Name________________________________________Class_________________Date______________
Do Now #1: “The Election of 1896”
Study the map of the state-by-state results in the 1896 Presidential Election. Then answer the questions on the back
of this page. You can also to refer to pages 222 and 223 in your book for more information.
The United States presidential election of November 3, 1896 saw Republican William McKinley defeat Democrat
William Jennings Bryan in a campaign considered by historians to be one of the most dramatic in American history.
McKinley forged a coalition in which businessmen, professionals, skilled factory workers and prosperous farmers
were heavily represented; he was strongest in the Northeast, Upper Midwest, and Pacific Coast states. Bryan was the
nominee of the Democrats, the Populist Party, and the Silver Republicans. He was strongest in the South, rural
Midwest, and Rocky Mountain states. Economic issues, including bimetallism, (the gold standard vs Free Silver) and
the tariff, were crucial. While McKinley gave speeches to thousands of visitors in his hometown of Canton, Ohio,
Bryan barnstormed around the nation by railroad. McKinley's crushing victory introduced a decade of Republican
dominance in Washington.
1. Who were the candidates and the political parties of the election 1896?
_______________________-__________________
_______________________-__________________
2.
What general statement could you make about the locations of the states that supported William McKinley?
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3. Although more states supported Bryan, how/why did McKinley win?
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4.
Why do you think the states that supported McKinley did so?
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5. Why do you think Bryan did as well as he did considering his lack of campaign funds?
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6. What were the 2 major issues of the election? ____________________ & ________________
Some practice test questions… hopefully you are getting good at this!
1. The Populist Party of 1892 was enveloped into the Democratic party of 1896. Why did the areas that
voted Democratic in 1896 more than likely do so?
a. These States liked the freedom of uncontrolled railroads
b. Gold was easy to find in the Western States
c. Populists were farmers, and these States were primarily made up of farmers
d. All the large cities and urban areas in these States voted Democratic
We Want Free Coinage
of Silver
at a ratio of silver to gold
of 16 to 1.
(16 ounces of silver would have same monetary worth as 1
ounce of gold)
2. The most famous speech in American political history was delivered by William Jennings Bryan on July 9, 1896,
at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. The main issue is shown on the poster above, why was this
issue so important for Populists/Democrats?
a. Farmers couldn’t get their hands on Gold so it would be easier to buy and sell their crops with silver.
b. The Democrats and Populists owned many of the banks in the United States and wanted more control
c. William Jennings Bryan owned a silver mining area out west
d. The Republican Party supported the gold standard so the Democrats naturally wanted to choose their own
monetary form.