Chapter 17 Politics in the Gilded Age(1865-1900)
Section 1. Political Machines
 The Rise of the Political Machine
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The overwhelming growth of urban populations in the United States during the late
1800s created new challenges for city governments.
New demands were placed on public services such as fire, police, and sanitation
department.
Growing urban populations also required the expansion or new construction of bridges,
parks, schools, street, sewer system, and utility systems.
With the support of very well- organized political parties, city council members and
district representatives took charge of city governments. They oversaw new public
services and, in many cases, pocketed money meant for the public good.
During the late 1800s well organized political parties dominated city governments in the
United States. Because of their success in getting their members elected to local offices,
these parties were called political machines. Powerful political bosses managed these
machines.
Bosses dictated party positions on city ordinances and made deals with business
leaders. They also controlled the district leaders, city officials, and council members who
kept the machine running smoothly.
The relationship between district leaders known as precinct captians and potential
voters living in urban neighborhoods was the real strength of political machines.
By offering jobs, political favors, and services to local residents, precinct captians won
support for the political machine.
At election time, bosses and precinct captains instructed local residents to vote for
selected candidates. This pratice ensured the continued power of the political machine.
During the late 1800s political machines attempted to provide the public services
required by growing U.S. cities.
Political bosses financed expanded sewer and water systems, paved streets, and
provided other public services. This boom of public-works projects meant that bosses
could distribute many jobs among loyal supporters.
By providing jobs, political favors, and services to local residents, political machines
were able to win support from many poor and working-class city dwellers.
Political bosses and local precinct representatives often formed close relationships with
local voters.
 Immigrants and Political Machines
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Because politiical machines helped the urban poor, new immigrants often became
particularly loyal supporters of political machines.
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Machine politicians often met immigrants as soon as they arrived in the United States.
They helped newcomers get settled in their new homeland.
Party workers assisted immigrants by finding them temporary housing and jobs.
Workers also helped immigrants become naturalized citizens and thus eligible to vote.
Political bosses ensured voter loyalty among immigrant groups by providing jobs in
exchange for votes.
Most political machines maintained their political power with the support of immigrant
voters.
In some cities, however, immigrants became active members of political machines,
serving as officeholders, organizers, and representatives.
 Graft and Corruption
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Political machines often resorted to corruption in their attempt to take control of city
governments. Although political machines successfully got party members re-elected,
machine corruption often interfered with the important functions of the city
government.
For political machines to maintain their power, their candidates had to win elections.
When jobs and political favors were not enough to build popular support during
elections, some political machines turned to fraud.
Voting fraud was widespread in many U.S. cities.
Once inside city government, political bosses often became even more corrupt. They
looked for ways to increase their own political power and personal wealth.
One way to get rich was to take advantage of the masive amounts of public funds
involved in providing essential city services.
Many city officials praticed graft- the acquisition of money or political power through
illegal or dishonest methods. Graft was a common problem in almost every U.S. city
with a powerful political machine.
Politicians often received bribes, payoffs, or kickbacks- payments of part of the earning
from a job or contract. Business leaders often paid kickbacks when lobbying for an
opportunity to provide public services for a city.
Section 2 Restoring Honest Government
 Scandal in the White House
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Grant’s first term in office was marred by serveral scandals, regarding monopolies and
stock investment.
The multiplying scandal encouraged political opponents to challenge Grant in the
presidential election of 1872.
Many critics saw the corruption in Grant’s administration as a by-product of the spoils
system.
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Rather than award civil service jobs as rewards, they wanted ability to be the deciding
factor.
Reformers proposed that applicants who earned the highest grades on competitive
examinations should receive the jobs.
The Liberal Republican Party was formed by Republicans shocked by the Grant scandals
and tired of Reconstruction.
The episodes of corruption continued during Grant’s second term in office.
Hoping to end the fraud under the spoils system, reformers pushed to end the practice
of granting jobs as political rewards.
The scandal also increased many Americans’ distrust of politicians.
Politicians of both parties-and at every level of government-made speeches about the
great honor of holding public office. However, they often showed more interest in
taking advantage of their positions to steal from the public treasury than in serving the
public good.
 The Struggle for Reform
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Reforming the spoils system became a major issue in the 1876 presidential campaign.
Democrats nominated Samuel J. Tilden while Republicans nominated Rutherford B.
Hayes. Hayes narrowly won the election.
In June 1877 President Hayes issued an exective order prohibiting federal employees
from participating in political campaigns. This led to a split within the Republican Party.
Hayes further angered split Rupublicans when he proposed awarding federal jobs based
on examinations rather than patronage.
In 1883 President Chester A. Arthur helped secure passage of the Pendleton Civil Service
Act.
The bill established the Civil Service Commission to administer competitive
examinations to those people seeking government jobs.
