Horace Greeley
An American newspaper editor and founder of the Republican party. His New York Tribune was America's most influential newspaper 1840-1870. Greeley used it to promote the Whig and Republican parties, as well as antislavery and a host of reforms. (Whig part
Homestead Strike
1892 steelworker strike near Pittsburgh against the Carnegie Steel Company. Ten workers were killed in a riot when "scab" labor was brought in to force an end to the strike. (Scab labor is when a union worker who returns to the job without permission from
Pullman Strike
1894 - nonviolent strike (brought down the railway system in most of the West) at the Pullman Palace Car Co. over wages - Prez. Cleveland shut it down because it was interfering with mail delivery. The strike was crushed by court injunctions and federal t
The Grange
1867- Originally a social organization between farmers, it developed into a political movement for government ownership of railroads. It grew out of the Datron's of Husbandry. Farmers lobbied for for governmental control of railroad and grain elevator and
Pendleton Civil Service Act
1883 law that created a Civil Service Commission and stated that federal employees could not be required to contribute to campaign funds nor be fired for political reasons. It was a major issue in the Gilded Age; it introduce. The act gave the commission
Homestead Act
1862 - Provided free land in the West to anyone willing to settle there and develop it. Encouraged westward migration. It authorized Congress to grant a hundred and sixty acres of public land to a Western settler, who had only to live on that land for fiv
Buffalo Soldiers
Nickname for African-American soldiers who fought in the wars against Native Americans living on the Great Plains during the 1870s. Many of the veterans came from Louisiana and Kentucky. They built and maintained forts, mapped vast areas of the southwest,
Battle of the Little big horn
(Custer's Last Stand) battle between Lakota and Northern Cheyenne in the Black Hills of the Dakota Territory , led by Sitting Bull, against the 7th Cavalry Regiment of the US Army; Indians won because Crazy Horse led them in battle and they killed everyon
Sherman Anti-trust Act
First federal action against monopolies, it was signed into law by Harrison and was extensively used by Theodore Roosevelt for trust-busting. However, it was initially misused against labor unions
A Century of Dishonor
1881 Helen Hunt Jackson book designed to expose the atrocities the United States committed against Native Americans in the 19th century
William Graham Summer
Yale professor; viewing was different stating that the rich and the poor were just where nature intended and that any change would slow progress and harm society
Dawes Act
1887 law which gave all Native American males 160 acres to farm and also set up schools to make Native American children more like other Americans
Women's Christian Temperance Union
This women's union called for the national prohibition of alcohol. Led by Frances E. Willard and Carrie A. Nation
Chivington Massacre
1864 massacre, where Colonel John Chivington and his militia slaughtered more than 200 cheyenne men, women, and children, who were trying to surrender
Jim Crow Laws
Any of the laws legalizing racial segregation of blacks and whites that were enacted in Southern states beginning in the 1880s and enforced through the 1950's
Battle of Wounded Knee(1890)
US soldiers massacred 300 unarmed Native American in 1890. This ended the Indian Wars.
Booker T. Washington
African American progressive who supported segregation and demanded that African American better themselves individually to achieve equality.
Frederick Jackson Turner
United States historian who stressed the role of the western frontier in American history (1861-1951)
Mary Elizabeth Lease
Colorful leader of the farm movement in Kansas (as well as one of the state's first female lawyers) who was a fiery public speaker on behalf of various causes such as Irish nationalism, temperance, women's suffrage and free silver.
Bessemer Process
A way to manufacture steel quickly and cheaply by blasting hot air through melted iron to quickly remove impurities.
bull moose" party
The Republicans were badly split in the 1912 election, so Roosevelt broke away forming his own Progressive Party (or Bull Moose Party because he was "fit as a bull moose..."). His loss led to the election of Democratic nominee Woodrow Wilson, but he gaine
Andrew Carnegie
A Scottish-born American industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Carnegie Steel Company in 1892. By 1901, his company dominated the American steel industry.
