CHAPTER 9 THE
PROGRESSIVE
ERA
AMERICA SEEKS REFORMS IN
THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY
ORIGINS OF PROGRESSIVISM
• As America entered into
the 20th century, middle
class reformers addressed
many social problems
• Work conditions, rights
for women and children,
economic reform,
environmental issues and
social welfare were a few
of these issues
FOUR GOALS OF REFORMERS
• 1) Protect Social
Welfare
• 2) Promote Moral
Improvement
• 3) Create Economic
Reform
• 4) Foster Efficiency
1.PROTECT SOCIAL WELFARE
• Industrialization in the late
19th century was largely
unregulated
• Employers felt little
responsibility toward their
workers
• As a result Settlement
homes and churches served
the community
• Also the YMCA and
Salvation Army took on
service roles
Florence Kelley
• Advocate for
improving the life
of women and
children. “We
protect animals in
National Parks
better than we
protect our
women and
children.”
Florence Kelley
• She was appointed
chief inspector of
factories for Illinois
after she had helped
to win passage for
the Illinois Factory
Act in1893. The act,
which prohibited
child labor and
limited women’s
working hours, soon
became a model for
other states.
2. PROMOTE MORAL DEVELOPMENT
• Some reformers felt that
the answer to societies
problems was personal
behavior
• They proposed such
reforms as prohibition
• Groups wishing to ban
alcohol included the
Woman’s Christian
Temperance Union (WCTU)
3. CREATE ECONOMIC REFORM
• The Panic of 1893
prompted some
Americans to question
the capitalist economic
system
• As a result some
workers embraced
socialism
• Eugene Debs organized
the American Socialist
Party in 1901
Debs encouraged workers to reject
American Capitalism
Eugene Debs
• Labor leader who
helped organize the
American Socialist
Party in1901,
commented on the
uneven balance among
big business,
government,
• and ordinary people
under the free- market
system of capitalism.
Ran for president
multiple times and
earned a significant
amount of votes for a
third-party candidate.
MUCKRAKERS CRITICIZE BIG
BUSINESS
Ida
Tarbell
Some view
Michael
Moore as a
modern
muckraker
• Though most progressives
did not embrace socialism,
many writers saw the truth in
Debs’ criticism
• Journalists known as
“Muckrakers” exposed
corruption in business
• Ida Tarbell exposed
Standard Oil Company’s
cut-throat methods of
eliminating competition
Ida Tarbell
She exposed the ruthlessness with
which John D. Rockefeller had turned
his oil business into an all-powerful
monopoly. Her writing added force to
the trust-busting reforms of the early
20th century.
Muckrakers
Lincoln
Steffens”Shame of
the Cities
Upton Sinclair-”The Jungle
4. FOSTERING EFFICIENCY
• Many Progressive
leaders put their faith in
scientific principles to
make society better
• In Industry, Frederick
Taylor began using time
& motion studies to
improve factory
efficiency
• Taylorism became an
Industry fad as factories
sought to complete each
task quickly
Henry Ford
Pioneered the large-scale use of
the assembly line. Through
efficiency, he reduced the
number of hours required for
production of the Model T from
approximately 12 hours in 1910
to 2 hours in 1913.
CLEANING UP LOCAL
GOVERNMENT
• Efforts at reforming
local government
stemmed from the desire
to make government
more efficient and
responsive to citizens
• Some believe it also was
meant to limit immigrants
influence in local
governments
REGULATING BIG BUSINESS
• Under the
progressive
Republican
leadership of
Robert La Follette,
Wisconsin led the
way in regulating
big business
Robert La Follette
PROTECTING WORKING CHILDREN
• As the number of child
workers rose, reformers
worked to end child
labor
• Children were more
prone to accidents
caused by fatigue
• Nearly every state
limited or banned child
labor by 1918
Child Labor
Lewis Hine
• In 1908, Lewis Hine quit
his job as a teacher to
document child labor
practices. Hine’s
photographs and
descriptions of young
laborers were widely
distributed and
displayed in exhibits.
• His compelling images
of exploitation helped to
convince the public of
the need for child labor
regulations.
