Chapter 24-27 Study Questions
1. Railroad Expansion (pp. 528-536) a. The government gave away land bigger than the state of ________ to various railroad companies. What benefits did the government get in return and why did private companies need these land grants or similar subsidies before they would build the transcontinental railways?
(1) Benefit to government:
(2) Need for subsidy:
b. Besides the first transcontinental railroad built jointly by the _________ Pacific (building from the east) and the __________ Pacific (building from the west), which was completed in 18___, three other transcontinental lines were built with public funds while a fifth, the Great _________, was built by financier James J. ________. An ex-shipping magnate named Cornelius _________ consolidated the New York __________ railroad empire in the East and Midwest. In addition to creating our four standard time zones in 18___, what impact do the authors say (p. 534) that the post-War railroad boom had on each of the following?
(1) Industrial Expansion: (4) Immigration:
(2) Agriculture: (5) Great Plains:
(3) Cities: (6) Wealth concentration:
c. The monopolistic economic power of railroad moguls such as Jay ________ and Cornelius’s son William H. ______________ finally motivated the government in 1887 to enact the ______________ Commerce Act. Even though this act didn’t do much to crimp the style of the “Robber Barons,” why do the authors on p. 536 call it a “red-letter law”?
2. Industrialization (pp. 536–537) Define the four factors the authors say came together at the end of the 1800s to create the industrial boom:
(1) Liquid capital: (3) Labor:
(2) Natural resources: (4) Innovation:
3. Titans and Trusts (pp. 537–543) a. The steel interests of Andrew _________ are cited as an example of “vertical integration,” while the Standard Oil Trust of John D. _____________ is an example of “horizontal integration.” What is the difference between these two merger forms?
(1) Vertical integration:
(2) Horizontal integration:
b. The financier with the bulbous nose who dominated Wall Street, bought out Carnegie, and formed the U.S. ________ Company was J. P. __________. Rockefeller consolidated what appeared to be a dying petroleum industry that was given new life by the internal-combustion engine used to power the ____________. *** If the “New-Rich” of 100 years ago were concentrated in finance, transportation, and heavy industries, the “New-Rich” of today such as ______________ (name a person) are concentrated in the _______________ industry.
c. How were the biological theories of Charles Darwin used (or abused) to rationalize the accumulation of vast wealth by a few and the relative poverty of the masses?
d. After the 1887 Interstate Commerce Act, the first government effort to control business excesses was the ___________ Anti-Trust Act of 18___. Though not effectively enforced, it put Congress on record as placing “public need” over “private greed.” *** What’s so bad about a big company monopolizing an industry? Can there be anything good about a monopoly?
4. Impact of Industrialization (pp. 543–549) a. How did industrialization affect the South?
b. List three major areas of American life permanently affected by the Industrial Revolution:
(1)
(2)
(3)
5. Workers and Unions (pp. 549–555) (Note: As you read this section, think of the similar industrial transformations going on today, where older skills are being rapidly replaced by computerized applications.)
a. Postwar industrialization changed the nature of work from small units and farms to the regimented factory. This increased real wages, but the income gap between rich and poor was widening at an alarming rate. Unions tried to balance the power of big employers to hire and fire at will and to control working conditions. The _________ of Labor, organized in 18___ under the leadership of Terence V. ___________, was an all-inclusive union, meaning it accepted skilled and unskilled, minorities and whites, women and men. What do the authors say caused this union to lose influence after the violent incident in Chicago’s ___________ Square in 18___?
b. The “elitist” ___________ Federation of Labor (AF of L), organized in 18___, was headed by Samuel __________. How did the conservative AF of L differ from the Knights of Labor in each of the following:
(1) Membership:
(2) Philosophy:
6. Urbanization (pp. 557–560) This section highlights some of the post–Civil War trends that helped transform rural America into a country that would be much more familiar to us today. Looking at the chart on p. 559, you can see that city-dwellers constituted only ____ percent of the population in 1790. By 1900, that had risen to _____ percent (about half of the 1990 figure of _____ percent). Improved agricultural productivity helped feed the urban population. It also forced European and American farmers off the land and into the cities looking for industrial jobs. Cities could grow upwards because of the ___________ (means for moving people up) and the steel-framed skyscraper made popular by Chicago architect Louis _____________. Commuting to the suburbs became possible because of mass transit improvements such as the electric ___________. The city offered attractions such as electric light, indoor plumbing, _____________ (the new communications device), and shopping at department stores. On the other hand, list a few of the disadvantages of primitive city life:
7. The “New” Immigration (pp. 561–571) a. Compare and contrast the characteristics of the “new” and “old” immigration.
(1) Old (1840s–1880s):
(2) New (1880s–1920s):
b. *** Can you make any general conclusions about immigration from the chart on p. 561?
