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Progressivism: The
Reform Era (1890 – 1920)
U.S. History – C. Corning
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Origins of Progressivism
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Effects of Industrialization
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At the turn of the century, many Americans hoped to change
American society for the better.
Many progressive reformers picked up the causes of the Populist
movement and moved the agenda forward.
These reformers worked for different causes on the local, state and
federal level.
Many of these reforms are still present in our society today.
Influence of the Mudrakers – journalists who alerted public to
wrongdoings in politics and business
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Upton Sinclair – The Jungle (1906) – abuses and problems in the meat
packing industry.
Ida M. Tarbell - History of the Standard Oil Company (1904) corporate ruthlessness of America’s most powerful monopoly.
Edward Bellamy – Looking Backward (1887) – novel about correcting
the ills of an industrial society.
+ What was the Progressive
Movement?
 Around
the turn of the century, the Progressive
Movement was a response to the challenges of
industrialization, urbanization and immigration.
•
Progressives turned away from the dominant
laissez-faire doctrine. They believed in private
initiative, but also that government should
positively shape the economy and society and
reform politics according to scientific principles.
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Progressives tended to see structural rather
than individual causes behind problems. Hard
work and thrift were obviously not enough to
escape poverty.
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The Philosophy of Progressivism
 Government
should:
Be more accountable to its citizens
 Curb the power and influence of wealthy interests.
 Be given expanded powers so it could become more
active in improving the lives of its citizens.
 More efficient and less corrupt so that they could
competently handle an expanded role.
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 What
do you think?
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Goals of the Progressive
Movement
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Protecting social welfare
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Promoting moral improvement
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Creating economic reform
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Fostering efficiency
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Opposition to the Progressives
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Conservative politicians and business leaders argued that
government regulation would undermine free enterprise and
prosperity.
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Federal courts tended to limit government power to regulate.
But never a complete blockade of reform.
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Socialists wanted a complete change of the system, not
merely reform. Even so, Socialism and Progressivism
overlapped on some issues.
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Tools of Progressivism
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Most Progressives DID NOT support sweeping economic or
political change
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Socialist Party did begun to gain support during this era but
Progressivism and Socialism are NOT the same. The socialist
wanted more structural change; felt that the Prog. were not going
far enough with the reforms.
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Progressives did not want to give up their standard of living and
personal liberties.
Unions were one way that reformers tried to change working
society.
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Industrialists often used injunctions to stop strikes.
Legislation – Progressives used the power of state and
federal legislatures to create and enforce reforms.
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Labor Reform
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Problems: Exploitation of the weak (children, women, recent
immigrants) and unsafe working conditions
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National Labor Union – est. in 1866 by ironworkers, later
Knights of Labor – membership open to all
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Use of strikes or work slow downs
Results of reform efforts:
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Ban child labor
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10 hour work day for women and men
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Workers’ Compensation – if hurt or killed on the job
+ Suffrage Movement
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19th Amendment – long time in coming
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1848 – Seneca Falls and Elizabeth Cady Stanton who wrote
“Declaration of Rights and Sentiments”
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Stanton and Susan B. Anthony founded the National Woman
Suffrage Association – focus on voting rights and other
women’s issues
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The passage of the 14th and 15th Amendment further fueled
the efforts of the suffragettes. Believed that these
amendments gave ALL U.S. citizens the right to vote.
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Some western territories allowed women to vote in local
elections – WHY?
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Wyoming – women could vote, hold office and sit on juries
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Utah too – and both keep suffrage when they became states
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Suffrage Movement
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Who were the suffragettes? White women (and men), welleducated, native-born and Protestants. Often also
championed other social reforms
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Other groups: Women’s Christian Temperance Union
(WCTU) which was also opposed to alcohol; AfricanAmerican believed that with the vote they could improve
their lives
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Some white suffragettes only wanted white women to vote!
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Felt that white men might be more willingly to grant vote to
women if blacks were not included.
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Other suffragettes try to block female immigrants (nativism).
