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 Preface
And watch a short little summarizing video CLICK HERE!

• Not all of American history shows this country shining in all its glory.
• The period of Industrialism post Civil War Era is known as the Gilded
Age.
• This is, in fact, one part of American history that is definitely not pretty!
• America was like four different countries having different problems in
the Northeast, the new South, and the West.
– In short:
• The Northeast was dealing with industry, immigrants, robber barons, and
monopolies. Life was rough and tough.
• In the West and South (primarily West) there were many groups of people having
problems.
– The Native Americans
– The immigrant farmers living in homesteads
– The miners
– The cowboys
– The African Americans (South)
 The “New South”
• This is post Civil War and the black
just got freed and got their “rights”
– But how are they really getting along?
• Jim Crow laws in the South (until the
1960’s)
– Plessy v. Ferguson (1896- allowed
segregation)
– KKK is at large and can’t be broken
• Grandfather Clause (they can’t vote
unless their grandfather could)
• Sharecropping, etc. (they are still like
slaves)
 The Northeast
• While the South is trying to get themselves back up, the
Northeast seems to be prospering.
• They had their Industrial Revolution already and are
continuing to industrialize.
• America was the perfect place for Industry to thrive! Why?
– They are inventing more and more now that they can patent
inventions
– The country is HUGE and so there is a vast amount of natural
resources.
– There is laissez-faire, social mobility, and people have money
already (so they naturally want to make more… and CAN!)
– The government is stable and pro-business
– There are many immigrants from Germany, Italy, and Ireland who
bring around a strong work ethic as well as cheap labor!
 The Railroad System
• The railroad system was immense!
• It was revolutionary and helped in communication and
transportation of people and goods.
– Before the railroad, when people needed to contact each other it
could take days to reach someone close by, weeks for someone across
the country, and immigrants waiting for news from their homeland
waited months for a letter!
– Also, it kept businesses in touch, not to mention helped with trade!
– The thing was, though, getting people out into the great plains area of
America to settle and work the railroad!
• The railroad enterprise, monopolized by Cornelius Vanderbilt, began to
offer land and jobs to people (particularly Irish immigrants and Chinese
immigrants [from California]) in the unpopulated areas of the country.
• As a result, towns began and soon after, cities!
 Steam and Steel
• Even though the railroad system was so big and thrived, it
relied on other big industries: steam and steel!
• The Steel Industry:
– Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish immigrant in the NE. He
created the Bessemer Process in which he purified iron to make
steel- a stronger and more efficient metal.
– Steel was used to make the trains and the tracks!
– One very important thing made with steel during this time period
was our Brooklyn Bridge which was an architectural
masterpiece!
• The Steam Industry:
– Steam was already commonplace by this time.
– It wasn’t the industry itself that was important.
– The important this was that it:
• Let the railroad thrive
• Created a need for coal and iron which created jobs in mines and made
that enterprise thrive
 Electricity and Oil
• Electricity and oil were the other two big enterprises.
• Electricity
– It was created by Thomas Edison. He was the only man at the head of a
monopoly who wouldn’t be considered a “robber baron” (to be discussed in a
later slide) since he was an inventor and not just some entrepreneur. s
– The effects of electricity were good and bad
• It did save money because you no longer required oil for lamps and it made things like the
refrigerator and the refrigerator car possible.
• However, it meant that big factory owners could make their employees work longer
shifts. Now that they had electric lighting, the sun’s setting and rising did not dictate the
work day.
• Oil
– John D. Rockefeller monopolized oil.
– Oil was used for the railroad, for lamps, and for factory machinery.
– It truly was a very important resource!
– The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 was a reaction to Rockefeller’s oil
industry. It outlawed any combination of companies that restrained interstate
trade or commerce. In the end, though, it failed to prevent monopolies and
the fat cats of businesses simply used it by twisting it into an anti-union act!
 The Robber Barons Listen to the song! Click HERE!

• The various men involved in these industries were not only brilliant but very sneaky! They
often received the infamous name “robber baron.” “Law!
What
• So why were (or weren’t) these gentlemen “robber barons”?