William Jennings Bryan
United States lawyer and politician who advocated free silver and prosecuted John Scopes (1925) for teaching evolution in a Tennessee high school (1860-1925)
Credit Moblier
One of the scandals during Grant's presidency. The Union Pacific Railroad had formed the Credit Mobilier construction company and then hired themselves at inflated prices to build the railroad line. The company then bought several prominent Republican con
Thomas Edison
American inventor best known for inventing the electric light bulb, acoustic recording on wax cylinders, and motion pictures. (p. 703)
Robber Barons
Refers to the industrialists or big business owners who gained huge profits by paying their employees extremely low wages. They also drove their competitors out of business by selling their products cheaper than it cost to produce it. Then when they contr
Eugene V. Debs
He was the president and the organizer of the American Railway Union. He organized the Pullman Strike and helped organized the Social Democratic party.
Thomas Nast
A famous caricaturist and editorial cartoonist in the 19th century and is considered to be the father of American political cartooning. His artwork was primarily based on political corruption. He helped people realize the corruption of some politicians
The Triangle Fire
A 1911 incident in a garment factory that resulted in the deaths of over 140 garment workers; led to increased safety regulations for businesses. They were locked in rooms to ensure they did not steal anything
Knights of Labor
1st effort to create National union. Open to everyone but lawyers and bankers. Vague program, no clear goals, weak leadership and organization. Failed
Tweed Ring
A group of people in New York City who worked with and for Burly "Boss" Tweed. He was a crooked politician and money maker. The ring supported all of his deeds. The New York Times finally found evidence to jail Tweed. Without Tweed the ring did not last.
Samuel Gompers
He was the creator of the American Federation of Labor. He provided a stable and unified union for skilled workers.
Haymarket Riot
100,000 workers rioted in Chicago. After the police fired into the crowd, the workers met and rallied in Haymarket Square to protest police brutality. A bomb exploded, killing or injuring many of the police. The Chicago workers and the man who set the bom
Yellow Journalism/Muckrakers
Deliberately sensational style of reporting which was bold biased with a lot of graphics
Trust-Busting
(law) government activities seeking to dissolve corporate trusts and monopolies (especially under the United States antitrust laws)
The Molly Maguires
A labor union of mostly Irish coal miners in Pennsylvania. They sometimes used terrorist tactics (violence, threats, and murder) to carry out their goals. They added to the stereotype that labor unions were dangerous and radical.
Hull House
Settlement home designed as a welfare agency for needy families. It provided social and educational opportunities for working class people in the neighborhood as well as improving some of the conditions caused by poverty.
Munn vs. Illinois
A Supreme Court Case that allowed the state governments to regulate the railroads in favor of farmers or Grangers
Wabash vs.Illinois
Declared state-passed Granger laws that regulated interstate commerce unconstiutional.
John D. Rockefeller
Aggressive energy-industry monopolist who used tough means to build a trust based on "horizontal integration
Interstate Commerce Act
Established the ICC (Interstate Commerce Commission) - monitors the business operation of carriers transporting goods and people between states - created to regulate railroad prices
J.P. Morgan
A highly successful banker who bought out Carnegie. With Carnegie's holdings and some others, he launched U.S Steel and made it the first billion dollar corporation.
Plessy vs. Ferguson
(1896) The Court ruled that segregation was not discriminatory (did not violate black civil rights under the Fourteenth Amendemnt) provide that blacks received accommodations equal to those of whites.
The Jungle
This 1906 work by Upton Sinclair pointed out the abuses of the meat packing industry. The book led to the passage of the 1906 Meat Inspection Act.
Stalwarts and Half-Breeds
factions in the republican party that emerged by 1880. the stalwarts supported the spoils system while the half-breeds claimed to represent the idea of civil service reform
How the other Half Lives
1890 work by Jacob A. Riis dealing with the conditions of the New York slums. It shocked the middle class, and deeply influenced Theodore Roosevelt in his formative years.
American Federation of Labor
1886; founded by Samuel Gompers; sought better wages, hrs, working conditions; skilled laborers, arose out of dissatisfaction with the Knights of Labor, rejected socialist and communist ideas, non-violent.