EFFORTS TO LIMIT HOURS
• The Supreme Court and
the states enacted or
strengthened laws
reducing women’s
hours of work
• Progressives also
succeeded in winning
worker’s compensation
to aid families of injured
workers
Important Cases
• The Supreme Court
declared KeatingOwen (1919)
unconstitutional due
to interference with
states’ rights to
regulate labor.
(transport of goods)
• Reformers did,
however, succeed in
nearly every state
by effecting
legislation that
banned child labor
and set maximum
hours.
Important Cases
• The Supreme Court
did help in other
cases. (1908)
Muller v. Oregon,
upheld 10 hour
workday for women
and (1917) Bunting
v. Oregon upheld
10 hour workday for
men.
ELECTION REFORM
• Citizens fought for, and
won, such measures as
secret ballots,
referendum votes, and
the recall
• Citizens could petition
and get initiatives on the
ballot
• In 1899, Minnesota
passed the first statewide
primary system
Initiative
• The initiative allows
voters to put a
proposed law on the
ballot for public
approval.
• Sought to raise the
level of public
participation in the
political process and
to give citizens more
of a direct voice in
state governments
Referendum
• After the initiative, • Sought to raise the
level of public
voters, instead of
participation in the
the legislature,
political process and
accepted or
to give citizens more
rejected it by the
of a direct voice in
referendum.
state governments
Recall
• The recall enabled
voters to remove public
officials from elected
positions by forcing
them to another election
before the end of their
term if enough voters
asked for it.
• Sought to raise the
level of public
participation in the
political process and
to give citizens more
of a direct voice in
state governments
DIRECT ELECTION OF SENATORS
• Before 1913, each
state’s legislature had
chosen its own U.S.
senators
• To force senators to be
more responsive to the
public, progressives
pushed for the popular
election of senators
• As a result, Congress
passed the
17th Amendment (1913)
Previous 4 slides explained
again
Direct Primary
• Special elections
were held to
determine whom
party members
wanted to represent
them as candidates
in the general
election.
SECTION 2: WOMEN IN
PUBLIC LIFE
• Before the Civil War,
American women were
expected to devote
their time to home and
family
• By the late 19th and
early 20th century,
women were visible in
the workforce
Women on the Farm
• On the farm, women’s
roles had not changed
substantially since the
previous century. In
addition to households
tasks such as cooking,
making clothes,
laundering, farm women
handled a host of other
chores such as raising
livestock.
WOMEN IN THE WORK FORCE
• Opportunities for
women increased
especially in the cities
• By 1900, one out of five
women worked
• The garment trade was
popular as was office
work, department stores
and classrooms
DOMESTIC WORKERS
• Before the turn-ofthe-century women
without formal
education contributed
to the economic
welfare of their
families by doing
domestic work
• Altogether, 70% of
women employed in
1870 were servants
WOMEN LEAD REFORM
• Many of the leading
progressive reformers
were women
• Middle and upper class
women also entered the
public sphere as
reformers
• Many of these women
had graduated from new
women’s colleges
Colleges like Vassar and Smith
allowed women to excel
Higher Education
• Many reformers
had attended
women’s colleges
such as Vassar
and Smith and
Wellesley.
• Brown, Harvard
and Columbia did
not allow women,
they did set up
colleges for
women.
WOMEN AND REFORM
• Women reformers strove
to improve conditions at
work and home
• In 1896, black women
formed the National
Association of Colored
Women (NACW)
• Suffrage was another
important issue for women
Susan B. Anthony
• Was a leading
• Video
proponent of women’s
suffrage.
• In 1869, Anthony and
Stanton had founded
the National Women
Suffrage Association.
