Westward Expansion an Industrialization

Industrialization

1750

• Birth of the modern industry and social changes in the Westward expansion.
• Change from the physical labor to the machines industry.
• Advancement in the transportations by the construction of railroads to meet the requirements of the industry and promote travel and trades.

Political Machines

1786

• The guarantee of getting political favors such as jobs, contracts, and buildings in exchange of work to the parties, ususally getting votes.
• The Tammany Hall was an example of political machine that ran New York in the 18th century.
• Parties got benefits exchanging favors for votes with immigrants.

16th Amendment

1789

• The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration.
• The Congress has the power to collect taxes, imposts and duties to pay debts and establish the welfare t the population.
• The taxes can be derived from any source of income.

17th Amendment

1789

• The Senate of the United States shall be composed by two senators of each state.
• When ther is vacancies in the representation of the Senate in any state, the executive authority of that state shall issue writs of a new election to fill the vacancies.
• The legislature must empower the executive authority to do such changes.

Indian Removal

May 28, 1830

• Government signed this act to move American Indians to unsettled lands in the west of the state of Mississippi in exchange of their lands.
• Some tribes moved peacefully but some were enforced to move.
• Approximately 4,00 Cherokees died while forcibly moved to the west. This march is known as "Trail of Fears".

Manifest Destiny

1845

• The thought that the United States was destined b y God to stretch from coast to coast in the north america.
• Used as a motive to people to start a new life in the West.
• Territorial aggrandizement, process of liberty, seek for new resources and individual economic opportunities.

Third Parties Politics

1852

• The third major politic party in a two-parties system, that is, the system where two political parties dominate the elections.
• The third parties have influenced elections by gaining elected positions.
• Third parties have also gained space in the American History, by holding 600 mayoral offices for example, like the Socialist Party did.

The Gilded Age

1860

• Called Gilded Age in a ironic way because of the corruption, political scandals, greed, shady business to take advantages, all underneath the golden surface.
• The Gilded Age was not only a period of corruption, but helped the United States to get in the modern and urban society.
• Although corrupt, the Gilded age improved the transportation and communication and transformed the United States in a country of corporations.

Homestead Act

May 20, 1862

• Any citizen could buy and register lands available for $10 and settle.
• If the person somehow improved the land (farming, building, etc) it would be theirs in 5 years.
• Many families that got lands by the Homestead Act still have it today.

Nativism

1865

• The belief that certain abilities are native and can not be performed by immigrants, that is, the superiority of American people over people from other nationalities.
• Creation of political parties to limit the immigrants rights.
• Creation of laws to restrict the immigrants.

Susan B. Anthony

1869

• Known for becoming a leader of the abolitionist movement and women's vote right movement.
• With Elizabeth Cady Staton and Lucretia Mott created the National Women Suffrage association.
• Went to jail for illegal voting and became a symbol.

Immigration and the American Dream

1880

• For Americans: wealth, security, family, financials and freedom.
• For immigrants: a good opportunity, a new job, a new life, safety.
• Easier to immigrants to reach their dream once it is simply a new place to start a new life.

Civil Service Reform

1883

• Restoration of the Civil Service of the United States, part in response to the Watergate scandal.
• Also known by "The Pendleton Act", the Civil Service Reform created the Civil Service Comission, which placed the employees in the merit system and end with the spoils system.
• Employees were selected by competitive exams and with no advantages after the act.

Haymarket Riot

May 4, 1886

• A labor rally in which a bomb was thrown in the policemen that were trying to contain the crowd in Chicago, Illinois.
• In response of the killing of a striker the day before by the Chicago Police.
• Eight men were convicted by the bomb attack and seven of them were executed.

Dawes Act

Feb 8, 1887

• Transformed NAtive American´s lands in reservations into allotments and treated them as individuals rather than tribes.
• Attempt to assimilate Native Americans into white Americans.
• The "Indian Homestead Act" failed because the indians were inexperienced in farming and was used to take indians lands.

Andrew Carnegie

1889

• Revolutionized steel production in the United States using technology and methods to make it easier.
• Known as one of the America's "builders", that is, helped to transform the US into what it is today.
• Helped the country with his profit by philanthropic work.

Populism and Progressivism

1890

• Progressivism was the idea that the best way to make the country grow would by socio-political and economic reforms, making it modern and organized.
• The Populism was the idea that the best way to make the country grow would be by favoring agriculture and not using capitalism.
• The two movements wanted the same thing, the growth of the country, but usualy the Progressivism was supported by rich people and the Populism supported by farmers and all kind of workers.

