GILDED AGE (1870-1910)

■ Rail Road:
■ Many of the laborers working on the Transcontinental Railroad were Chinese immigrants.
■ These immigrants received just $26 to $35 a month for a 12 hour day, 6 days a week – had to
proved own tents and food.
■ Refrigerated Railroad Car made it possible to ship meat from slaughter houses to cities .
■ The corruption in the railroad industry became public in 1872 when the Credit Mobilier scandal
erupted. CREDIT MOBILIER was a construction company set up by several stockholders of
the Union Pacific RR, including Oakes Ames, a member of Congress.
■ They were paying themselves.

■ Population Growth:
■ Late 19th century the US experienced continuous population growth.
■ 1850 to 1900 population tripled – 1850 (23 million) – 1900 (79 million)
■ Caused by a high birth rate and increased European immigration.
■ Increased population created conditions for business expansion.
 GILDED AGE (1870-1910)
■ Oil Monopoly
■ Rockefeller’s company grew into a monopoly – a company having complete control over
the supply of a product or service.
■ 1873 – America experienced a depression – an economic downturn in business.
■ Monopoly power allowed a manufacturer to dictate prices to consumers.
■ Many believed the economy worked best when it was not burdened by government
regulations.
■ Leaders also doubted the Constitution gave them the right to regulate business.
■ However, some anti-competitive practices of business were so glaring that
reformers called for legislation to remedy them – giving government a greater role.
■ Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890) – this federal law was to stop monopolies engaging in
unfair practices that prevented fair competition.
■ This act marked a significant change in the attitude of Congress toward the abuses of big
business.
What were the conditions of labor?
■ Work days were 10 – 14 hours 6 days a week.
■ Employers hired the least expensive laborers .
■ Pay averaged $3 - $12 weekly – immigrants would work for much less.
■ Women and children were employed as low wage workers.
■ Jobs were offered on “take it or leave it” basis.
■ Working conditions were also hazardous – safeguards around machinery were
inadequate.
■ 1000s were injured or killed in industrial accidents each year.
■ Textile mills and coal mines used child labor.
■ Children were used to clean, move, or fix large machines since they were small enough to
fit between the parts.
■ 1/5 of all American children under the age of 15 worked outside the home in 1910.
■ These children missed playing and the opportunity to attend school.
 What were the conditions of labor?
■ Workers lacked benefits such as unemployment, worker’s compensation, sick
days.
■ The Rise of the Unions
■ Big business meant that workers lost bargaining power from employers.
■ Some workers formed unions to act as a group instead of as individuals
■ Unions organized strikes and protests to obtain better working conditions
■ Knights of Labor (1869) – hoped to create a single national union by joining
together all skilled and unskilled workers.
■ Demanded 8 hour workday, higher wages, and safety codes in factories.
■ Opposed child labor and supported equal pay for women
■ After losing a series of strikes, Knights fell apart.
 Labour Union
■ American Federation of Labor (AFL) 1881 – founded by Samuel Gompers • Hoped
to create a powerful union by uniting workers with similar economic interests
■ Gompers limited his goals to winning economic improvement for workers, higher pay,
an 8 hour work day, and better working conditions.
■ AFL quickly emerged as principle voice of organized labor
■ How did the government respond to unions?
■ Business leaders often contributed heavily to political campaigns .
■ Many politicians shared the same outlook as business leaders.
■ 1895 the US Supreme court even applied the Sherman Anti-Trust ACT (1890)
against unions.
■ Ruled the unions were illegal combinations in restraint of trade.
■ Ruling encouraged government leaders to use troops to put down strikes and restore
order.
 Labour Union
■ Courts ruled strikes were “conspiracies that interfered with trade”
■ Marxist, Anarchists, or Revolutionaries
 PROGRESSIVISM (1890-1920)
■ By-product of Industrialization.
■ It was a movement by the urban middle class apart from doctors, lawyers, ministers
and storekeepers there now were thousands of white collar office workers and
middle class managers employed in banks, firms and other businesses.
■ The aim was to make America a progressive nation (Pol. + Eco. + Soc.)
■ Main Goal:
■ A stronger central Government that would legislate based on:
• Scientific Principles.
•Moral Improvement.
•Regulation of Business.
•Political Democracy.
 PROGRESSIVISM (1890-1920)
■ Role of the Muckrakers
The need for reform was highlighted by a group of journalists and writers known as the
muckrakers, who made Americans aware of the serious failings in society and built public
support for change.
■ Lincoln Steffens -The Shame of the Cities (1904), an attack on municipal corruption.
■ Ida Tarbell's History of the Standard Oil Company (1904), which chronicled ruthless
business, practices.
■ Progressives Presidents
•Theodore Roosevelt (1901 – 1909)
•William Howard Taft (1909 – 1913)
•Woodrow Wilson (1913 – 1921)
 Theodore Roosevelt (1901 – 1909)
■ Roosevelt became the youngest president at the age of 42.
■ 1901- Trust major issue- He activated “Sherman Anti-Trust Act” of 1890 which had
become dormant.
■ 1902- Action against Beef Trust ,followed by Oil, then followed by Tobacco and then other
monopolies.
■ 1903- Alkins Acts- Strengthened Govt control on rail-roads.
■ 1906- Pure Food and Drug Act- to save people from the harmful effects of adulteration.
 Woodrow Wilson (1913 – 1921)
■ Underwood Tariff Act 1913 –
• Tariff Policy was changed.
•Essential items especially food items were removed from tariff.