The act proved to be an important step toward reform. It established as law the idea
that federal jobs below the policy-making level should be filled based on merit.
 Advances and Setbacks
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In 1884, proclaiming that “a public office is a public trust,” President Grover Cleveland
(democrat) entered the White House determined to promote political reform.
Cleveland hoped to end the days when government jobs were handed out in reward for
political favors. Towards this end, he doubled the number of federal jobs requiring civil
service exams.
Although Cleveland’s stand on reform annoyed some party leaders, he won the
Democratic presidential nomination in 1888.
To oppose him, the Republicans chose Benjamin Harrison of Indiana.
Cleveland won the popular election by some 100,000 votes. However, Harrison came
out on top in electoral votes and won the race.
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The new president and Congress quickly set out to reward their supporters, thereby
weaking Cleveland’s reform efforts.
The Republicans filled practically every job not on the civil service list with members of
their own party.
During 1890, Republican politicians controlled Congress and presidency.
Section 3 The Populist Movement
 The Farmers’ Plight
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In addition to transforming urban life, the surge in industrialization during the late 1800s
changed farmers’ lives significantly.
The rapidly growing population in the urban centers had to be fed. Farmers Responded
by planting more crops and raising more animals each year.
Unfortunately for Americans, farmers in other nations did the same.
Prices soon tumbled as supply exceeded demand. At the same time, expenses, such as
railroad freight charges and the price of new machinery, continued to rise.
As farm profits plunged, many farmers bought more land and increased production. This
greater production pushed prices even lower.
To make matters worse, most families had borrowed money to pay for their land or to
buy new equipment. They often put their farms up as security for loans. Those who
could not repay the loans lost their farms.
Many ended up as tenant’s farmers. Others were forced to become farm laborers.
To farmers, the situation seemed terribly unfair.
Merchants who sold farm equipment were making money. Bankers who lent farmers
money and the railroads that hauled the farmers’ grain and livestock to market were
also prospering.
All farmers had to show for their long days of backbreaking labor were raising debts.
 Farmers Organize
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Farmers began organizing in an attempt to improve their situation.
Many farmers joined local organizations committed to assiting them in their day-to-day
struggles. These organizations soon merged to form a nationwide movement.
Hoping to improve their lives by forcing reforms in railroad and banking pratices, many
farmers supported these rapidly growing national organizations.
The first major farmer’s organization was the National Grange in 1867.
To lower costs, some Grange members formed cooperatives, or organizations in which
groups of farmers pool their resources to buy and sell goods.
Cooperatives members sold their products directly to big-city markets. They bought
farms equipment and other goods in large quantities at whole prices-thereby cutting
costs.
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While the National Grange lobbied on behalf of railroad regulations, a more powerful
farm organization- the Farmers’ Alliance- took shape.
Beginning in Texas in the 1870s, the Alliance movement spread quickly.
Debt-ridden farm families eagerly embrace the Alliance message of unity and hope.
Like the Grange, the Alliance organized cooperatives to buy equipment and to market
farm products. The Alliance offered farmer’s low-cost insurance. It also lobbied for
tougher bank regulations, government ownership of the railroads, and a graduated
income tax that taxed higher incomes at a higher rate.
The Alliance movement consisted of three organizations: 1) the National Farmers’
Alliance, 2) the all-white Southern Alliance, and 3) the colored farmers’ Alliance.
Each organization pushed for the same legislative goals and helped their members in
times of hardship.
Nevertheless, a variety of reasons kept the Alliance organizations from consolidating
their leadership into one single organization.
Despite common goals the Southern and Colored Farmers’ Alliance remained separate,
segregated institutions. Racial divisions in southern society prevented farmers from
forming a tight coalition that crossed color lines.
Some common goals included graduated income tax, bank regulation, government
ownership of railroads and telegraph companies, and the free, or unlimited, coinage of
silver. They also called for restrictions on immigration, a shorter workday, and voting
reforms.
Eventually improvements in farmers’ economic conditions in the early 1900s brought an
end to the movement.
Chapter 18 The Age of Reform (1897-1920)
Section 1 The Progressive Movement
 The Progressive Spirit
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By the early 1900s industrialization had transformed the United States.
Economic growth led to a rise in the number of new goods and services as well as an
expansion of the middle class. Growth also widened the gap between the rich and the
poor, and industrialization led to unsafe working conditions and crowded cities.
Such problems aroused a spirit of reform known as progressivism.
Progressivism: Reform movement of the early 1900s concerned with curing problems of
urbanization and industrialization. Progressivism focused on urban problems, such as
the plight of workers, poor sanitation, and corrupt political machines.
People from all walks of life participated in reform efforts during the Progressive Era.
However, most progressives were native born, middle or upper class, and college
educated.
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Men and women of the urban middle class-doctors, engineers, ministers, small-business
owners, social workers, teachers, and writers- found progressivism particularly
attractive.
