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Farmers Alliance Formed
a quasi-political party that formed in the late 1880s—merged with other liberal Democrats to form the Populist Party. Populists nominated former Greenback Party member James B. Weaver for president and campaigned on a platform of unlimited, cheap silver money pegged at a rate of sixteen ounces of silver to one ounce of gold. Populists also campaigned for government ownership of all railroad and telephone companies, a graduated income tax, direct election of U.S. senators, one-term limits for pre -
The Tariff Act of 1890
The Tariff Act of 1890, commonly called the McKinley Tariff, was an act framed by Representative William McKinley that became law on October 1, 1890. The tariff raised the average duty on imports to almost fifty percent, an act designed to protect domestic industries from foreign competition. Protectionism, a tactic supported by Republicans, was fiercely debated by politicians and condemned by Democrats. The McKinley Tariff was replaced with the Wilson-Gorman Tariff in 1894, which promptly lo -
Sherman Silver Purchase Act
The Sherman Silver Purchase Act was enacted on July 14, 1890[1] as a United States federal law. It was named after its author, Senator John Sherman, an Ohio Republican, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. While not authorizing the free and unlimited coinage of silver that the Free Silver supporters wanted, it increased the amount of silver the government was required to purchase every month. The Sherman Silver Purchase Act had been passed in response to the growing complaints of farmers an -
Populist Party Formed
The Populist movement arose primarily in response to the 1890 McKinley Tariff, a very high tariff that particularly hurt western and southern farmers who sold their harvests on unprotected markets but were forced to buy expensive manufactured goods. To protest the tariff, these farmers helped vote Republicans out of the House of Representatives in the 1890 congressional elections. -
Grover Cleveland Elected President
For the presidential election of 1892, the Republican and Democratic parties renominated candidates Benjamin Harrison and Grover Cleveland, respectively. In addition to the Populist candidate James Weaver, the fledgling Prohibition Party nominated John Bidwell. The Populists did surprisingly well, managing to receive over a million popular votes and twenty-two electoral votes. The unpopular McKinley Tariff ruined Harrison’s chance for reelection, so Cleveland was reelected, improbably becoming t -
The Depression of 1893
Cleveland’s second term was much more dynamic than his relatively uneventful first term, as the Depression of 1893 hit just months after he took the oath of office. This depression, the worst the country had seen since the Depression of 1873, could not have come at a more desperate time for the federal government. On top of the fact that the U.S. Treasury was already nearly empty, wily investors traded silver for gold in a convoluted scheme that sent the gold reserve sinking below the $100 milli -
“Coxey’s Army” marches on Washington, D.C. Congress passes the Wilson-Gorman Tariff Eugene V. Debs organizes Pullman Strike in Chicago
The Depression of 1893 and Cleveland’s repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act empowered the Populist movement, as disillusioned Democrats flocked to the Populist Party in the hopes of winning free silver and more power for the people. The depressed economic conditions also encouraged the creation of reform movements. In 1894, wealthy Ohio businessman Jacob S. Coxey set out with 500 men for Washington, D.C., to petition the federal government for cheap money and debt-relief programs. When “Cox -
J. P. Morgan bails out U.S. government
To prevent any more gold from being used up, Cleveland repealed the 1890 Sherman Silver Purchase Act, much to the chagrin of Populist-leaning Democrats. But the act’s repeal had little positive effect, and by the following year there was only $41 million left in the Treasury. The federal government thus was forced to look elsewhere for help. In a transaction that perhaps perfectly encapsulates the great power and wealth of big business in the Gilded Age, President Cleveland borrowed more than $6 -
William Jennings Bryan delivers “Cross of Gold” speech; William McKinley is elected president
By 1896, Cleveland had virtually no chance of being elected for a third term. His presidency had been marred by a multitude of crises: he had failed to squelch the Depression of 1893, barely managed to keep the U.S. Treasury at a stable level, angered middle-class constituents by ending the Pullman Strike with federal forces, and not kept his promise to reduce the tariff significantly. As a result, Democrats instead nominated William Jennings Bryan, who at the nominating convention delivered his -
Congress passes Dingley Tariff
Following the election of 1896, McKinley followed through with his promises for protectionism. Congress imposed duties on wool and hides which had been duty-free since 1872. Rates were increased on woolens, linens, silks, China, and sugar (the tax rates for which doubled). The Dingley Tariff remained in effect for twelve years making it the longest-lived tariff in U.S. history. It was also the highest in U.S. history averaging about 52% in its first year of operation. Over the life of the tariff