I care d
• Andrew Carnegie (Steel) about o
Law? the
– He used vertical consolidation in which he owned the means of every step in production. He owned
Hain’t
everything from the mines where he got the iron from, to the factories, to the railroads and ships that got th I
he used to transport his goods. This makes him a robber baron.
-Corn
e p ower?
– However, he seemed to be against large monopolies and eventually sold his enterprise to JP Morgan elius V
ande ”
and gave his money to charities and libraries. This does not change the fact that he is a robber baron! rbilt
• JP Morgan (the Bank)
– He did not believe "money power" was dangerous unless it was in the wrong hands. Morgan bought up
countless enterprises and mastered interlocking directorates. This means that, during this time
filled with a number of depressions and recessions, he bought controlling shares of stock in
member companies instead of purchasing companies outright. The "held" companies remained
separate businesses on paper but, in reality, the holding company controlled them. Holding
Companies made trusts unnecessary.
• John D. Rockefeller (Oil)
– In contrast to Carnegie, he mastered horizontal consolidation in which means that he simply
bought out competitors in his field and put them all under his umbrella.
• Cornelius Vanderbilt
– He and Jay Gould were hot shots in the railroad business. At the time, this business was an
oligarchy (ruled by a few, rich, guys) and they all were considered “robber barons” for this reason.
Also, they did not regulate their fares or stocks often sneaking around the laws and rules by
giving some people discounts and others, inflated fares.
• Thomas Edison
– He actually was not a robber baron! He was an inventor- not an entrepreneur and so he earned
his money in a fair way. He created an industry without having to crush others.
 The Beginning of Unions
• With the fat cats of businesses compensating for their
“robber baron” ways through “The Gospel of
Wealth,” “Social Darwinism,” and by boasting
laissez-faire economics, workers were left powerless
to fight back.
• Many farmers were poor due to drought and
immigrants were stuck in contracts at factories. Whole
families had to work unremittingly in a system of
piecework (those who work longest and hardest
received the most pay)
• Work environments proved to be extremely strict and
bosses were relentless.
• Some people such as photojournalist and activist
Jacob Riis (pronounces reez) created exposés to
reveal the tragic conditions in factories, mines, slums,
etc.
• In time, workers became Socialists (yes… like
Communism) and began to come together in unions.
 First Unions
• The earliest union was the National Trades Union in 1834. It died after only
a few years due to the panic and the depression of 1837.
• The Knights of Labor formed in Philadelphia in 1869. It included farmers,
factory workers, shopkeepers, office workers, and workers who were skilled and
unskilled and men and women. It also recruited 60,000 African Americans.
– They pursued broad reforms such as equal work, the eight-hour day, and the end of child
labor. Wages was not an emphasis.
• By the 1890’s. they had vanished and between 1886 and 1892, the American
Federation of Labor (AFL) gained power. They had few African Americans
and only contained skilled, male, workers separated by craft.
– They focused on increased wages, decreased working hours, and improved conditions.
They encouraged collective bargaining in which workers negotiate with employers.
• In 1905, some people who were apposed to the AFL formed the IWW
(Industrial Workers of the World) also called “Wobblies”
– It’s focus was on unskilled workers and represented miners, lumbermen, migrant farm
workers, and some eastern textile workers.
 The Reaction to Unions and Strikes
• Employers were naturally outraged by the unions being formed all over the
place!
• They feared them and so they took several measures to stop them:
– They forbade union meetings
– They fired union organizers
– They forced new employees to sign “yellow dog” contracts in which workers
promised never to join or form a union or participate in a strike
– They refused to bargain collectively (AFL idea) when strikes occurred
– They refused to recognize unions as their workers’ legitimate representatives.
• When strikes broke out, they also reacted:
– They had lock-outs where they would not allow the workers back in after a strike
– They black listed those involved in strikes so that they may not be hired by
anyone else
– Again, they used the yellow dog contract
– If the strike was volatile enough, they used an injunction which is an official
court order for the immediate end of a strike
– The used scabs to replace those on strike
 Important Strikes
• Railroad Strike (1877)
– This was a sympathy strike which means that one group started it, others felt bad and joined in.
– The Feds had to be brought in and 100 or so people were killed. The railroad property was burned
and there was lots of damage everywhere. The Feds brought in scabs and so the rioters achieved
nothing.