Previous generations of women had joined reformed efforts because they were an
acceptable way for women to influence politics and society. Many middle-class women
were drawn to the progressive movement for the same reason.
Some women made careers of reform work. Others volunteered their time through
groups such as the General Federation of Women’s clubs and the National Association
of Colored Women.
 Progressive Issues
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Progressives tried to reform American institutions while preserving ideals of the past,
such as a sense of community.
Progressive reformers took a leading role in promoting change in the United States.
A major concern of progressives was the way Corporate American did business.
Industrial workers often faced dangerous conditions and long hours.
American workers had higher accident rates than workers in other industrialized
countries.
These conditions led progressives to demand limits on corporate power. They promoted
laws to prohibit monopolies and to help smaller businesses complete in the economy.
Progressives also called for an eight-hour workday, a minimum wage, safer working
conditions, and an end to child labor.
Not suprisingly most business owners opposed such legislation.
Progressives wanted the people to have greater control of the government. They called
for new election reforms and proposed political measures to make government more
responsive to the desire of the voters.
Progressives firmly believed in the power of science and technology to solve social
problems.
 Inspiration for Reform
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Progressive journalists helped spread the reform message. Popular magazines published
stories exploring corruption in politics and business as well as social problems such as
slums and child labor.
 Writers and Social Problems
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Novelists and intellectuals also explored the darker side of the new industrial society’s
effect on people’s behavior and values. In their works, these writers presented stories of
the harsh effects of industrial society on the poor. They depicted workers brutalized by
greedy business owners.
Progressive intellectuals proposed alternatives to the idea that fierce competition was
the best formula for social progress.
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Political theorist Herbert Croly argued that the government should use its regulatory
and taxation powers to promote the welfare of all its citizens.He opposed the
government’s support of the interests of business owners over other Americans.
Most progressives sought reforms of local government businessses and city life to
ensure that the full promise of democracy could become available to all citizens.
Section 2 Reforming the New Industrial Order
 Reforming the Workplace
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In the early 1910s almost half of the women who worked in such jobs as factory
workers, store clerks, and laundresses earned less than $6 a week.
Women often faced significant barriers when they tried to increase their income.
Few child laborers had ever attended school or could read. Many mothers explained
that they put their children to work in the mills because it was either that or their entire
family would starve.
Progressives and labor union activists campaigned for new laws that would prohibit or
limit child labor and improve conditions for female workers.
Although most children worked in agriculture, children in the factories- more than 2
million by 1910- faced the worest conditions.
Reformers heard stories of supervisors splashing cold water on children’s faces to keep
them awake and of girls working 16 or more hours a day in canning factories. Orphans
also were sent to work in factories.
By 1912, child-labor laws had been passed in 39 states. Some states even limited older
childern’s employment 8 or 10 hours a day and barred them from working at night or in
dangerous occupations. Other states required that children be able to read and write
before they were sent to work.
Enforcement of such laws was lax, however. Claiming that their business success
depended on cheap child labor, many employers simply refused to obey the laws and
continued to hire child workers.
Progressives also compaigned for laws to force factories to limit the hour’s employees
demanded.
Progressive reformers also fought for higher wages, however, not until 1938 did
congress pass a national minimum-wage law.
 The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
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Progressives also sought to improve workplace safety. A tragic event in 1911 highlighted
the need for such reforms.
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire (1911): Incident that resulted in the deaths of some 140 garment
workers; led to increased safety regulations for businesses.
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Popular outraged was so great that lawmakers soon passed protective legislation to
help workers. As a result of the fire, the New York legislature enacted the nation’s
strictest fire-safety code.
 Progressivism and the Supreme Court
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As more states passed protective legislation, business owners fought back through the
courts.
The 14th Amendment to the Constitution prohibits states from depriving “any person of
life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.”
Owners claimed that laws regulating their businesses unfairly deprived them of their
property. The Supreme Court sided with business owners and declared much of the
early social legislation unconstitutional.
The court also ruled that some social legislation violated the Constitution by denying
workers their Freedom of Contract, or the freedom to negotiate the terms of their
employment.
However, in rare situations the Supreme Court might uphold social legislation, like long
working hours for women. Proof of the harm that working long hour did to women’s
health and well-being convinced the Supreme Court to keep minimun of 10 hour work
day for them.
 Labor Unions
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Progressive reformers were not the only ones fighting for workers’ rights.
Labor unions continued to fight for better working conditions and for the closed shop –
a workplace where all the employees must belong to a union.
Most wanted to change how workers were treated, but they did not want to theaten
capitalism’s very existence.
Some, however, wanted to replace capitalism with an economic system controlled by
workers. Many in this group favored socialism, or the system under which the
government or worker cooperatives own most factories, utilities, and transportation
and communication systems.