 Federal Reserve Act 1913- Provision of efficient banking.

 Clayton Anti-Trust Act 1914
 Federal Trade Commission – To check unfair trade practices.
 Workmen’s compensation act 1916- To fix working hours of the employees of interstate
railroads.
 Women Suffrage.
 PROGRESSIVISM (1890-1920)
■ Progressive Amendments to the Constitution
16th Amendment (1913)—federal income tax
17th Amendment (1913)—direct election of senators
18th Amendment (1919)—prohibition of Alcohol
19th Amendment (1920)—vote for women
 PROGRESSIVISM (1890-1920)
■ Political Reforms
■ Tried to put more power into the hands of the people.
■ Innovative changes in city government.
■ Direct Election of Senators.
■ The Vote for Women.
■ Brought a change in attitude of the politicians given them a sense of responsibility.
■ Fair distribution of powers among state and federation.

■ B. Social Reforms
■ Child labor laws.
■ Ten-hour work days.
■ Minimum safety standards on the job.
■ Immigration Restriction.
 SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
■ The Spanish American War was fought between the United States and Spain in 1898.
■ The war was fought largely over the independence of Cuba.
■ Major battles took place in the Spanish colonies of Cuba and the Philippines.
■ The war began on April 25, 1898 when the United States declared war on Spain. The fighting
ended with a U.S. victory three and a half months later on August 12, 1898.

■Leading Up to the War

• Cuban revolutionaries had been fighting for the independence of Cuba for many years.
• They first fought the Ten Year's War between 1868 and 1878. In 1895. Many Americans
supported the cause of the Cuban rebels and wanted the United States to intervene.
SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
 SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
■Sinking of the Battleship Maine
• When conditions in Cuba worsened in 1898, President William McKinley sent the U.S.
battleship Maine to Cuba to help protect American citizens and interests in Cuba.
• On February 15, 1898, a huge explosion caused the Maine to sink in Havana Harbor.
• Although no one was sure exactly what caused the explosion, many Americans
blamed Spain. They wanted to go to war.
■ The US Declares War
• President McKinley resisted going to war for a few months, but eventually public pressure
to act became too great.
• On April 25, 1898, the United States declared war on Spain and the Spanish American
War had begun.
 The Rough Riders
 The United States needed to get soldiers to help fight in the war. One group of volunteers
included cowboys, ranchers, and outdoorsmen. They earned the nickname the "Rough
Riders" and were led by Theodore Roosevelt, future president of the United States.
 SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
■ San Juan Hill
• The U.S. army arrived in Cuba and began to fight the Spanish.
One of the more famous battles was the Battle of San Juan Hill.
In this battle, a small Spanish force on San Juan Hill managed to
hold off a much larger U.S. force from advancing. Many U.S
soldiers were gunned down trying to take the hill.
• Finally, a group of soldiers led by the Rough Riders charged
up nearby Kettle Hill and gained the advantage the U.S. needed
To take San Juan Hill.
 SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
■The War Ends
■After the Battle of San Juan Hill, the U.S. forces moved on to the city of Santiago. Soldiers
on the ground began a siege of the city while the U.S. navy destroyed the Spanish warships
off the coast in the Battle of Santiago. Surrounded, the Spanish army in Santiago
surrendered on July 17.
■Results
With the Spanish forces defeated, the two sides agreed to stop fighting on August 12, 1898.
The formal peace treaty, the Treaty of Paris, was signed on December 19, 1898. As part of
the treaty, Cuba gained its independence and Spain gave up control of the Philippine Islands,
Guam, and Puerto Rico to the U.S. for $20 million.
■The victorious United States emerged from the war a world power with far-flung overseas
possessions and a new stake in international politics that would soon lead it to play a
determining role in the affairs of Europe and the rest of the globe.
 SPANISH AMERICAN WAR 1898
■The anti-imperialist declared that the control and governance of distant alien people violated
all American traditions of Self-Determination.
■As per them, it would threaten the very fabric of Republic.
■Philippine insurrection was over by 1901.
■1902- Partial Self Government.
■1916- Complete Self Government.

■Guam, and Puerto Rico are still unincorporated territories of US i.e. controlled by U.S
federal Government and is not incorporated for the purpose of US constitutional law.