consider:
How would you describe
Teddy Roosevelt based on
the cartoons seen here?
essential question:
What were the effects of progressivism
in the national government in the early
1900s? PART 1: THE FIRST PROGRESSIVE
PRESIDENT
Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt
Background:
• popular progressive politician that
becomes McKinley’s VP
• became president when
McKinley was shot
• first reform president; expands the role of
president
The 3 C’s of his Square Deal
1st = Control corporations
• accepted big
business, but
attacked
irresponsible
ones as the
“Trust Buster”
• took on railroads with the Elkins Act and
Hepburn Act for fair pricing
• first president to
mediate between
owners and labor
in the Anthracite
coal miners’ strike
2nd = Consumer
protection
• unchecked business
created dangers for
consumers
What is the problem
with the following
products of the time?
• after The Jungle, TR gets passed the:
 Pure Food and Drug Act
 Meat Inspection Act
 Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
3rd = Conservation of natural resources
President Theodore Roosevelt (left) and John Muir had long talks
about conservation while camping together at Glacier Point,
Yosemite National Park, 1903.
"There can be nothing in the world more
beautiful than the Yosemite, the groves of the
giant sequoias and redwoods, the Canyon of
the Colorado, the Canyon of the Yellowstone,
the Three Tetons; and our people should see to
it that they are preserved for their children and
their children's children forever, with their
majestic beauty all marred."
-Theodore Roosevelt
3rd = Conservation of natural resources
TR riding a
moose in 1900
• expanded national parks and forests
After he became President in 1901, Roosevelt used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands by creating the U.S. Forest Service and
establishing 51 Federal Bird Reservations, 4 National Game Preserves, 150 National Forests, 5 National Parks, and enabling the 1906 American
Antiquities Act which he used to proclaim 18 National Monuments. During his presidency,Theodore Roosevelt protected approximately
230,000,000 acres of public land.
consider:
How would you describe
William Howard Taft based
on the cartoons seen here?
“Teddy Had a Little Lamb”
TR’s hand-picked successor; TR expected
Taft to continue his progressive reforms
“Teddy Had a Little Lamb”
some progressive reforms, but overall more
conservative than TR (i.e. raising taxes on
imports with Payne-Aldrich Tariff)
Taft “busted” more trusts than TR (he did not distinguish between “good” and “bad” trusts), including
U.S. Steel, a trust personally approved by TR & Taft fired TR’s good friend, Gifford Pinchot, who was
appointed by TR as the first Chief of the United States Forest Service, for speaking out against Taft.
TR upset and speaks out against Taft
consider:
How would you describe the election of
1912 based on the cartoons seen here?
TR
Taft
• Taft wins Republican nomination, so TR
forms Progressive Party (a.k.a. Bull Moose
Party)
The bullet-damaged speech and
eyeglass case.
X-Ray of Roosevelt's
ribcage showing the
bullet at lower left.
• this split Republican vote, so Democrat
Wilson wins
The voters’ reluctance to break the two-term
precedent also hurt TR’s chances of winning.
consider:
How would
you
describe
Woodrow
Wilson
based on
the cartoon
seen here?
• his New Freedom progressive program
continued progressive reforms such as…
o
the Federal Reserve System (a.k.a. the
“Fed”) to control the economy (i.e. setting
interest rates, supervising banks)
map of the 12 Federal Reserve
Districts and the cities where each
bank is located
seal of the Board of Governors
that supervise the Fed
o
Clayton Antitrust Act so that there is a more
clear law making trusts illegal
The Sherman Anti-Trust Act left a lot of room for
interpretation in the law because it was vaguely
worded.
Look over the chart. How are these
Presidents’ progressive reforms changing
the federal government?
Political cartoons are a common way that ideas about
politics are conveyed. Based on what we have learned
about the Progressive Presidents, say what each political
cartoon means in your own words. Often, saying what is
literally happening but calling things what they are labeled
will produce the idea of the cartoon.
The Hot Seat
• one person volunteers
to be in the hot seat
• He or she answers a
series of multiple
choice questions
• 1 question right = sense of self-satisfaction
• 2 questions right = fist bump
• 3 questions right = gum
• 4 questions right = prize box
• You have two opportunities to “poll the class”
where you can see how the class answered
The Progressive Era:
Political Cartoons Judge Reforms
The role of political cartoons in society is to judge things that
are happening, such as reforms. Create your own political
cartoon to judge the reforms in the Progressive Era (see pages
60-63). Use the rubric to guide your efforts. Some Progressive
Era cartoons are provided below as examples.
Rubric:
criteria:
event
perspective
other
0 points if:
1 point if:
2 points if:
3 points if:
The cartoon and
description show
no understanding
of the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a limited
understanding of
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a mostly clear
understanding of
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a clear
understanding of
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
no clear
perspective on the
Progressive Era
reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a somewhat clear
perspective on
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a mostly clear
perspective on
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon and
description show
a clear
perspective on
the Progressive
Era reform.
The cartoon has
none of the
following:
turned in on time
is done neatly
a Progressive
Era reform
The cartoon has
one of the
following:
turned in on time
is done neatly
a Progressive
Era reform
The cartoon has
two of the
following:
turned in on time
is done neatly
a Progressive
Era reform
The cartoon has
all of the
following:
turned in on
time
is done neatly
a Progressive
Era reform