Ida B. Wells

1890

• African- American journalist, sociologist, feminist, suffragist and also leader of the Civil Rights Movement.
• Known by leading an anti-lynching movement across the United States.
• Daughter of slaves, the segregation on railroads led Ida to start fighting against it using the journalism.

Clarence Darrow

1890

• Known as "labor lawyer", Clarence was raised in a family that was against slavery and helped slaves to escape to the north.
• Resigned his position to defend Eugene V. Debbs in the pullman strike.
• Defended several trade union leaders in the next years and was against child labor.

Eugene V. Debbs

1893

• Socialist leader and party candidate for President and labor organizer.
• Advocated by the railroads workers for better salaries.
• Worked as a locomotive fireman before organizing a local lodge of the Brotherhood of Locomotive and becoming the president American Railroad Union.

William Jennings Bryan

1896

• Became a Nebraska congress man in 1890.
• His speech Cross of Gold Favored the free silver.
• Agreed that the government should protect the individuals in their rights.

Klondike Gold Rush

Aug 16, 1896

• Migration to the Klondike region, in Canada, by an estimated number of 100,000 people after the discover of gold.
• When the news reached San Francisco and Seattle, many prospectors decided to invest their saves and time to go to Klondike and get rich.
• Boom towns were founded along the way to host the prospectors.

Urbanization

1898

• Cities growth caused by improvement of the farming machines and immigration.
• City problems because of overcrowding, inaddequate public services, etc.
• Unorganized and corrupt government that took advantage of elections.

Initiative and Referendum

1898

• Initiative is when a citizen can initiate an statute process.
• Referendum is when the citizens can vote for or against a statute passed by the legislature, making the statute stay or stop.
• The only exception is the state of Wyoming, which does not stop the statute when the voting is against it.

Theodore Roosevelt

1901

• Held that the President should do whatever is necessary, under the law, to the public good.
• Held that the Government should be the arbiter in economic conflicts in the Nation, specially between capital and labor.
• He was the youngest president in the history of the United States.

Muckraker

1902

• A group of reporters that used printed publications to expose injustices.
• The first of the Muckrakers to strike was Lincoln Steffens, exposing corruption among city officials.
• Publishing articles had more feedback and impact than reporting to the congress.

Pure Food and Drug Act

1906

• Protest against careless food preparation and addiction by patent medicines.
• Dr. Harvey W. Wiley, from the Department of Agriculture, gave scientistic support to the movement.
• The president ensured the passage of the Meat Inspection and the Pure Food and Drug Acts in 1906.

Dollar Diplomacy

1909

• The policy created by the President William Howard Taft that ensured the financial stabilty of a country in exchange of the right to control some part of that region.
• Taft helped to overthrow the Nicaragua's president to meet his interests but the resentment of the Nicaraguan people resulted in an American intervention.
• The failure in running the policy on China caused the abandon of the policy in 1912.

Federal Reserve Act

1913

• With purpose to create a better, more flexible, safer and stable monetary and financial system in the United States Bank.
• The Congress of the United States has the power to amend the Federal Reserve Act.
• The act provides, structure, purpose and describes the operations and responsibilities of the System.

19th Amendment

Jun 4, 1919

• Says that the right of vote shall not be denied by account of sex.
• Until the 1910s, most part of the states denied women to vote.
• Ws the culmination of the women's suffrage movement.

Tea Pot Dome Scandal

1920

• The leasing of oil reserves by the secretary of the interior, Albert Bacon Fall, to oil companies after getting the supervision of the naval oil-reserve lands from the navy.
• The government discovered the transactions of bribe in Fall's account coming from the oil companies.
• Fall was convicted and arrested and the scandal had little-long term effect to his party.

18th Amendment

1920

• The importation, exportation, sale, or manufacture of intoxicating liquors as beverage in the United States is prohibited.
• The law to be repealed in the United States Constitution.
• Caused by religious protests who considered alcohol a threat to the nation.

Jane Addams

1931

• Known as "mother" of social work, Jane Addams was a pioneer American settlement activist, sociologist, social worker, public philosopher, etc.
• Co-founded the first settlement house in the United States.
• Author of numerous articles and books, Jane Addams advocated for the immigrants, poor people, women and claimed for peace.

Upton Sinclair

1943

• Journalist and novelist.
• Wrote novels to portray the rough conditions of the immigrants.
• He wrote The Jungle to expose bad conditions of workers in the meat-pack industry.

Suffrage

1960

• The Women's Suffrage had as main motive the rejection of women's vote.
• Foundation of many associations in favor to the Women's Suffrage movement along the country to conquer the right of vote in all states.
• First state to grant women the right of vote was Wyoming, in 1969.