Imperialism and
Progressives
Imperialism, Spanish American War, Rough
Riders, Teddy Roosevelt, Square Deal, Big Stick
Diplomacy, And William Taft
IMPERIALISM
stronger nation to attempt to
create an empire by dominating a
weaker nation economically, politically,
 Policy by
culturally, and militarily.
1. Commercial/Business
Interests
U. S. Foreign Investments: 1869-1908
1. Commercial/Business
Interests
American Foreign Trade:
1870-1914
Expanding of U.S. Interests
Farewell
Address to stay out of other nations’ issues
 George Washington warned in his 1796
and for the most part the United States did just that such
as the Monroe Doctrine proved
 However, American began to expand interests in the
1850’s and on
 Commodore Matthew Perry forced Japan to
open trade with us
 United States signed treaty with Hawaii that
allowed them to sell sugar if they agree not to
become part of any other nation (we’ll steal
them later)
2. Military/Strategic Interests
Alfred T. Mahan  The Influence of Sea
Power on History: 1660-1783
3. Social Darwinist Thinking
The Hierarchy
of Race
The White Man’s
Burden
4. Religious/Missionary Interests
American
Missionaries
in China, 1905
Why Expand Influence?
 Promoting
Economic Growth: Americans alone
could not consume all that was being produced so
the U.S. needed other markets
 Established Banana Republics- name given to
Central American countries because of the
amount of influence American businessmen
(especially fruit growers) had on their
government
 Protecting American Security: Pushed by Alfred
Mahan’s book entitled “The Influence of Sea
Power Upon History” and others the U.S. built
up one of the most powerful nations
 Now powerful navy can help U.S. expand
influence
5. Closing the American Frontier
Why Expand Influence?
 Preserving American Spirit: Many,
including Henry Cabot Lodge and Teddy
Roosevelt, felt the closing of the American
west would sap our pioneer energy and they
wanted to go after other areas to get that
loving feeling back
 Public Opinion: Eventually, the American
citizens became satisfied with markets and
were okay with our expansion…but this
expansion will soon become bloody
U. S. Missionaries in Hawaii
Imiola Church – first built in the late 1820s
U. S. View of Hawaiians
Hawaii becomes a U. S. Protectorate in 1849
by virtue of economic treaties.
Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani
Hawaii for the
Hawaiians!
U. S. Business Interests In Hawaii
1875 – Reciprocity
Treaty
1890 – McKinley Tariff
1893 – American
businessmen backed an
uprising against Queen
Liliuokalani.
Sanford Ballard Dole
proclaims the Republic
of Hawaii in 1894.
To The Victor Belongs the Spoils
Hawaiian
Annexation
Ceremony, 1898
Commodore Matthew Perry
Opens Up Japan: 1853
The Japanese View
of Commodore
Perry
Treaty of Kanagawa: 1854
Japan's first treaty with a Western nation. It marked
the end of Japan's period of seclusion (1639�1854).
Gentleman’s Agreement: 1907
A Japanese note agreeing
to deny passports to
laborers entering the U.S.
Japan recognized the U.S.
right to exclude Japanese
immigrants holding passports
issued by other countries.
The U.S. government got the
school board of San Francisco
to rescind their order to
segregate Asians in separate
schools.
1908  Root-Takahira Agreement.
Root-Takahira Agreement: 1908
A pledge to maintain the status quo in the Far
East.
Recognition of China’s independence and territorial
integrity, and support for continuation of the OpenDoor Policy.
An agreement to mutual consultation in the event of
future Far Eastern crises.
Lodge Corollary to the Monroe
Doctrine: 1912
Senator Henry Cabot
Lodge, Sr. (R-MA)
Non-European powers,
like Japan, would be
excluded from owning
territory in the Western
Hemisphere.
“Seward’s Folly”: 1867
$7.2 million
“Seward’s Icebox”: 1867
Spanish-American War
The Imperialist Tailor
Spanish Misrule in Cuba
Valeriano Weyler’s
“Reconcentration” Policy
“Yellow Journalism” & Jingoism
Joseph Pulitzer
Hearst to Frederick Remington:
You furnish the pictures,
and I’ll furnish the war!
William Randolph Hearst
De Lôme Letter
 Spanish Minister wrote a letter bad
mouthing President McKinley
 Letter was stolen from Havana, Cuba post
office and leaked to the yellow journalists
 McKinley is: “weak and catering to the rabble,
and, besides, a low politician, who desires to
leave a door open to me and to stand well
with the jingoes of his party."
