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Period: to
Progressivism
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Frank Norris Publishes The Octopus
In his muckracking book The Octopus, Frank Norris exposes the ways in which railroad companies misused their powers. -
Teddy Roosevelt Becomes President
Theodore Roosevelt was sworn into office when President McKinley died a week after being shot by anarchist Leon Czolgsz. As the first progressive president of the United States, Roosevelt promoted the regulation of big business and worked to reform government. -
Newlands Reclamation Act Passed
President Roosevelt passes the Newlands Reclamation Act, allowing money from the sales of public land to be used for irrigation and reclamation. -
Ida Tarbell: Muckracker
The reform minded magazine Mclure's publishes the first installment of Ida Tarbell's "History of the Standard Oil Company", which exposed John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company's unfair business practices. -
The Shame of the Cities Published
Linoln Steffens' novel The Shame of the Cities is published, documenting political corruption in urban America. -
Business Reform
In his first effort to regulate large corporations, President Roosevelt directs the attorney general to sue the Northern Securities Company for monopolizing railroad shipping in the Northeast. -
Labor Reform
With the "Square Deal", President Roosevelt campaigns fo limitng the power of trusts, promoting public health and safety, and improving working conditions. -
H.G. Wells Publishes The Future of America
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Pure Food and Drug Act Passed
In response to abuses from the drug industry, President Roosevelt enacted the Pure Food and Drug Act, forbidding the manufacture, sale, or manufacture of food and patent medicine containing harmful ingredients. -
Meat Inspection Act Passed
In response to abuses by the food industry, President Roosevelt enacted the Meat Inspection Act, requiring government inspection of meat shipped between states. -
Upton Sinclair Publishes The Jungle
In an effort to alert the public about the cosequences of capitalist greed, Upton Sinclair publishes his novel The Jungle, in which he vividly describes the unsanitary handling of meat in the Chicago meat-paking industry, resulting in Americans demanding federal laws prohibiting unhealthy conditions in food-processing industries. -
Robert La Follette Becomes Senator
Robert La Follette was elected by the Wisconsin legislature to the U.S. Senate, a spot he would occupy up untli his death in 1925. As senator, La Follette strongly opposed American involvement in World War I and campaigned for child labor laws, social security, women's suffrage, and other progressive reforms. -
Ray Stannerd Baker Publishes Following the Color Line
In his novel Following the Color Line, Ray Stannerd Baker exposes racial injustice in the U.S. by describing a lynching of a black man in Springfield, Ohio, and the indifference of the people in the town about it. -
William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan, who had previously ran for president in 1896, was the Democratic nomination for the 1908 presidential election. However Bryan, even with the support from the American Federation of Labor for his progressive prolabor platform, was again unable to claim the presidency as he lost to RepublicanWilliam Howard Taft. -
Jane Addam Helps Found the NAACP
Jane Addams, who was already known for her helping the urban poor and working for women's rights, was one of the leading white progressives who helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. -
NAACP Formed
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is formed by W.E.B. Du Bois and leading white progressives with the purpose of calling for social reforms that would ensure equal rights for African Americans. -
New Nationlism
During his campaign for progressive Republicans, Theodore Roosevelt offers is New Nationalism, calling for tough laws to protect workers, ensure public safety, and regulate business. -
Society of American Indians Formed
The Society of American Indians is formed for the purpose of working to address the problems facing Native Americans. -
New Freedom
Woodrow Wilson's progressive program New Freedom called for a revival of small business and free from the control of big business and government. -
Eugene Debs Runs for President
In 1912, Eugene Debs unsuccessfully ran for president. Representing the Socialist party, Debs supported worker conrol of the government and public ownership of all major industries. -
16th Amendment Ratified
The Sixteenth Amendment is passed, authorizing a national tax based on individual income. This tax was supported by progressives because it helped fund needed government programs. -
17th Amendmnt Ratified
The Seventeenth Amendment is ratified, authorizing voters to elect their senators directly. -
Woodrow WIlson Sworn In
Woodrow Wilson is sworn in as president. Over the course of his presidency, Wilson would move to lower tariffs reform banking, regulate corporations, and aid farmers. -
18th Amendment Ratified
The Eighteenth Amendment is ratified, barring the manufacture, sale, or importation of alcoholic beverages. -
19th Amendment Ratified
The Nineteenth Amendmentis ratified, granting women full voting rights.