Section 3 Reforming Society
 Reforming City Life
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By 1920, for the first time in U.S. history, more than 50 percent of Americans lived in
urban areas.
As urban populations soared, cities struggled to provide garbage collection, safe and
affordable housing, health care, police and fire protection, and adequate public
education.
Some reformers called for a compaign to make the cities a more healthful and livable
home for all residents.
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Various women’s clubs, men’s clubs, and reform organizations enlisted the aid of local
government to clean up the cities.
Some groups took the cleanup campaign literally, working to rid the cities of garbage.
Other organizations worked for better housing or to improve public education.
In 1901 the New York State Tenement House Act passed. The law required that any new
tenement be built around open courtyards to allow in light and air. New buildings also
had to contain one bathroom for each apartment or for every three rooms. Previously,
bathrooms in apartment buildings had been limited to one or two for an entire floor.
Housing reformers in other states used the New York Law as a model for their proposals.
Other reformers campaigned for the creation of safe places for children to play.
Some middle- and upper-class Americans objected to spending tax dollars on
recreational facilities for the poor.
The city-planning movement grew out of progressives’ belief that cleaner cities would
produce better citizens.
The First National Conference on City Planning was held in 1909. Its participants hoped
that wise planning could halt the spread of slums and beautify cities. Beautiful cities and
impressive public architecture, they argued, would instill patriotism among the
immigrant population.
City planning- park construction, building codes, sanitation standards, and zoning- was a
necessary fuction of municipal government.
 Moral Reform
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Progressives also wanted to “clean up” what they considered to be the manufacture,
sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages-and the closing of the nation’s saloons.
Reformers believed that prohibitation would reduce crime and the breakup of families.
During World War I, prohibitionists drew on Americans’ spirit of patriotic sacrifice. The
U.S. Navy banned the consumption of alcohol in 1914.
In 1917 Congress proposed the 18th Amendment, which barred the manufacture, sale,
and distribution of alcoholic beverages. The states ratified it in 1919. However, the
amendment proved unpopular and difficult to enforce. It was repealed in 1933.
 Progressivism and Racial Discrimination
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For nonwhites the progressive movement had mixed results.
Most progressives were concerned about the plight of the poor. However, few white
progressives devoted very much energy to the problem of discrimination and prejudice
against African Americans and American Indians.
Some progressives expressed open prejudice against these groups. Many African
Americans and American Indians, however, drew on progressive ideas to develop
programs appopriate to their communities.
One of the most influential African American leaders to emerge during this period was
W.E.B. Du Bois.
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By the early 1900s Du Bois was recognized as a strong supporter of civil rights. He
believed that access to college education and vocational training offered the best
chance of progress for African Americans. He also believed that African Aericans should
be politically active in the struggle for racial equality.
Du Bois view contrasted sharply with that of African American leader Booker T.
Washington.
Washington argued that African Americans should not spend their time fighting
discrimination. He urged them to focus on improving their own education and economic
prosperity.
During the early 1900s you also see the rise of African American organizations. One of
them being the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
The NAACP was founded by W.E.B. Du Bois and others in 1909 to end racial
discrimination. They used the court system to fight civil rights restrictions.
National Urban League: group founded in 1911 to fight for racial equality.
The NAACP and the National Urban League made some important gains for African
American citizens. Nevertheless, most African Americans still faced discrimination.
Demands for equal rights and greater opportunities for American Indians also surfaced
during this period.
Progressives wanted to slow down land allotment and maintain the reservation system
for a time.
Society of American Indians: Organization formed in 1911 by middle-class American
Indian to address Indian problems. Some of the problem included civil rights, education,
health, and local governments.
Some of those members supported strengthening native cultures, but most favored
complete assimilation, or absoption, into white American culture.
 Immigration and Assimilation
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The progressive movement had mixed results for immigrants as well. Many reformers
sympathized with the plight of the newcomers who labored in factories and were
crowded into slum tenements.
These reformers lobbied for laws to improve immigrants’ lives, as well as conditions in
the workplace and in city slums.
At the same time, progressives criticized immigrants. They accused them of immoral
behavior such as drinking and gambling and denounced immigrant support for big-city
political machines.
Some native-born Americans with progressive ideals favored restricting immigration.
Many progressives supported Americanization, a process of preparing forign-born
residents for full U.S. citizenship.
These efforts to assimilate immigrants, or to make them like native-born Americans,
focused on education. In schools, voluntary associations, and public programs,
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immigrants were taught to read, write, and speak English. They also learned about U.S.
history and government.
Several cities and states passed Americanization measures.
Some immigrants rejected the assistance of social reformers, because the reformers did
not respect their cultural backgrounds.
Some immigrants also supported Americanization that could be achieved without giving
up their own ethnic identies.
Poor immigrants and the political bosses who represented them supported middle-class
progressives when they fought for practical reforms such as worker protection and
public-health programs.