c. Though America accepted large numbers of immigrants, the government provided virtually no social or economic services to these immigrants. How and why did the urban political machines (such as “Boss” Tweed in New York) provide many of these services?
d. The authors say that the “social gospel,” as advocated by ministers like Walter ___________________, tried to get the churches involved in solving the new urban problems. They also mention the name of Jane __________ of Chicago as a central person in bringing mostly middle-class women into the new occupation of social work and founding the first American “settlement house” called ________ House. What connection do the authors make between this movement and the changing roles of women?
e. What was the significance of the immigration law passed in 1882?
8. Religion and Education (pp. 571–573) Many churches became more secular in the face of an increasingly materialistic culture. The new immigration drastically expanded the ____________ and __________ faiths and new varieties emerged, including the __________ Army and the Christian __________ Church. Finally this section covers the important explosion of public and private schools (including parochial schools for the new Catholic immigrants).
9. African-Americans react to “Jim Crow” (pp. 573–575) a. By 1900, the day-to-day plight of blacks was little better than it had been under slavery. Summarize the views of these two leaders on the subject of black advancement. *** Under conditions prevailing at the time, which of these would you have supported and why?
(1) Booker T. Washington:
(2) W. E. B. DuBois:
(3) Your view:
10. Universities, Press, and Literature (pp. 575–581) Expansion of public universities was boosted by passage of the __________ Act of 1862 granting land for this purpose, and “robber barons” such as Leland __________ used their wealth to found many private universities. Andrew _________ funded the expansion of public libraries and the circulation of newspapers increased, notably with the competition between “yellow journalists” Joseph __________ and William Randolph __________. Of the extensive list of quality writers and authors discussed at the end of this section, pick three that you like and list a few of their characteristics. *** Have you read anything by any of them?
(1)
(2)
(3)
11. Moral Values and Women’s Rights (pp. 581–585) a. The new urban environment sparked debate over changing sexual attitudes and the role of women in the family. A new generation of women activists formed the National American Women’s ____________ Association in 18___. What were the differing arguments of the following two leaders in favor of women’s suffrage? *** Then put a (W) by the leader whose argument seems to you to be most similar to that of Booker T. Washington, and a (D) by the one whose argument you can connect to that of W. E. B. DuBois.
____ 1. Charlotte Perkins Gilman:
____ 2. Carrie Chapman Catt:
12. Reform, Art, and Culture (pp. 585–589) Women, most notably the colorful Carrie A. ________, led the fight against excessive drinking (mostly by men!), forming the Woman’s ____________ ______________ Association in 1874. Artists of the period included James _________ and Winslow __________. Popular music blossomed, including uniquely American forms of blues, ragtime, and jazz. The biggest world’s fair ever, the Great __________ Exposition, was held in __________ in 1893. And urban Americans had the time and money for new popular amusements such as the circus and spectator sports such as baseball, football, and boxing. *** After reading this chapter, reflect a bit on life at the end of the nineteenth century. Imagine growing up in this period and list one or two advantages and disadvantages compared to today.
(1) Advantages:
(2) Disadvantages:
13. Conquest of the Plains Indians (pp. 590–600) a. The intrusion of whites onto the Great Plains decimated native populations through disease and set tribes against each other in competition for ever-dwindling resources. The government tried to pacify the Indians by signing treaties with them—treating them as “sovereign” nations and forcing them onto reservations in exchange for material benefits. But these treaties assumed that Indians had basically European values. List the two basic white misunderstandings of Indian society and beliefs cited by the authors.
