration of Chinese laborers into the United States. -
Pendleton Civil Service Act
This bill was passed on January 16th, 1883, and was intended to guarantee the right of all citizens to compete for federal jobs without peripheral treatment based on race, politics, religion, or origin. Originally only 10 percent of federal jobs were covered by this law which gradually increased to more than 90 percent by 1980. -
The Linotype Machine
From the printing press till the 1880s letters would have to be individually put into molds by hand while an expert composer would type out the whole thing. The Linotype Machine cut down on labor and saved space. It was said that one person could take the place of six people using this machine. -
Haymarket Affair
The Haymarket Affair was a violent fight between labor protesters and police in Chicago. This event came to represent the global labor movement and is known as one of the most important things to happen during the Gilded Age for the labor movement. -
The Pullman Strike
In 1893 the Pullman Palace Car Company cut down the already low wages of its workers by another 25 percent. The Pullman Strike was a strike led by the American Railroad Union which was composed of 35 percent of Pullman workers. This strike led to widespread strikes among railroad workers. The Pullman company eventually made a deal with the striking workers and started business again.