 President McKinley is now FIRED UP
Theodore Roosevelt
Assistant Secretary of the
Navy in the McKinley
administration.
Imperialist and American
nationalist.
Criticized President
McKinley as having the
backbone of a chocolate
éclair!
Resigns his position to fight
in Cuba (Rough Riders)
ROUGH RIDERS
 Roosevelt gained fame by organizing the
volunteer cavalry group- Rough Riders
 They helped to charge up San Juan Hill
U.S.S. Maine
 Ship was sent from Key West to Cuba to protect
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American interests while Cuba was in insurrection
Ship exploded and the yellow press and United
States immediately blamed Spain for sinking the
ship
Turns out, the gun powder on the ship was ignited
which caused the explosion
Helped lead the United States to war with Spain
266 Men Killed
“Remember the Maine and to Hell With Spain!!”
was rallying cry
SPANISH – AMERICAN WARAmerica’s Shortest War
 Cuban revolutionaries were fighting the
Spanish for independence
 A leaked letter, the explosion of the USS
Maine (which the U.S. blamed Spain- which
wasn’t), and yellow journalism led President
McKinley to declare war on Spain
 William Hearst was most
famous yellow journalist
KNOWN AS THE SPLENDID
LITTLE WAR by John Hay
John Hay- “Splendid Little War”
 Personal secretary for Abraham Lincoln
 Served as Secretary of State under William
McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt
 Was born in Salem, Indiana
The Spanish-American War (1898):
“That Splendid Little War”
William H. Taft, 1st
Gov.-General of the Philippines
Great administrator.
Dewey Captures Manila!
The Treaty of Paris: 1898
Cuba was freed from Spanish rule.
Spain gave up Puerto Rico and the island of
Guam.
The U. S. paid Spain
$20 mil. for the
Philippines.
The U. S. becomes
an imperial power!
TREATY OF PARIS
 Ended the Spanish- American War
 United States gained Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and
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bought the Philippines
Gave up Cuba- but PLATT AMENDMENT gave us a
permanent base there
What is our military base in Cuba called?
Guantánamo Bay- A.K.A- “GITMO”
This is where the suspects in the war on terror are
being held and the base that Barrack Obama hopes
to close soon because of the torture that is suspected
of going on there
Cuban Independence?
Teller Amendment (1898)
Platt Amendment (1903)
Senator
Orville Platt
1. Cuba was not to enter into any agreements with foreign
powers that would endanger its independence.
2. The U.S. could intervene in Cuban affairs if necessary
to maintain an efficient, independent govt.
3. Cuba must lease Guantanamo Bay to the U.S. for naval
and coaling station.
4. Cuba must not build up an excessive public debt.
Philippines
 United States entered into a three year
struggle with the Philippines, despite their
help in the Spanish-American War.
 “Gun Boat Diplomacy”- Demonstrate our
military might in the hopes that nations
would give in to our demands
The American Anti-Imperialist
League
Founded in 1899.
Mark Twain, Andrew
Carnegie, William
James, and William
Jennings Bryan among
the leaders.
Campaigned against the
annexation of the
Philippines and other
acts of imperialism.
John Hay Open Door Policy
 Secretary of State John Hay wrote a letter
to European nations urging them to adopt an
Open Door Policy in regards to China
 The Open Door Policy would allow the United
States equal access to the consumers of
China
25th President William McKinley
Assassinated
 President is shot and dies a week later
 Theodore Roosevelt becomes the 26th
and the youngest president
We Gotta Do Something
 Many Americans felt a need for change
 Wanted a cleaner and more fair political system and
government
 Due to the industrial boom and urban expansion,
Progressives desired to get back the control of the
government from the special interest groups,
monopolies, and expand protection for women, labors,
and even blacks.
 Came from mostly the middle class of both the
Republican and Democratic parties
Progressive Era
 1890-1920
 Progressivism was not a united movement
 Progressive’s goals fell into four areas: social, moral,
economic, and political
 Progressives wanted to gain back control of the
government from special interests, monopolies, and
political machines
 They wanted government to become more involved
to help consumers, women, laborers, and even
blacks
Four Basic Beliefs
 Government should be accountable to the
citizens
 Government needed to curb the power and
influence of wealthy interests
 Government should be given expanded
powers so that it could become more active
in improving the lives of its citizens
 Governments needed to be more efficient
and less corrupt
Muckrakers
 Turn of the century expose writers that exposed social
and political injustices
 Muckrakers are people who stir manure, and that is why
Teddy Roosevelt gave them this name
 They wielded power on the government
 Upton Sinclair- The Jungle was a story about that
meatpacking industry that caused Teddy Roosevelt
to push for more control over the meat industry
The Jungle
Roosevelt’s SQUARE DEAL
 Roosevelt was known as the “trust buster”
because he used the Sherman Anti- Trust Act
 SQUARE DEAL- was Roosevelt’s domestic
policy that was meant to help all citizens not
just the big businesses.