The Influence of Sea Power on History
an influential treatise on naval warfare written in 1890 by Alfred Thayer Mahan. It details the role of sea power throughout history and discusses the various factors needed to support a strong navy.
valeriano "butcher" weyler
Sended by Spain and 100000 other troops to supress Cuban revolt from Spain; Spanish general undertook to crush the rebellion by herding many civilians into barbed wired camps where they could not give assistance to the armed insurrectos. 1896
Dupuy de Lome
He was a Spanish minister in Washington who wrote a private letter to a friend concerning President McKinley (called him basically usless and indecisive) The discovery of his letter strained Spanish-American relations, which helped initiate the Spanish-Am
The Maine
An explosion from a mine in the Bay of Havanna crippled the warship Maine. The U.S. blamed Spain for the incident and used it as an excuse to go to war with Spain.
Emilio Aguinaldo
Filipino General - helped US take Philipines during Spanish-American war - helped Philippines gain freedom from US
The Rough Riders
Group of men put together by Teddy Roosevelt/ Famous for the charge up San Juan Hill in Cuba during the Spanish-American War
Teller Amendment
This Amendment was drafter by Henry M. Teller which declared that the US had no desire for control in Cuba & pledged the US would leave the island alone.
square deal
President Theodore Roosevelt's plan for reform; all Americans are entitled to an equal opportinity to succeed
speak softly and carry a big stick
refers to Roosevelt Diplomacy, which allowed for aggressive foreign policy. "big stick" = the US Navy
Roosevelt Corollary
(TR) , Roosevelt's 1904 extension of the Monroe Doctrine, stating that the United States has the right to protect its economic interests in South And Central America by using military force, first put into effect in Dominican Republic
Dollar Diplomacy
Term used to describe the efforts of the US to further its foreign policy through use of economic power by gaurenteeing loans to foreign countries
Panama Canal
(TR) , The United States built the Panama Canal to have a quicker passage to the Pacific from the Atlantic and vice versa. It cost $400,000,000 to build. Columbians would not let Americans build the canal, but then with the assistance of the United States
Sarajevo
Administrative center of the Bosnian province of Austrian Empire; assassination there of Arch-duke Ferdinand in 1914 started World War I
Triple Entente
A military alliance between Great Britain, France, and Russia in the years preceding World War I.
Lusitania
A British passenger ship that was sunk by a German U-Boat on May 7, 1915. 128 Americans died. The sinking greatly turned American opinion against the Germans, helping the move towards entering the war.
Birth of a nation
1915, first full length classic. glorified the KKK of reconruction days and defamed both blacks and Northern carpetbaggers
trench warfare
Fighting with trenches, mines, and barbed wire. Horrible living conditions, great slaughter, no gains, stalemate, used in WWI.
Zimmermann Telegram
January 1917 the British intercepted a telegram from the German government to the Mexican government offering German support if Mexico declared war against the US; offered to return land Mexico lost the US
Doughboys
A nickname for the inexperienced but fresh American soldiers during WWI.
George Creel
A journalists who was the head of the Committee of Public Information. He helped the anti-German movement as well as inspired patriotism in America during the war.
Bolshevik Revolution
The overthrow of Russia's Provisional Government in the fall of 1917 by Lenin and his Bolshevik forces, made possible by the government's continuing defeat in the war, its failure to bring political reform, and a further decline in the conditions of every
Schenck vs. United States
A man was imprisoned for distributing pamphlets against the draft. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes concluded that right to free speech could be limited when it represented a "clear and present danger" to the public safety.
Fourteen Points
A peace program presented to the U.S. Congress by President Woodrow Wilson in January 1918. It called for the evacuation of German-occupied lands, the drawing of borders and the settling of territorial disputes by the self-determination of the affected po
Treaty of Versailles
(WW) 1918, , Created by the leaders victorious allies Nations: France, Britain, US, and signed by Germany to help stop WWI. The treaty 1)stripped Germany of all Army, Navy, Airforce. 2) Germany had to rapair war damages(33 billion) 3) Germany had to ackno
Spanish Flu Epidemic
1918 20-30 million dead worldwide, began in training camps in Kansas and spread around the world as soldiers returned home
Spanish Flu Epidemic
1918 20-30 million dead worldwide, began in training camps in Kansas and spread around the world as soldiers returned home
18th Amendment
Prohibited the manufacture, sale, and distribution of alcoholic beverages
19th Amendment
Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (1920) extended the right to vote to women in federal or state elections.