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Urbanization
An increase in a population in cities and towns versus rural areas. Urbanization began during the industrial revolution, when workers moved towards manufacturing hubs in cities to obtain jobs in factories as agricultural jobs became less common. Urbanization began in 1815. -
Monroe Doctrine
Proclamation in 1823 by President James Monroe. Basically, it warned European nations not to get involved in political matters in Central and South America. The Doctrine was intended to show that the United States was the only country that could influence such political matters. -
Indian Removal
The Indian Removal Act was signed by President Andrew Jackson and he granted unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders. A few tribes went peacefully, but many resisted relocation. Jackson had signed the act on May 28, 1830. -
Bessemer Process
The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron before the development of the open hearth furnace. The key principle is removal of impurities from the iron by oxidation with air being blown through the molten iron. This took place in the 1840s. -
Robber Barons (Captains of Industry)
The term "robber baron" contrasted with the term "captain of industry," which described industrialists who also benefitted society. Nineteenth-century robber barons included J.P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, Andrew W. Mellon, and John D. Rockefeller. This began in 1843. -
Manifest Destiny
The Manifest Destiny was during the 19th century that encouraged American expansion. This encouraged expansion from coast to coast. This had helped with western settlement. -
Industrialization
Industrialization is the process by which an economy is transformed from primarily agricultural to one based on the manufacturing of goods. Individual manual labor is often replaced by mechanized mass production. This had mainly began in 1848. -
Susan B. Anthony
Susan B. Anthony was an American social reformer and feminist activist. She had became a part of the temperance movement. Although she was not allowed to say anything in the rallies, (Because she was a woman) she was still a part of the temperance movement. In 1852, she became a significant figure in the woman's rights movement. -
Homestead Act
Signed by President Abraham Lincoln on May 20, 1862, the Homestead Act encouraged Western migration by providing settlers 160 acres of public land. In exchange, homesteaders paid a small fee and were required to complete five years of continuous residence before receiving ownership of the land. -
Politcal machine
A political machine is a political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters and businesses (usually campaign workers), who receive rewards for their efforts. -
The Gilded Age
A term given to the period 1865-1896 by Mark Twin, indicating both the fabulous wealth and the widespread corruption of the era. Gilded had represented a thin piece of gold. -
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie invested in various ventures, including iron and oil companies. He had ended up being a very powerful person. In the early 1870s Carnegie co-founded his first steel company. -
Social Gospel
Social Gospel is the Christian faith practiced as a call not just to personal conversion but to social reform. The Social Gospel Movement was a religious movement that arose during the second half of the nineteenth century. Ministers, especially ones belonging to the Protestant branch of Christianity, began to tie salvation and good works together. -
Clarence Darrow
Clarence Darrow was an American lawyer. He was the leading member of American civil Liberties unions. He had argued for woman's voting rights in the 1880s. -
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was the first significant law restricting immigration into the United States. In the spring of 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Chester A. Arthur. This act provided an absolute 10-year moratorium on Chinese labor immigration. -
Haymarket Riot
The Haymarket riot was also known as the Haymarket massacre. It was the aftermath of a bombing that took place at a labor demonstration on Tuesday May 4, 1886, at Haymarket Square in Chicago. There was at least 8 people who had died in the tragic event. -
Dawes Act
The Dawes Act of 1887, adopted by Congress in 1887, said the President of the United States to survey American Indian tribal land and divide it into allotments for individual Indians. It had emphasized severalty, the treatment of Native Americans as individuals rather than as members of tribes. -
Jane Addams
Jane was born in Cedar Hill, Illinois. She had co-founded one of the first settlements in the United States. She found the Hull House in Chicago, Illinois, in 1889. -
William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan won election to congress in 1890. He was reelected in 1892. Bryan was well known for his speech, "Cross Of Gold." -
Ida B. Wells
Ida B. Wells was an African-American journalist. She had led an anti lynching crusade in the 1890s. She also was a civil rights leader. -
Populism and progressivism
Progressivism is the idea that the government could be used to better society. In the early 1890s, farmers laborers, and middle class activists founded a political party, also known as populist party. They are both completely different things with different ideas. -
Yellow Journalism
Yellow journalism, is a type of journalism that presents little or no well researched news and instead uses eye-catching headlines to sell more newspapers. Techniques may include exaggerations of news events. Yellow journalism began in 1895. -
Eugene V. Debbs
Eugene V. Debbs was a labor organizer. Eugene was a socialist party candidate for five terms between 1900-1920. He became a part of the Indiana legislature in 1885. He was sentenced to six months in jail for his role in leading Chicago Pullman Palace Car Company strike. -
Klondike Gold Rush
The klondike Gold was was a migration between the Klondike region. It had took place between 1896-1899. There had been 100,000 prospectors. -
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt was a statesman, author, soldier, and the 26th president of the United states. He served as president from 1901-1909. He had also been a reformer. -
Muckracker
The term muckraker was used in the Progressive Era to characterize reform-minded American journalists who attacked established institutions and leaders as corrupt. They typically had large audiences in some popular magazines. The term had been established in 1901. -
Initiative, Referendum, Recall
Initiative, referendum, and recall are three powers reserved to enable the voters, by petition, to propose or repeal legislation or to remove an elected official from office. Proponents of an initiative, referendum, or recall effort must apply for an official petition serial number from the Town Clerk. This has been taking place since 1902. -
Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair was a serious novelist. He was born in Maryland in the year 1878. Upton Sinclair was well known for his novel, "The Jungle." The book had instantly became a best seller. -
Pure Food and Drug Act
Pure Food and Drug Act was for preventing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated or misbranded or poisonous or deleterious foods, drugs, medicines, and liquors, etc. The act had taken place in 1906. There had been books written about it too (The jungle). -
Dollar Diplomacy
From 1909 to 1913, President William Howard Taft and Secretary of State Philander C. Knox followed a foreign policy known as dollar diplomacy. The goal of diplomacy was to create stability and order abroad that would best promote American commercial interests. Knox felt that not only was the goal of diplomacy to improve financial opportunities, but also to use private capital to further U.S. interests overseas. -
16th Amendment
The 16th amendment allowed congress to collect taxes in states without apportioning among the states. The 16th amendment was passed in 1909. It was finally ratified in 1913. -
17th Amendment
The 17th amendment explains that the senate shall be elected by the people. The amendment was ratified April 8, 1913. -
Federal Reserve Act
The federal reserve act is an Act of Congress that created and established the Federal Reserve System. It had also established central banking system of the United States, and which created the authority to issue Federal Reserve Notes. The act had took place December 23, 1913. -
18th amendment
The 18th amendment was a really important amendment. The amendment had prohibited alcohol in the United states. The amendment was passed on January 16th, 1919. -
Nativisim
Nativism is the policy of protecting the interests of native inhabitants against those of immigrants. This had started in the 1920s. -
19th amendment
The 19th Amendment to the United States provides men and women with equal voting rights. The amendment states that the right of citizens to vote "shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex." This amendment was passed 1920. -
Tea Pot Dome Scandal
The Teapot Dome scandal was a bribery incident that took place in the United States from 1921 to 1922. This took place during the administration of President Warren G. Harding. -
Immigration and the American dream
U.S. citizens usually associate The American dream with such themes as wealth, financial security, freedom and even family. Immigrants in the U.S., however, are more likely to define the American dream as the pursuit of opportunity, a good job, owning a home and in many cases, safety from war or persecution. While citizens have increasingly viewed the American dream as becoming harder to reach, immigrants have remained more positive and hopeful about their potential to achieve it.