• Haymarket Riot (1886)
– A group of anarchists went to Chicago’s Haymarket Square where thousands of people had
gathered for May Day. Suddenly, a bomb went off. Nobody ever knew who set it off but the fingers
unjustly pointed towards the Knights of Labor and ruined them forever. 7 police were killed. 7
were wounded.
• Homestead Strike (1892)
– This took place at Andrew Carnegie’s Pennsylvania steel factory. The current manager,
Henry Frick, at that particular factory had just dropped wages. Intending to break the union
strike, he hired 300 Pinkertons which were a private militia. Several were killed and wounded.
Americans sympathized with the workers up until an anarchist, Alexander Berkman tried to
assassinate Frick (although he was not associated with the strike itself).
• Pullman Strike (1894)
– Pullman, the creator of the sleeping car on the railways had always provided good conditions for
his workers. However, after the Panic of 1893, he had to lay off workers and cut wages. When
some workers argued it, he fired three and thus the strike began. Since the railroad was so
nationally important, an injunction was ordered
 The Wild West
• Again, America is very sectional right now. There is the
industrial North, the rural South, and the Wild West. The
South had some industry (cigarette factories and cotton)
but nothing like the NE! So what happened in the West?
• The Wild West, as we call it colloquially often is
associated with several stereotypes.
– We picture a cowboy (which is actually Mexican) wearing a hat,
boots with spurs, chaps, and lariats.
– The cowboy is an important part of the Gilded Age in the West
because they, along with miners, and farmers, populated the
New West!
– However, in doing so, the Native Americans were mistreated
once again!
 Native Americans and the Buffalo
• The West (the Great Plains) of America is an absolute hell hole! There is bad
land and no rain and the animals are all useless save the buffalo!
• But the railroad industry, wanted to populate that area for means of doing
business, needs to attract people out there.
• The first issue is the Native Americans and their buffalo.
• What do we do to them?
– First they tried to pass the Dawes Act of 1887 which encouraged Indians to
own private property and assimilate rather than share property collectively.
– We massively wipe them off! There is vicious slaughtering of Indians. The
buffalo are also herded by cowboys up to raunchy towns like Dodge City
where there is a railroad that transports them to Chicago slaughter houses.
– The Indians did put up a fight. They were far superior horseback riders but
when it comes to arrows vs. bullets, their attempts proved futile. Some
impressive battles included the Battle of Little Big Horn.
– The remainder of Native Americans were placed on reservations where
they starved as they only knew how to hunt the buffalo for food. There was
also (and still is today) the highest suicide rate on reservations. And yes, you
can die from a broken heart!
 Miners and Cowboys
• These three types of people then took over the West once the
Indians were taken care of.
• Cowboys
– They were often blacks or former Civil War soldiers who had nothing to do.
It was a relatively straight-forward job which paid a pretty penny. It was a
tough life and took about 3 months for a cowboy to round up buffalo from
the South and bring them up to railroad/mining cities for transport.
• Miners
– The good thing about the whole mining businesses is obviously that
prospectors could find gold. The bad part was that it caused inflation.
Miners would go out, often alone, to try their luck. They often would set up
makeshift homes. Then they would need a bar to have a drink, and a
prison, and clubs for some “entertainment” since they had no women!
Then as a result, they may have children there from these women and they
need a school. Soon a whole town springs up. BUT when the gold is all
used up, they abandon the town and move on (this creates ghost towns).
 Farming on Homesteads
• The government, in trying to get people to move out west, passed the
Homestead Act. In this act, they gave away parcels of land to prospective
farmers. This attracted immigrants and other people of the urban poor.
• This would not have even been possible before since the land was hard
(buffalo trampled on it) and there was little rain.
• Now, however, there was the invention of the iron plow which let farmers
tear up hard earth. They also created a technique of dry farming where
they planted underground where there was moisture. Barbed wire was
invented in 1874 by Joseph Glidden and this allowed farmers to keep their
livestock under control!
• Now the Homestead Act was tricky! There were some catches:
– You had to be 21 or the head of a family.
– You had to be an American citizen or an immigrant applying for citizenship.
– You had to pay a $10 registration fee.
– Settlers had to build a house on the land and live their for 6 months of the year.
– You had to stay on the land 5 consecutive years to officially own it.
