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Indian Removal
An act that was signed by President Andrew Jackson in 1830, this relocated the Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi River to the west. The president was able to negotiate land with the tribes to not start conflict. A couple tribes went about peacefully while others have resisted -
Nativism
Around the 1840s and '50s cartoons of Nativism were used as an ethnic stereotype to depict Irish and German immigrants. People saw them as threats to our country, this grew more conflict over slavery and the westward expansion. This led to the 2 major political parties, the Democrats and the Whigs. -
Manifest Destiny
This was a belief that God told settlers of the US that they were destined to expand across North America. The idea encouraged them to govern the North American continent. Now because of Manifest Destiny, we have a full country that is independent because of what our people fought for. -
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew was a Scottish-American industrialist. He led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century. He was known as one of the richest people ever, giving away over $350 million of his fortune to educational and cultural institutions. -
Homestead Act
The Homestead Act was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862. Individuals were given 160 acres of land for only $10, but they had to improve that land to keep the land in 5 years. -
Political Machines
A political organization where an authoritative boss or small group commands the help of a corps of businesses and they receive rewards for their effort. These "Machines" would grant jobs to those that did them their favors. The favors included voting and getting others to vote. -
The Gilded Age
This was the name Mark Twain gave the late 19th Century. It was an era of corruption to American development, it was a period lasting from 1870 to 1900. The U.S. population and economy were growing quickly at the time, but there was a lot of corruption and wealthy people living fancy lives. -
Industrialization
This is defined as, "the development of industries in a country or region on a wide scale." The industrial growth was beginning in the US early in the 1800's and continued throughout the American Civil War. While industries were being made in the cities where people were living, this was good for workers and everything from factories were mass produced, making them cheaper and easily accessible. -
Susan B. Anthony
Susan was an American social reformer. She was also a women's rights activist who played a role in the women's suffrage movement. In 1872, she was caught illegally voting since she was a female, she was found guilty and arrested. -
Civil Service Reform
The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act is a US federal law that was enacted in 1883. This provided that the Federal Government jobs would be awarded. -
Haymarket Riot
The Haymarket affair was an aftermath of the bombing at a labor demonstration. This took place at Haymarket Square in Chicago which became an outbreak demanding for an 8 hour working day. A group of anarchists caused a crowd of 1,500 people to gather Haymarket Square. -
Dawes Act
The President of the US at the time looked around American Indian tribal land to divide it into allotments. This meant letting the American Indians live on their land but they had to leave their tribe and adapt to white culture. Dawes Act also granted them U.S. citizenship if they accepted the allotments. -
Ida B. Wells
An African American journalist, feminist and suffragist. She was an early leader in the Civil Rights Movement. She led an anti-lynching crusade around the 1890s, and then she became part of the NAACP. -
Populism & Progressivism
The difference between these 2 is that Populism is an older campaign theory then progressivism and people who follow progressivism are mostly rich and powerful politicians. Both wanted political reform to stop corrupt governments and wanted to eliminate the abuses of big business. Populists - rural, poor and uneducated
Progressivism - cities, middle-class and educated -
Eugene V. Debs
Eugene founded the American Railway Union (ARU) in June 1893. It was an industrial union for all railroad workers. He was an American union leader and five times the candidate of the Socialist Party of America for the President. -
William Jennings Bryan
He was at his time the Former US Secretary of State. He became a Nebraska congressman in 1890 as well as an American orator. Beginning of 1896, he was a dominant force in the Democratic Party, standing 3 times as the party's nominee for the President of the US. -
Klondike Gold Rush
Around 100,000 prospectors migrated to the Klondike region of the Yukon in north-western Canada. This lasted from 1896 to 1899, gold was discovered on Eldorado Creek and people found more than $30 million worth of gold. The Klondike Gold Rush was one of the biggest Gold Rushes in US history and the Yukon prospectors managed to keep this discovery a secret for a year. -
Theodore Roosevelt
He was the 26th president of the United States. He was also an author, soldier and explorer. Theodore served as president from 1901 to 1909 and was part of the Republican Party. -
Muckraker
A term used in the Progressive Era to nickname American journalists that attacked institutions and leaders. The Muckrakers would see them as corrupt, and making this term popular in 1906. Some of the best muckrakers in history included Samuel H. Adams, Julian Assange, Lincoln Steffens and Ralph Nader. -
Upton Sinclair
Upton Sinclair Jr. was an American writer who wrote around one hundred books in several genres. He became well known in the first half of the 20th century. Upton also won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1943. He wrote a novel to portray the bad conditions and exploited lives of immigrants in the US (The Jungle). -
Pure Food and Drug Act
This act was preventing the manufacture or transportation of misbranded or poisonous foods, drugs and medicines. Passed in 1906, this was key for the Progressive Era and was signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. Also this was on the same day as the Federal Meat Inspection Act. -
Dollar Diplomacy
A form of American foreign policy to move its aims in Latin America and East Asia through the use of economic power. This was during the time when William Howard was serving his presidential term. They believed this would be beneficial to the US and the less developed countries. -
Urbanization
Urbanization is making a certain area more urban and increasing the population compared to areas that are rural. There was so much empty land in our nation and people wanted to bring in more population to make more money, so they made an area urban by building it like a city and left certain rural areas for people who want to live in the countryside. -
Federal Reserve Act
A U.S. legislation which created our current Federal Reserve System. It was intended to start a form of economic stability through the Central Bank, which was in charge of monetary policy. This was created by the Congress to provide the nation with a safer and stable monetary and financial system. -
16th Amendment
This gave power to Congress to lay and collect taxes on incomes. 8 states have ratified the 16th Amendment (Delaware, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont and Wyoming). This was needed for the federal government to keep an army, build roads and enforce laws. -
17th Amendment
This Amendment was passed by Congress on May 13, 1912, and ratified on April 8, 1913. This Amendment gave power to the people who can elect new senators. -
18th Amendment
This Amendment effectively established the ban of alcoholic drinks by declaring the production and sale of alcohol illegal. This was the only amendment to be repealed since it was unpopular and people did not like the idea of banning the sale and drinking of alcohol in the US. -
Suffrage
This word is defined as, "the right to vote in political elections." The 19th Amendment granted American women the right to vote that was ratified in 1920. This right was also known as woman suffrage. -
19th Amendment
This amendment was passed by Congress on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920. The amendment guarantees the right for all American women the right to vote. -
Teapot Dome Scandal
This was a bribery incident in the US from 1921 to 1922. This was during the administration of President Warren G. Harding. The result to this became synonymous with government corruption, this has been used to symbolize the power and influence of oil companies. -
Clarence Darrow
Clarence was an American lawyer and a leading member of the American Civil Liberties Union. He was involved in the Scopes Trial in 1925 where a substitute teacher was accused of violating the Tennessee's Butler Act. -
Jane Addams
Jane was also know as the Mother of social work. She was a pioneer, social worker, sociologist and the leader in women's suffrage and world peace. She was the first American female to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
