-
Period: to
Progressive Era
-
The Time Machine, by H.G. Welles, is published
H. G. Welles was one of the most influential progressives of the 20th century. He called his political philosophy "Liberla Fascism". His novel Time Machine reflects Wells's own socialist political views. It also shows disapproval about industrial relations. -
William Jennings Bryan first Democratic nomination
William Jennings Bryan was the Democratic parties canidate for the pesidency three times. He was also the secretary of state under Woodrow Wilson. He was a peace advocate promoted trust-busting and a prohibitionist. He bacame one of the most well know orators letcures of the progressive era. -
Eugene Debs runs for president as social party canidate
Eugene Debs was and American union leader, and the canidate of the social party for the presidency multpiple times. He was key in founding one of the first industrial unions (the ARU). After reading the works of Kar Marx he bacame one of the most prominent socialist of the 20th century. He was also noted for his oratory. -
Teddy Roosevelt Inagurated
Teddy Roosevelt was a leader of the Republican Party and founder of the short-lived Progressive or "Bull Moose" Party of 1912. As the 26th president of the United States he pushed the Redpublican party toward progessivism. He Focused mainly on trust-busting and preserving nature and "Big Stick Diplomacy". Bid Stick Diplomacy meant to speak softly but back up your words and not hesitate to take action. He later recommened Howard Taft to be the next republican party canidate. -
Elkins Act passed
The Elkins Act was a business reform put in place to end the practice of rebates. It stated that Railroads could not give rebates as incentives. It also stated that Railroads could not change rates without notification. This protected the consumer by holding the railroad company liable and offering refunds. -
YMCA creates an "Industrial" department to assist immagrants and workers
The YMCA stands for the Young Men's Christian Association. It was opened in America as a social-justice reform. It provided a place for people to sleep, as well as opening libraries, sponsooring classes, and buliding swimming pools. It helped in the progressive era to offer a place to escape hazards of the time. -
Lincoln Steffens publishes The Shame of The Cities
Lincoln Steffens was a progressive era muckraker who wrote The Shame of The Cities. The Shame of the Cities was a collectiion of article that Steffens had written for McClure's Magazine. It reports on the workings of corrupt political machines in several major U.S. cities. Steffens had a theory that corruption was the result of "big business men" who corrupted city government for their own benifit. -
Robert La Follette elected into Senate
Robert La Follette was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Governor of Wisconsin, and was also a U.S. Senator. La Follette was a Republican and a Progressive, this is shown in his opposition to railroad trusts, and is still recognized for his speeches against the railroad companies. He fought vheminetly against railroad trusts earning him his nickname "Fighting Bob" -
The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair, is published
Upton Sinclair is a well known muckraker, famous for his novel "The Jungle". The book is an exposes the corrupt practices in large comapnies and the poor working conditions workers are placed in. The sections about the meat-packing industry captured the most attention from readers. The novel helped lead to the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. -
Pure Food and Drug Act signed into law
The Pure Food and Drug Act was a corrupt practice reform passed in 1906. It halted the sale of contaminated food and medicine. It is described as a "thruth in labeling" law. It protects the consumer from a business manipulating a product in a way that may be unsafe for the consumer. The Act arose due to education and exposes from muckrakers. -
Jane Addams becomes first female president of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections
Jane Addams was a leader in the womans suffrage movement, in world peace, and was a prominant reformer. She helped bring attention to issues of concern to mothers, needs of children, public health, and world peace. She opened a settlement house called the Hull house, and elected the first woman president of the National Conference of Charities and Corrections. Her legacy is in the Hull house and in her peace movement. -
Bramwell Booth takes over the Salvation Army
The Salvation Army was a public service reform that started in England and made its way to America. It fed the poor in soup kitchens, cared for kids in nursuries. It aslo organized "Slum Brigades" to educate immagrants about hard work and temperance. The salvation army worked as a non-profit organozation dedicated to just help the public. -
16th Amendment adopted
The 16th Amendment allows the Congress to impose an income tax without apportioning it among the states or basing it on the US Census. Progressives in Congress attached a provision for an income tax to a tariff bill, and Conservatives, in opposition to this, proposed a constitutional amendment enacting such a tax. This created the 16th Amendment. -
17th Amendment adopted
The Seventeenth Amendment established direct election of United States Senators by popular vote. The privious rule of senators being elected by legislators had to be changed due to risk of corruption, the potential for electoral deadlocks, or a lack of representation if a seat became vacant. Progressives, such as William Jennings Bryan, called for reform to the way senators were chosen. -
Charles Evans Hughes resigns from supreme court to run as Republican canidate for presdent
Charles Evans Hughes was an important leader in the progressive movement. He was offered the vice-presidential nomination by William Taft, but declined. Theodore Roosevelt and Taft became supporters of Hughes. While govener, he countered political corruption by making campaign laws that limited political contributions by corporations, and forced candidates to account for their receipts and expenses. When Hughes ran for president he was narrowly defeated by Woodrow Wilson. -
Keating-Owen Act passed
The Keating-Owen Act was a child labor reform passed in 1916. It prohibited the transport across state lines of goods manufactured using child labor. This protected the working class by attempting to reduce child labor by not letting a profit be made off the businesses goods. This was later deemed unconstitutional in 1918 by interferring with states rights. -
Woodrow Wilson inaugurated into office
Woodrow Wilson was a Democrat and the 28th president of the US. In his first term Wilson convinced Congress to pass major progressive reforms. Some of these reforms were the Federal Reserve Act, Federal Trade Commission Act, the Clayton Antitrust Act, and the Federal Farm Loan Act. He was also an advocate for Womens Suffrage. He was re-elected in 1916. -
Hiram Johnson assumed office for U.S. Senate
Along with being a leading progressive, Hiram Johnson was the 23rd governor of California, a United States Senator, and Roosevelt's running mate in the 1912 presidential election for the Progressive party. After Roosevelt's death, Johnson was regarded as the natural leader of the Progressive Party. Instead, though, he ran as a republican. -
18th Amendment raitified
The 18th Amendment established the prohibition of alcoholic beverages in the United States. The 18th Amendment came about through the temperance movement in the United States, and was considered a progressive amendment. Alcohol consumption was seen by many at the time as immoral and detrimental to society. Prohibition was considered a moral reform. -
19th Amendment ratified
The 19th Amendment prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote on the basis of sex. This is due to the Womans Suffrage movement that had been going on during the progressive era. The Seneca Falls Convention is considered the start of the American women's rights movement. The right for women to vote was a major breakthrough in womans rights.