 The Square Deal was President Theodore
Roosevelt's domestic program formed upon three
basic ideas: conservation of natural
resources, control of corporations, and
consumer protection
BOXER REBELLION
 China was being carved up by European
nations so the United States forced the OPEN
DOOR POLICY so they would trade with us
and Western Europe
 Revolutionaries, known as Boxers, led a
movement against the imperialists that
became known as the BOXER MOVEMENT
BIG STICK DIPLOMACY
 “Speak softly and carry a big stick, and
you’ll go far”
 Symbolizes Roosevelt’s imperialistic desires
PANAMA CANAL
 France started the canal but gave up because of the
incidents of disease
 Roosevelt helped Panama gain their independence
and they gave us the land to build the canal.
 FACTS: * Took 10 years to build
* A ship from San Fran. To N.Y.C.
saves 7,872 miles on a trip
* Handed over to Panama’s
government in 1999
* U.S. later had to pay for canal since they
aided Panama’s fight against Columbia
PANAMA CANAL
ROOSEVELT COROLLARY
 Addition to the MONROE DOCTRINE that
said the United States would collect the
debt of the Latin American countries and
give it to European countries as they were
not allowed to interfere.
RUSSO – JAPANESE WAR
 War fought for imperialistic control of Korea
by Japan over Russia
 Roosevelt helped to negotiate a peace
treaty that earned him a Nobel Prize for
Peace (Only President to get Award While
In Office) – but left both sides angered.
THE GREAT WHITE FLEET
 Fleet of ships sent around the world to
demonstrate the military prowess of the
United States
 We can bring a military presence any where
in the world.
The Great White Fleet: 1907
Conservation
 TR was considered our “Conservation
President”
 Roosevelt set more parkland aside than
his predecessors combined, including the
Grand Canyon
 His refusal to shoot a defenseless bear went
on to be why “Teddy” Bears are named what
they are
TR Facts
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The Teddy Bear is named after Teddy Roosevelt. While hunting in
Mississippi during his presidency, a few of the men in Roosevelt's party treed
a small black bear and summoned Roosevelt so that he could take the
shot. Roosevelt decided that killing the young, trapped bear was not sporting,
and spared it. A New York toymaker heard the story, and asked Roosevelt's
permission before styling a child's stuffed toy bear as the "Teddy
Bear". Roosevelt gave his permission, noting that he did not expect many
sales.
2. Maxwell House coffee once asked the President what he thought of their
product. He responded: "I'ts good to the last drop". Sound familiar?
3. Once while preparing to give a speech in the Milwaukee during a campaign,
a crazed man attempted to assassinate Roosevelt, and shot him with a pistol at
nearly point blank range. Roosevelt declared "it will take more than that to kill
a bull moose!" and finished the lengthy speech before visiting a hospital.
4. After Roosevelt retired from politics, he led an expedition in South America
to find the source of a river known as "the River of Doubt". Most of the party
died, and Roosevelt caught the fever yet survived. The river is now named
"Rio Roosevelt."
5. Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace prize for mediating the Russo-Japanese
war. Although an aggressive president when it came to military matters, he is
the only president to have been awarded the honor while President of the
United States.
William Taft
 Hand picked successor of Teddy Roosevelt
 Carried on Dollar Diplomacy- use money
as leverage
 However, his use of this idea caused us to
bring in troops and ultimately failed
 WHT actually broke about 50% trusts than
his trust-busting predecessor TR- Some of
these angered TR
Bull Moose Party
 Outraged by Taft’s actions, Roosevelt,
proclaiming that he was as “strong as a bull
moose,” founded the Progressive
Republican Party, or Bull Moose Party, so
that he himself could run against Taft on a
third-party ticket in the presidential election
of 1912
 Split between the two men caused the
Republican Party to split support and gave the
election to Woodrow Wilson
27th President William H. Taft
 Was Teddy Roosevelt's hand-picked
successor
 Roosevelt thought Taft would continue
policies
 He was not as good of a politician as Teddy
and would alienate the Progressives at the
time
 Dollar Diplomacy- Diplomacy that involved
heavy investment by America in foreign
economies (especially Latin America)
 Roosevelt will later run against Taft as an
independent
28th President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
 New Freedom- Wilson’s progressive
platform in which accomplished most of his
domestic goals such as a reduced the tariff,
passed more anti-trust legislation, and
reformed the banking system
 He tried a “moralistic” diplomacy approachtrying to give nations that we were involved in
more space
New Freedom
 Tariffs protected the large industrialists at the expense of small
farmers. Wilson signed the Underwood-Simmons Act into law in
1913, which reduced tariff rates. The banking system also pinched
small farmers and entrepreneurs. The gold standard still made currency too
tight, and loans were too expensive for the average American. Wilson
signed the Federal Reserve Act, which made the nation's
currency more flexible.