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National Amendment
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From 1910 – 1920, 23 states granted women suffrage – now
the movement began focusing on a constitutional
amendment that would guarantee women the right to vote
throughout the nation
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Carrie Chapman Catt – head of NAWSA
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Harriet Stanton Blatch – WPU – called for women to be more
“vocal” in demanding their rights. Parades, protests and rallies.
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Alice Paul – encouraged women to vote “against” those opposing
the national amendment (ie Woodrow Wilson) – escalation of
movement
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Later arrested by Wilson after a protest in front of White House
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Civil disobedience
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Called militants
By Sept 1918, Wilson supported amendment – WHY?
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The Suffrage Argument
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Why extend the right to vote to women?
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Opposing arguments? (Still argued by some today!)
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19th Amendment – the Process
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Reminder: under the U.S. Constitution, 2/3 of the members of
each house of Congress must approve a constitutional
amendment AND then the amendment must be approved by
¾ of the states before it goes into effect.
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Why so difficult?
Spring 1919, amendment passes both houses and then went
to states for approval. ¾ of the 48 states at the time had to
ratify – by 1920 it was done.
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Prohibition
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Argument for Prohibition (the Drys)
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Argument against Prohibition (the Wets)
+ Prohibition – Road from Temperance to
Amendment
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1851, Maine was first state to prohibit residents to
manufacture and sell alcohol.
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1869, Prohibition Party formed – called for a constitution
amendment
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Women’s Christian Temperance Union (1874) and the AntiSaloon League (1893)
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Greatest pockets of support: rural areas, Protestant, serious
church goers, identified alcohol with big cities and
immigrants.
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ASL worked to get local communities to go “dry” and build
support on the state level.
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Prohibition – 18th Amendment
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1914 – first proposal of Prohibition amendment introduced to
Congress but failed to have enough votes.
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After beginning of WWI, support for amendment increased –
WHY?
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December 1917, both houses of Congress passed the
amendment and within a year 36 of the 48 states had
approved the 18th Amendment – now illegal to make, sell or
import alcohol.
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Amendment went into effect Jan 1920
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Enforcement of amendment – Volstead Act
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Problems with the law? Why exceptions?
By 1933 Congress passed the 21st Amendment, repealing the
18th Amendment (special situation!)
+ Prohibition – Unintended Consequences
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Volstead Act was very weak and difficult to enforce
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Home-made brew and bootleggers
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Canada Dry
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Rum Runners
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Real McCoy
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Increase of power and economic muscle of organized crime
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Downfall of saloons and birth of nightclubs (and jazz)
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Women??
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Cocktails
Impact of average American citizen as law breaker/criminal
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State Government Reforms
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Direct Primary: election in which citizens select nominees
for upcoming elections. Often based on political party
affiliations.
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Led to 17th Amendment – Direct Election of Senators (1913)
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Initiative: process in which citizens can put a proposed new
law directly on the ballot in the next election.
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Referendum: process that citizens use to reject or approve a
law passed by the legislature.
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Recall: procedure that permits voters to remove public
officials from office before the next election and before their
term expires.
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Race Issues
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What happened to all the abolitionists? Wouldn’t they
continue their work and fight against segregation?
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Overall the progressive reformers were not particularly
interested in the rights/issues of African-Americans.
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Deepening of segregation in the south – continuing
separation of public areas.
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Prominent African-American leaders: Booker T. Washington,
W.E.B. Du Bois.
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1909 – formation of NAACP – National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People.
+ Progressivism and Roosevelt
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Theodore Roosevelt (Teddy!) – vice-president to Pres
McKinley who was assassinated in 1901.
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26th President – 1901 – 1909 - Republican
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New York politician from a wealthy family
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Rough Riders – Cuba
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Youngest president ever – 42 years old, bold and decisive
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Saw the presidency as a “bully pulpit” from which to influence
media and shape policy/legislation
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Promised “Square Deal” – progressive reforms designed to
protect the common people against big business.
