Transcript Gilded Age

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
AND POLITICS
During the late 1800s, the development of new
industrial products such as the steel plow and
barbed wire MOST directly contributed to the
migration of people to the
A. Pacific Northwest.
B. Great Plains.
C. Mississippi Delta.
D. Great Lakes region.
During the late 1800s, the development of new
industrial products such as the steel plow and
barbed wire MOST directly contributed to the
migration of people to the
A. Pacific Northwest.
B. Great Plains.
C. Mississippi Delta.
D. Great Lakes region.
Gilded Age
The term refers to 1870-1900 when
much corruption and poverty
existed in the US despite the
outward appearance of
prosperity during the Industrial
Era; a “gilded” surface is shiny
and golden while the material
underneath is cheap and fake
Examples include: unsafe working
conditions, low wages, child
labor, long hours, discrimination
of minorities and women… vs.
the wealthy industrialists who
profited from their workers
•
•
Republicans received support from:
people who supported the Union during
the Civil War, African Americans,
business leaders, and Protestant
Northerners.
Democrats received support from:
Southern Whites, Northern political
machines, and Irish/German immigrants
•
Election of 1876- Rutherford B. Hayes-R
vs. Samuel Tilden-D
– Tilden won the popular vote by 250,000
votes
– However, 20 electoral votes were disputed
(LA, SC, and FL submitted two sets of
electoral votes- one Republican and one
Democratic)
– The Electoral Count Act was passed that
est. a bi-partisan 15 man committee to settle
the issue
19th President
– The committee accepted the Republican
ballots and Southern Democrats threatened
a filibuster
– The Compromise of 1877 was composed to
resolve the issue. Democrats agreed to
accept Hayes as President in exchange for:
– Ending military reconstruction in the South
– Promise for the support of Congress in building a
southern transcontinental RR from New Orleans to
the West Coast
– Major issues of Hayes Administration:
– The end of military reconstruction
– Civil service reform
– Labor problems developed b/c of a
bad economy
– RR strikes (federal troops used to
restore order)
– Labor and racial problems
disrupted the economy of the west
» 1. Chinese/Irish problems led to
the passage of the Chinese
Exclusion Act of 1882 (1st
immigration restriction law
passed in US)
•
Election of 1880- James Garfield-R vs.
Winfield Scott Hancock- D
– Garfield won the popular and electoral vote
– In 1881, a mentally deranged office seeker,
Charles Guiteau, assassinated Garfield.
– Patronage or the “spoils system” had allowed
winning candidates the ability to appoint their
supporters to government jobs; Guiteau
thought he deserved a job
– Garfield’s death illustrated the need for Civil
Service Reform
– Chester A. Arthur then became president
20th President
21st President
– Major events of the Arthur administration:
– Passage of the Pendleton Civil Service
Act, 1883
» It set up the Civil Service Commission
that administered competitive exams
for applicants seeking federal jobs
» The act classified 15,000 jobs which
would be filled by passing a
competitive exam- they had to be
competent and qualified
– Arthur convinced Congress to provide
money to upgrade our navy. By 1898,
the US navy ranked 5th among the
world fleets
•
22nd /24th
President
Election of 1884- James BlaineR vs. Grover Cleveland-D
– Republicans who didn’t support
Blaine were called “mugwumps”
– For the first time since the Civil
War, a Democrat, Cleveland,
carried the “Solid South”
– Achievements of Cleveland’s
Administration:
– Civil Service Reform- fired 120,000
federal employees
– Fought major abuses in the Civil
War pension system
– Fought for a lower tariff
•
Election of 1888- Benjamin Harrison-R
vs. Grover Cleveland-D
– Harrison elected
– Cleveland was the first incumbent President
since Martin Van Buren to be defeated for
re-election
His administration is most
remembered for economic
legislation, including
the McKinley Tariff and
the Sherman Antitrust Act, and
for annual federal spending that
reached one billion dollars for
the first time.
•
Election of 1892- Benjamin Harrison-R,
Grover Cleveland-D, vs. James WeaverPopulist
– Cleveland opposed free silver and inflation
which appealed to business leaders
– Weaver sought support from both white and
black voters which hurt him in the South
– Harrison was hurt by labor discontent (he sent
in troops to restore order in the Homestead
Strike)
– Cleveland won the election
– However, the Populists won 14 Congressional
seats
•
Election of 1896- William McKinley-R vs.
William Jennings Bryan-D
– Bryan’s “Cross of Gold” speech was the most
important event of the Democratic
convention- it supported free silver; he easily
received the party’s nomination afterwards
– Bryan appealed to farmers but not to urban,
industrial states
– McKinley’s victory seemed to endorse the
“status quo”- Americans were content with
the traditional approach to government
The Presidential candidate of 1896 depicted in
the cartoon above was
A. William McKinley.
B. James Garfield.
C. Williams Jennings Bryan.
D. Theodore Roosevelt.
What major event in US History
took place at Promontory Point,
Utah in 1869?
• A) the final major battle of the “Indian
Wars”
• B) the discovery of gold
• C) the completion of the first,
transcontinental railroad line across North
America
• D) the death of General George
Armstrong Custer
The invention of the light bulb contributed to
industrial growth in the United States by
making it possible for
A. production to continue at night.
B. workers to light their homes.
C. electric companies to raise their prices.
D. cities to reduce crime by lighting city
streets.
The invention of the light bulb contributed to
industrial growth in the United States by
making it possible for
A. production to continue at night.
B. workers to light their homes.
C. electric companies to raise their prices.
D. cities to reduce crime by lighting city
streets.