THE PROGRESSIVE ERA
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Vocabulary
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Labor Class – the level of society that includes
people who work for a living
Consumer – anyone who buys things
Fraud – intentional lying for personal gain (usually
financial - $$)
Corruption – a breakdown of morality (usually in
government) ex: bribery
Muckraker – A progressive journalist/author
Monopoly – AKA TRUST – domination of an
industry (ex: oil) by ONE company
Era – A period of time with certain similar
characteristics
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The Gilded Age

The “Gilded Age” is another way of
describing the “Industrial Revolution”
period of American History when
industrialization caused:
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
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The U.S to grow and become wealthier
Increased pollution
Increased child labor
Mass production and factories
Unsafe factory conditions
Great wealth for some citizens
Poverty for many citizens
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What was Progressivism?
A response to the
“Gilded Age”
 Characterized by
individuals who fought
for better treatment of
people
 A call upon
government to protect
people against the
problems of the Gilded
age

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Quick Quiz
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
What is a monopoly?
What is a consumer?
What is fraud?
What do you think consumer fraud is?
What are SIX important aspects of the
“gilded age” of American history
What was the Progressive Era?
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Gilded Age Problems
1.
2.
3.
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5.

Unfair Treatment of Labor Class
Consumer Fraud/Unsafe Products
Unfair Business Practices
Political Corruption
Environmental Damage
In the following slides we will look at
these Gilded Age problems and the
Progressives who tried to solve them.
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Problem #1
Unfair Treatment of Labor Class

No Safety Laws

Triangle Shirtwaist
Factory Fire (1911) is an
example of problems
(148 died)
Low Wages
 No worker’s right
organizations
 Anti-union laws (laws
against forming unions)

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Progressive Problem Solver: Jacob Riis
Muckraker
 Photographer who
captured city-life
 “How the Other Half
Lives”
 Also took pictures of
workers in living quarters
 Pictures showed rest of
society how bad
conditions were

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Problem #2
Consumer Fraud/Unsafe Products
Products did not live
up to basic honesty
standards
 Meat packing
industry- horribly
unclean and
unsanitary
 No accountability for
bad products

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Progressive Problem Solver:
Upton Sinclair
A Muckraker
 He wrote a book called
“The Jungle”
 Exposed the Chicago
meat-packing industry as
being dirty and unclean.
 Harsh response from
public in favor of food
safety laws after book was
published

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An excerpt from “The Jungle”

“There would be meat stored in great
piles in rooms; and the water from leaky
roofs would drip over it, and thousands of
rats would race about on it…a man could
run his hand over these piles of meat
and sweep off handfuls of the dried dung
of rats. These rats were nuisances, and
the packers would put poisoned bread
out for them; they would die, and then
rats, bread, and meat would go into the
hoppers together.”

Upton Sinclair – The Jungle
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Problem #3
Unfair Business Practices
Monopolies eliminated competition
 Large companies like Standard Oil
Company took over all little companies
in its way
 Then they could raise prices and charge
consumers more.
 Other Monopolies included Carnegie
Steel, Cornelius Vanderbilt and his
Railroads and JP Morgan of the Financial
World

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Standard Oil Political Cartoon
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Progressive Problem Solvers
Ida Tarbell & “Fightin” Bob
Lafollete
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Ida Tarbell
Muckraker
Exposed John D.
Rockefeller corruption
Wrote “A History of
Standard Oil”

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
Robert Lafollette
Governor of Wisconsin
Fought against
companies controlling
the government and
abusing consumers 14
Problem #4
Political Corruption

“Political Machines”
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Areas of government/political
parties that gained support of
immigrants
Positions filled by
incompetent officials
Government officials would
take bribes from large
corporations
Boss Tweed (pictured) is an
example of a Political
Machine.
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Progressive Problem Solver Lincoln Steffens
Muckraker
 “Shame of the Cities”
 Exposed the corruption
of local government
and corporations
 Known to scare his
interviewees into
answering truthfully

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Problem #5
Environmental Damage
Railroads started to
web across country
 Mines blew up
mountains
 Oil drills ruined
landscape
 Water was
becoming polluted

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Progressive Problem Solver - John Muir
Environmentalist
from California
 Helped create the
National Park System
 Preserved the Sierra
Mountain Range

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National Park System
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Quick Quiz
1.
2.
What was progressivism
EXPLAIN ①each of the five major progressive
era problems each in your own words, ②who
attempted to solve the problem, and ③how?
a. Unfair Treatment of the Labor Class
b. Consumer Fraud/Unsafe Products
c. Unfair Business Practices
d. Political Corruption
e. Environmental Damage
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The greatest progressive problem solver of all was…
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Message from President T. Roosevelt

“Here is your country. Cherish these
natural wonders, cherish the natural
resources, cherish the history and
romance as a sacred heritage, for your
children and your children's children. Do
not let selfish men or greedy interests skin
your country of its beauty, its riches or its
romance.”
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Theodore Roosevelt on Mt. Rushmore
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President Theodore Roosevelt
The Progressive President

Problem #1- Poor
Working Conditions
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Before Roosevelt, when
workers would strike the
government and their
bosses would use force to
make them continue
working.
Roosevelt was first
president to send in
National Guard to protect
workers.
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Teddy Roosevelt (cont.)
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Problem# 2Consumer Fraud
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Created Food and Drug
Administration to
regulate food
companies and create
food safety laws
Signed the meat
inspection act of 1906
to provide for safer
meat.
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Teddy Roosevelt (cont.)

Problem #3- Unfair
Business Practices


The Square Deal- new
laws that prevented
monopolies
Known as a
“trustbuster” someone
who breaks up
monopolies
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Teddy Roosevelt (Cont.)
 Problem
#4- Political Corruption
Supported secret ballot system to
protect voters
 Before this sometimes voters decisions
could be known by those working at the
voting booth and voters faced
intimidation.

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President Theodore Roosevelt (cont.)

Problem #5Environmental
Degradation
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Teamed up with
John Muir to
create Yosemite
National Park
Also created the
National Park
system which still
exists today.
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Other Progressive Presidents

William Howard Taft
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Was president after
Roosevelt
Developed Foreign
Policy based on U.S.
economic interests
Later disagreed with
Roosevelt on which
monopolies to break up
Woodrow Wilson
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Was President After Taft
Believed in more
trustbusting than T.
Roosevelt but less other
rules for business
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Quick Quiz
1.
How did Teddy Roosevelt help solve each
of the following Gilded Age problems
with Progressive Era Solutions?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2.
Unfair Treatment of Labor Class
Consumer Fraud
Unfair Business Practices
Political Corruption
Environmental Damage
Who were the other two progressive
Presidents, and what do you know about
them?
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