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Felt that America needed a strong federal government
Areas of reform:
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Business
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Health and the Environment
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Civil Rights
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Roosevelt’s Reforms - Business
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Used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to halt those trusts that he
felt were harmful to the public interest.
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Trustbusting
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1902 Coal Strike – Roosevelt intervened and set a precedent
that the federal gov’t should get involved labor strikes if they
threaten the public welfare
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Elkins Act 1903 (forbade rebates) and Hepburn Act 1906
(strengthened the powers of the ICC)
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Department of Labor – federal agency that supports laws that
benefit workers
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Health and the Environment
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Meat Inspection Act (1906) – federal meat inspection
program (used until 1990) and established cleanliness
standards for processing plants
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Pure Food and Drug Act (1906) – forbid the manufacture, sale
or transportation of food or drugs with harmful ingredients,
also called for truth in labeling
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Conservation Efforts – before Roosevelt’s presidency the
federal government paid little attention to the nation’s natural
resources.
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His philosophy was to preserve some areas while developing
others for the common good.
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National Reclamation Act (1902) – used money from the sale of
public lands to build irrigation systems in arid states.
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Roosevelt Dam in Arizona and Shoshone Dam in Wyoming.
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Progressivism Under Taft
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William H. Taft – 27th President – 1909 – 1913 (Rep.)
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Continued Roosevelt’s trustbusting efforts.
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Payne-Aldrich Tariff (1909) – compromise agreements about
tariffs which made neither the progressives nor the business
leaders happy.
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Mann-Elkins Act (1910) – gave ICC power to regulate telephone
and telegraph rates
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Taft was stuck between the progressives and the conservatives
(ie business leaders) within the Republican Party.
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Roosevelt was unhappy with Taft and entered the 1912 Presidential
Election as a third party candidate (Bull Moose Party).
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He splits the Republican vote and the Democratic candidate wins.
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Also have a Socialist Candidate – Eugene V. Debs (pg 537).
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Progressivism under Wilson
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Woodrow Wilson – 28th President – 1913 – 1921 (Democrat).
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His program was called “New Freedom” – called for stronger
antitrust legislation, banking reform and reduced tariffs.
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Two Constitutional Amendments were ratified in his term:
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16th (passed Congress in July 1909/ratified 1913) – Income Tax
 Previously majority of govt funds came from liquor taxes and
tariffs
 Chart pg 540
17th (passed Congress in May 1912/ratified 1913) – Direct
Election of Senators
Two additional amendments were passed by Congress and
ratified during his administration:
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18th – Prohibition
19th – Woman’s Suffrage
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Reforms
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Clayton Anti-Trust Act (1914) – limited the poser of
monopolies and clarified the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
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Labor unions and farm organizations could strike and not be
subject to anti-trust laws.
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Strikes and protests became legal – injunctions could only be
used against strikers if physical damage was threatened.
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Federal Trade Commission Act (1914) – created the agency
(FTC) that investigates fraudulent or unfair business
practices, and used the courts to enforce its policies.
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Federal Reserve Act (1913) – created a three level banking
system that controlled the nation’s money supply and
regulated member banks.
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12 districts each with a regional central bank.
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By 1923, 70% of nation’s banks were part of the Fed Reserve
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More Reforms
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Federal Farm Loan Act – low interest loans to farmers
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Adamson Act – reduced railroad workday from 10 to 8 hours
with no cut in pay
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Federal Workmen’s Compensation Act – benefits paid to
federal employees injured on the job
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Federal gov’t acting as the “role model” in labor issues
Keating-Owen Child Labor Act (1916) – outlawed products
sold interstate produced by child labor.
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The End of the Progressive
Movement
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Wilson began his first term as president with the outbreak of
World War I in Europe
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“There’s no chance of progress and reform in an administration in
which war plays the principal part.”
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By the beginning of his second term in 1917, the Progressive Era
had come to an end.
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Focus had shifted to winning the war in Europe.
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New regulations continued during the war – usually in support of
the war effort:
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War Industries Board
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National War Labor Board
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Food Administration
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Committee on Public Information