 Hardships on the Western Farms
• Farmers had trouble fulfilling the tasks
necessary to keep up a homestead. Between the
debts they owe for building up a house and farm
and the problem of growing and trading crops,
the farmers were having some real trouble.
• Railroads were hustling them and charging
them too much to ship goods.
• The decreased income taxes and high import
tariffs that benefited industrialists caused them
grief because they could not sell their good over
seas.
• The farmers react by forming two major
alliances
– The Grange
– The Populists
 The Grange
• The Grange (1867)
– This was based on the idea of farmers helping each
other survive.
– They would get together in sewing bee’s, for example.
– The Grange wanted the government to regulate the
banks and the railroads (this is an attack on laissez-
faire).
• As a result, there was the Interstate Commerce Act of
1886. In this, the government could control rates of
interstate trade and transportation. This means that the
railroads had to post their fares. However, no one
really kept this law up and so it was corrupt.
 The Populists
• The Populists eventually became a third party in the U.S. at
this time.
• Before we get to how they gained power, we will discuss what
they wanted:
– They wanted the direct election of senators (which we do have
today)
– They called for a progressive income tax which means that they
wealthy are taxed more heavily than the poor.
– They asked for no tariffs to be placed on imported goods.
– They became known as “silverites” because they desired paper
money to be backed by silver.
• This, farmers hoped, would create inflation. This would result in higher
prices for their goods. In addition, it would make it easier for them to pay off
their debts to the bank.
• The industrialists in the NE (“gold bugs”) do not like this at all!
 Events Leading up to the Populist Party
• A third party has never and will never last, but let’s review the background that led to the
creation of this third party in 1892.
– First of all, the government is very corrupt and it is at one of its lowest points.
• There is a divided government
• They catered especially to NE industrialists
• There is a strong laissez-faire attitude
• Social Darwinism is rampant
• The spoils system (patronage) is widely used
– There were some feeble attempts to fix things up, too, that went awry.
• 1878: The Bland Allison Act
– This catered to Populist cries for silver monetary value. The government took 2-4 million ounces of silver to be made
into silver dollars. However, most of it was never released and it so it was ineffective.
• 1883: Pendleton Civil Service Act
– After Garfield was assassinated in 1881 for not giving a good enough job to someone through patronage, the
government cracked down on the spoils system and made it necessary to take an examination to receive a
government job. However, this is still corrupt today (but absolutely not as much).
• 1887: Interstate Commerce Act
– (consult slide on “The Grange”)
• 1890: Sherman Antitrust Act
– The government tried to end monopolies but it was side skipped by vertical/horizontal consolidation
• 1890: McKinley Tariff
– This put a 48% tariff on imports which pleased industrialists but made Populists livid!
 The Election of 1892
• So after all of these building tensions, the Populist Party
emerged and had plenty of support.
• In the Election of 1892, they nominated James
Weaver to run for the Populists.
• He ran against Grover Cleveland (Democrat) and
Benjamin Harrison (Republican)
• Even though the Populist Party had great anticipation
and excitement, Grover Cleveland won reelection.
• The Democratic party would then adapt some Populist
platforms and the party would die out by the next
election.
 The Election of 1896
• Now, setting a bit of background, between 1893 and 1894, America was in a
depression. So the people are losing jobs and don’t have money to buy
products. Farmers, therefore, are not selling goods and they can’ t pay off their
debts. Out of desperation, in 1894, thousands led a march in Washington. This
was called “Coxey’s Army” and made the government very nervous.
• So this election is between McKinley (Republican) and Bryan (Democrat).
• This election is very famous because it established a Republican government
which will last until 1926!
• Bryan, the Democratic candidate reached beyond his party towards the
immigrants (8-hour work day) and the Populists (silver monetary worth).
– In doing this he gained their support but lost the support of many of his Democratic
voters who were “gold bugs.”
• McKinley, who didn’t so much as leave his state to campaign, won the election
as he received votes from both the Republican and Democratic parties!
– At this, the farmers really did lose their power and wiped out any hints of Populism
left behind.
 C K !
LU
OD
GO

More Resources:
• Industrialism in the Gilded Age
• The West: 1865-1900
• Study your DBQ, notes, homeworks, and textbook