(1)
(2)
b. The treaties were violated on both sides, resulting in continuous warfare from the 1860s to the 1880s. For each of these tribes, list their geographic location, one prominent leader, and any other notes you think are interesting:
(1) Sioux:
(2) Nez Percé:
(3) Apache:
c. The authors attribute the “taming” of the Indians to the increased contact caused by the transcontinental railroad, to the spread of European diseases, and to the virtual extermination of the buffalo, of which there were approximately ____ million in 1865. Humanitarians wanted to treat the Indians kindly and help to “civilize” them, while the hard-liners wanted to keep squeezing and punishing them. “Humanitarians” pushed for passage of the _________ Severality Act of 18___. This act tried to integrate Indians into American culture. What were the provisions and results of this Act? *** What is your view of the “integration” effort? If not by integration, how was the Indian to survive in a world dominated by whites?
(1) Provisions:
(2) Results:
(3) Your view:
14. Western Economy (pp. 600–604) Mineral wealth, including the __________ Lode silver deposits in Nevada, played a major part in the western economy, as did cattle and farming. The railroads, particularly using new refrigerated cars, allowed cattle to reach the new meat-packing centers like Chicago and then be transported east. But the railroad brought out a wave of farmers and the _____________ Act of 1862 gave them free land to cultivate. (Remember the Jeffersonian idea that the country would be a better, more stable place if most people were small farmers?). But what worked in the East was less successful in the West because land roughly west of the 100th meridian was too dry to farm. When huge numbers of people abandoned their farms in the 1880s, the government again came to the rescue in the form of giant dams and irrigation projects to facilitate agriculture. *** How would you respond to a westerner who argued that the government should stay out of peoples’ lives and should leave the people free to go about their business without interference?
15. The Frontier Analyzed (pp. 604–608) With the 1889 land rush into previously Indian territory in _____________ and results of the census of 18____, it appeared to many that “a frontier line is no longer discernible.” In 1893, historian Frederick Jackson ___________ delivered his famous thesis that the pioneer experience (about to come to an end, he said) was the primary shaper of a distinctively American culture and set of values. Summarize the three arguments cited by the authors about the significance of the frontier in American history:
(1) a “safety valve”:
(2) a cultural meeting place:
(3) dominant role of government:
16. Farmers and Populist Sentiment (pp. 608–614) a. By mechanizing and specializing, farmers greatly increased their output in the late 1800s, but the high cost of doing so caused them to fall deeply into debt and they became more susceptible to the world price fluctuations of the few crops they were producing. Explain what the authors mean by the section heading entitled “Deflation Dooms the Debtor” on p. 609.
b. Notorious individualists, farmers (still representing _____ percent of the population) were being victimized by the railroads and by various middlemen, but they were slow to act collectively. However, in 1867 a rural grouping called the National ___________ (still active today) was formed, followed by the _____________ Labor party in the 1870s. This was succeeded in the 1880s by the cooperative Farmers’ _____________, which evolved into the grassroots People’s Party of the 1890s (better known as the ____________). List the four main elements of the Populist Party platform cited on page 613:
(1) (3)
(2) (4)
17. 1893 Depression (pp. 614–615) The economic crash of the early 1890s added industrial workers to the embittered farmers. Jacob S. _________ led a protest march of the unemployed in 1894. That same year, Eugene V. ______ led a crippling strike in ___________ against the __________ Palace Car Company, a strike put down by federal troops on the orders of President __________.
18. Watershed Election of 1896 (pp. 615–621) With the potential for class conflict (workers and farmers vs. the business class), the 1896 election loomed large. The Republicans nominated William _____________, whose campaign was managed and financed by the ruthless Marcus Alonzo _________. The Democrats went for the thunderous 36-year-old “Boy Orator” from the state of ____________, William Jennings _________, whose fiery “_________ of Gold” speech (calling for inflation through the unlimited coinage of silver) won over the convention. This left the Populists with a fateful choice. Even though the Democrats supported only one of their objectives (“free silver”), they decided to join with the Democrats in supporting Bryan in order to improve their chances of winning. When Bryan eventually lost to McKinley, the Populists had lost their identity for good and never recovered. On p. 619, the authors call the election of 1896 the “most significant political turning point” in over 30 years. Why? *** Can you draw any conclusions from this story?