THREE-PART STRATEGY FOR
WINNING SUFFRAGE
• Suffragists tried three
approaches to winning the
vote
• 1) Convince state
legislatures to adopt vote
(Succeeded in Wyoming,
Utah, Idaho, Colorado)
• 2) Pursue court cases to
test 14th Amendment
• 3) Push for national
constitutional Amendment
The 5 tactics of Carrie Chapman Catt and the NAWSA
– Painstaking
organization
– Close ties between
local, state, and
national workers
– Establishing a wide
base of support
– Cautious lobbying
– Gracious, ladylike
behavior
WOMEN WIN SUFFRAGE
The 19th Amendment gave women
the right to vote in 1920
• Native-born, educated,
middle-class women grew
more and more impatient
• Through local, state and
national organization,
vigorous protests and
World War I, women finally
realized their dream in
1920. 72 years after they
demanded it at Seneca
Falls
SECTION 3: TEDDY
ROOSEVELT’S SQUARE DEAL
McKinley was assassinated by an
anarchist in Buffalo in September
of 1901
• When President
William McKinley
was assassinated
6 months into his
second term,
Theodore
Roosevelt became
the nations 26th
president
ROOSEVELT AND THE
ROUGH RIDERS
• Roosevelt grabbed
national attention by
advocating war with Spain
in 1898
• His volunteer cavalry
brigade, the Rough Riders,
won public acclaim for its
role in the battle at San
Juan Hill in Cuba
• Roosevelt returned a hero
and was soon elected
governor of NY and later
McKinley’s vice-president
Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders
THE MODERN PRESIDENT
• When Roosevelt was
thrust into the presidency
in 1901, he became the
youngest president ever
at age 42
• He quickly established
himself as a modern
president who could
influence the media and
shape legislation
1902 COAL STRIKE
• In 1902 140,000 coal miners in
Pennsylvania went on strike for
increased wages, a 9-hour
work day, and the right to
unionize
• Mine owners refused to
bargain
• Roosevelt called in both sides
and settled the dispute
• Thereafter, when a strike
threatened public welfare, the
federal government was
expected to step in and help
TRUSTBUSTING
• By 1900, Trusts – legal
bodies created to hold
stock in many
companies – controlled
80% of U.S. industries
• Roosevelt filed 44
antitrust suits under the
Sherman Antitrust Act
Railroads
• The Elkins Act is a 1903
United States federal law
that amended the Interstate
Commerce Act of 1887.
The Act authorized the
Interstate Commerce
Commission (ICC) to impose
heavy fines on railroads that
offered rebates, and upon
the shippers that accepted
these rebates.
• The Hepburn Act is a 1906
United States federal law
that gave the Interstate
Commerce Commission
(ICC) the power to set
maximum railroad rates and
extend its jurisdiction. This
led to the discontinuation of
free passes to loyal
shippers. (a form of bribery)
“THE JUNGLE” LEADS TO
FOOD REGULATION
• After reading The
Jungle by Upton
Sinclair, Roosevelt
pushed for passage of
the Meat Inspection
Act of 1906
• The Act mandated
cleaner conditions for
meatpacking plants
Meat Inspection Act
– Dictated strict
cleanliness
requirements for
meatpackers and
created the
program of
federal meat
inspection.
• Government had to
pay for the
inspections, no date
of processing
required and
Owners could
appeal
PURE FOOD AND DRUG ACT
The Pure Food and Drug Act took
medicines with cocaine and other
harmful ingredients off the
market
• In response to
unregulated claims and
unhealthy products,
Congress passed the
Pure Food and Drug Act
in 1906
• The Act halted the sale
of contaminated foods
and medicines and
called for truth in
labeling
ROOSEVELT AND THE
ENVIRONMENT
• Before Roosevelt’s
presidency, the federal
government paid very
little attention to the
nation’s natural
resources
• Roosevelt made
conservation a primary
concern of his
administration
Roosevelt, left, was an avid
outdoorsman – here he is with author
John Muir at Yosemite Park
ROOSEVELT’S ENVIROMENTAL
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Yellowstone National
Park, Wyoming
• Roosevelt set aside 148
million acres of forest
reserves
• He also set aside 1.5
million acres of waterpower sites and he
established 50 wildlife
sanctuaries and several
national parks
ROOSEVELT’S ENVIROMENTAL
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Yellowstone National
ParkYellowstone was
established as the
country’s first national
park, and U.S forest
bureau was formed in
1872.
The country’s first
national park.
– U.S. Forest
Bureau & forest
reserves
• founded in 1887,
the government
set aside 45
million acres of
timberland for a
national forest
reserve.
John Muir
A naturalist and a writer
who had camped with
Roosevelt convinced him
to set aside 148 million
acres of forest reserve.
Roosevelt also set aside
1500 acres for water
power sites and another
80 million that may have
valuable minerals.
Gifford Pinochet
The first head of the U.S.
Forest Service he
convinced Roosevelt to
keep large tracts of
government land exempt
from private sale.