 Unlike Roosevelt, Wilson did not distinguish between "good" trusts and
"bad" trusts. Any trust by virtue of its large size was bad in
Wilson's eyes. The Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914 clarified the
Sherman Act by specifically naming certain business tactics
illegal. This same act also exempted labor unions from antitrust
suits, and declared strikes, boycotts, and peaceful picketing
perfectly legal.
 In two years, he successfully attacked each "wall of privilege.”
Mexico
 Despite his “moralistic” approach- we did get
involved in Mexico
 We refused to recognize their leader and
threatened to end “dollar diplomacy”
 When Mexican officials arrested American
soldiers, Wilson sent troops in to Vera Cruz,
Mexico
 In retaliation for the U.S. incursion at Vera Cruz,
yet another rebel, Pancho Villa, took a small
band of men and killed sixteen Americans
while raiding a small town in New Mexico in
1916
The Mexican Revolution: 1910s
Victoriano Huerta seizes control of Mexico
and puts Madero in prison where he was
murdered.
Venustiano Carranza, Pancho Villa, Emiliano
Zapata, and Alvaro Obregon fought
against Huerta.
The U.S. also got involved by occupying
Veracruz and Huerta fled the country.
Eventually Carranza would gain power in
Mexico.
The Mexican Revolution: 1910s
Emiliano Zapata
Pancho Villa
Venustiano Carranza
Porfirio Diaz
Francisco I Madero
Wilson’s “Moral Diplomacy”
The U. S. should
be the conscience
of the world.
Spread democracy.
Promote peace.
Condemn colonialism.
Searching for Banditos
General John J. Pershing with Pancho
Villa in 1914.
Pancho Villa
U. S. Global Investments &
Investments in Latin America, 1914
U. S. Interventions in
Latin America: 1898-1920s
Uncle Sam: One of the “Boys?”
Other Issues
Triangle Shirtwaste, Tenements,
Tammany Hall
Triangle Shirtwaste Fire:
Government Regulations
 Working conditions continued to be poor- long hours, poor
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wages, poor sanitation- especially in New York
Triangle Shirtwaist Fire: March 25, 1911- Fire breaks
out but workers, mainly Jewish women, could not get
out because they were locked in the factories
146 women killed
As result Progressives like Florence Kelley and
Frances Perkins, along with Tammany Hall leader Al
Smith and Robert Wagner helped form the New York
State Factory Investigation Commission
Commission led to state and eventually Federal
Workplace Safety Laws
Women’s Rights
National American Woman
Suffrage Association (NAWSA)
 Continued to push for women suffrage
 Women will gain the right to vote in 1920 with the passage of the
19th Amendment
 Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton drafted the
amendment and first introduced it in 1878; it was forty-one
years later, in 1919, when the Congress submitted the
amendment to the states for ratification. A year later, it was
ratified by the requisite number of states, with Tennessee's
ratification being the final vote needed to add the
amendment to the Constitution.
 The 19th was unsuccessfully challenged in Leser v. Garnett
(1922). In that case, the Supreme Court rejected claims that the
amendment was unconstitutionally adopted.
Tenement
 A low-cost apartment building that often
has poor standards of sanitation, safety, and
comfort and is designed to house as many
families as possible
 1900- ½ city population
lived in tenements
POLITCAL MACHINE
 Unofficial city organization designed to
keep a particular party or group in power
and usually headed by a single, powerful
boss.
 William “Boss” Tweed led the Tammany
Hall political machine in New York City.
 Would do nice things for immigrants in
exchange for votes
Settlement House
 Community center organized to provide various
services to the urban poor’
 Jane Addams’ Hull House- Community Center in
Chicago
 Opened in 1889
 The Jane Addams Hull House Association, a 122-year-old social
service agency that is a direct descendent of Addams’ original
settlement house, closed on Friday.