Interstate commerce act
Required railroad rates to be reasonable and just, and established a federal commission to oversee the railroads
Knights of labor
National union open to ALL laborers. Wanted to end child labor and end trusts
Panic of 1893
A severe economic depression during which nearly a quarter of railroads declared bankruptcy. This caused bankers to buy up many of the railroads, leading to consolidation.
Feared that factory owners would use immigrants to keep wages low and to replace striking workers
International migration society
Indian appropriation act
congress sparked a new fight with the Sioux, by passing a law that nullified all previous treaties made with native Americans
White collar workers
All the industrialization created a new type of work for managers and administrators who ran the factories instead of working in them
Pioneered vertical integration, where one company controls every stage of the manufacturing process
Government support for railroads
Railroads supported by the government through money and land grants
By 1890, the U.S. Census Bureau declared that the frontier was officially settled
American federation of labor
Grew to over a million members by 1901 and had some modest successes
Forced segregation and prevented african americans from exercising their civil liberties
Assimilationist movement
Tammany Hall
Sioux wars
Sioux initally won a deceive victory against the U.S. army.
The new south
Idea that the future of the south would be based on economic diversity and industrial growth. Massive growth of population, industry, and railroads. Only in limited industrial centers though.
Pioneered horizontal integration, where one company controls every seller in the market.
Starting in 1865 many Americans started pushing westward again after the interruption of the civil war
Ida B. Wells
Reservation system
Indian nations were assigned land called reservations. However this land was much less than before, and many decided to just keep following buffalo
Gospel of wealth
Andrew Carnegie argued that those with wealth should invest it into society
Workers formed labor unions to have more negotiating power and fight for better pay and working conditions
Changes in farming
A new focus on cash-crops in the north and west, and a shift to more expensive mechanized farming methods put smaller farms out of business. Big trusts that farmers relied on (like railroads) also raised prices, making it even harder for farmers to make a living
Dawes act
Women's Christian Temperance Union
Political machines
Corrupt political bosses and their followers
Pendleton Act
Political appointments were very corrupt after a guy shot the president because he didn't get a job, congress passed the Pendleton Act, which created an exam that was used for deciding who would get a job
Sherman antitrust act
Wanted to correct the concentration of power held by banks and trusts. Proposed the Omaha platform: Direct election of senators, more referendums, graduated income tax, and an 8-hour workday
Growth of immigration
16 million immigrants (mostly from Europe) came looking for better economic opportunities