ROOSEVELT AND CIVIL
RIGHTS
• Roosevelt failed to
support Civil Rights
for African Americans
• He did, however,
support a few
individuals such as
Booker T. Washington
NAACP FORMED TO PROMOTE
RIGHTS
• In 1909 a number of African
Americans and prominent
white reformers formed the
National Association for the
Advancement of Colored
People
• The NAACP had 6,000
members by 1914
• The goal of the organization
was full equality among the
races
• The means to achieve this
was the court system
1964 Application
SECTION 4: PROGRESSIVISM
UNDER PRESIDENT TAFT
• Republican William
Howard Taft easily
defeated Democrat William
Jennings Bryan to win the
1908 presidential election
• Among his
accomplishments, Taft
“busted” 90 trusts during
his 4 years in office
Taft, right, was Roosevelt’s
War Secretary
Booker T Washington
• Booker T.
Washington felt
that racism would
end once blacks
gradually proved
their economic value
to society. They
could accomplish
this by acquiring
labor skills.
• Founded the
Tuskegee Normal
and Industrial
Institute, which
Taught useful skills
in agriculture,
domestic, and
mechanical work.
W.E.B. DuBois
• W.E.B. Du Bois was
the first AfricanAmerican to receive a
doctorate from
Harvard.
• Du Bois disagreed
with Washington’s
gradual approach.
• He founded the
Niagara Movement,
which insisted that
blacks should seek
a liberal arts
education so that
the AfricanAmerican
community would
have well-educated
leaders.
TAFT LOSES POWER
• Taft was not popular
with the American
public nor reform
minded Republicans
• By 1910, Democrats
had regained control
of the House of
Representatives
Taft called the Presidency, “The
lonesomest job in the world”
Payne-Aldrich TariffThe Payne-Aldrich Tariffwhich was supposed to lower
many tariffs ended up
lowering the tariffs on some
things but it also raised many
more tariffs which was AntiProgressive.
Taft and Public lands
• Taft appointed Richard Ballinger as Sec of Interior;
he returned 1 million acres of reserved land to the
public domain.
• He fired an official who disagreed with him.
• The fired employee wrote a muckraking article in
Collier’s Weekly.
• Pinchot sided with the fired official
• Taft sided with Ballinger and fired Pinchot
1912 ELECTION
• Republicans split in 1912
between Taft and Teddy
Roosevelt (who returned
after a long trip to Africa)
• Convention delegates
nominated Taft
• Some Republicans formed
a third party – The Bull
Moose Party and
nominated Roosevelt
• The Democrats put forward
a reform - minded New
Jersey Governor,
Woodrow Wilson
Republicans split in 1912
WILSON’S NEW FREEDOM
• As America’s newly
elected president,
Wilson moved to enact
his program, the “New
Freedom”
• He planned his attack on
what he called the triple
wall of privilege: trusts,
tariffs, and high finance
W. Wilson U.S. President
1912-1920
CLAYTON ANTITRUST ACT
• In 1914 Congress
enacted the Clayton
Antitrust Act which
strengthened the
Sherman Act
• The Clayton Act
prevented companies
from acquiring stock
from another company
(Anti-monopoly)
• The Act also supported
workers unions
FEDERAL TRADE
COMMISSION FORMED
Today the FTC has been working on
protecting consumers from ID theft
• The FTC was formed
in 1914 to serve as a
“watchdog” agency
to end unfair
business practices
• The FTC protects
consumers from
business fraud
FEDERAL INCOME TAX
ARRIVES
• Wilson worked hard to
lower tariffs, however
that lost revenue had
to be made up
• Ratified in 1916, the
16th Amendment
legalized a graduated
federal income tax
Monetary Policy
• Federal Reserve Act
of 1913- 12 banking
districts. 1 banker’s
bank in each district.
Allows for the
Federal Government
to help control
money supply.
• Controlling money
supply helps control
the economy. Helps
to limit big swings.
LIMITS OF PROGRESSIVISM
• While the
Progressive era was
responsible for many
important reforms, it
failed to make gains
for African
Americans
• Like Roosevelt and
Taft, Wilson retreated
on Civil Rights once
in office
The KKK reached a membership of 4.5
million in the 1920s