The Gilded Age

1. The Gilded Age • Mrs. Cheresnowsky • Unit 1: Industrial America

2. The Gilded Age The Gilded Age is the period in U.S. history between 1870 to around 1900

3. The Gilded Age The era was called the Gilded Age because although life in the U.S. looked bright and shiny, underneath the surface, there was lots of poverty and corruption.

4. Characteristics of Gilded Age New policies dealing with Native Americans Rise of political machines running local politics The growth of industrialization

5. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: Native Americans Native Americans were forced onto reservations and their children were forced to assimilate into American culture

6. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: • African Americans • Blacks were denied many basic rights and lynching of blacks was a common occurrence in the South • Laws were passed after Reconstruction that separated blacks and whites. • 1896-Plessy v. Ferguson, the Supreme Court upheld segregation as long as states maintained “separate but equal” facilities for both races.

7. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: Farmers Overproduction of goods and price gauging by railroads drove many farmers out of business

8. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: Immigrants Many immigrants were discriminated against and most lived in horrible inner city conditions

9. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: Women Women were denied the right to vote in most states and could not work the same jobs as men

10. The Gilded Age Groups that suffered during the Gilded Age: Children Most children lacked good educations because they went to work after they learned to read and write

11. TheOldWest

12. Rise of the Iron Horse • Following the Civil War, many Americans began moving West. The growth of railroads quickened this migration. Most people who moved west were : Ranchers Miners

13. Railroad Pioneers Cornelius Vanderbilt Leland Stanford Founded Central Pacific Railroad, the largest railroad company in the West Largest railroad tycoon in the Eastern United States during the late 1800s

14. Transcontinental Railroad The railway completed in 1869 between Omaha, Nebraska and Sacramento, California It was built in large part by Chinese immigrants

15. Transcontinental Railroad It joined the Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads and greatly improved travel from the eastern United States to the West.

16. Homestead Act The law passed in 1862 that encouraged the settlement of the Great Plains People got a plot of land for free as long as they: Filed a application Improved the land Filed for a deed ($10)

17. Settlement of the West Four things drew settlers to the Central Plains • the Homestead Act allowed people to own their own land • the land was rich and fertile for farming • the development of the steel plow made farming easier • the land was flat without any major mountains

18. Settlement of the West This flood of people moving westward angered many Native Americans living in the Plains.

19. Settlement of the West To make room for white settlers, herds of buffalo were killed and Native Americans were placed on reservations, leading to WAR!

20. “Indian Wars” • The clashes led to numerous massacres, throughout the late 1800s: Sand Creek Massacre, Fetterman Massacre and the Massacre at Wounded Knee

21. Indian Peace Commission Three years after the Sand Creek Massacre, the federal government tried to step in and settle disputes between U.S. settlers and Native Americans by creating the Indian Peace Commission in 1867 The Indian Peace Commission tried to end conflicts by creating new lands for Native Americans only. These lands were known as reservations.

22. Indian Reservations

23. Flight of the Nez Perce Often, Native Americans were chased off land that they had been settled on for centuries The Nez Perce tribe – led by Chief Joseph – refused to move from their lands to a reservation in Idaho The army chased the Nez Perce all the way to Canada before Chief Joseph surrendered

24. Famous Indian Chiefs Sitting Bull Crazy Horse Red Cloud Geronimo

25. Custer’s Last Stand The Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876 was one of the most famous massacres in U.S. history It was in this battle Lt. Colonel George Custer and the U.S. 7th Army was ambushed by Native Americans. It became known as Custer’s Last Stand

26. The Dawes Act Law passed in 1887 attempting to assimilate Native Americans into American society The law led to the creation of “Indian Territory” in what is today the state of Oklahoma

27. The Dawes Act • Native American children were forced to learn English and became more “Americanized” • Native American families were forced from their homelands and onto reservations • The U.S. government had to use force to move some Native American

28. The Industrial Revolution

29. Presidents of the Gilded Age During the Gilded Age, it can be argued that the President of the United States had less power than the business leaders James Garfield Chester A. Arthur Grover Cleveland Benjamin Harrison The policies and actions of the U.S. government during the Gilded Age gave large corporations the freedom to do most whatever it wanted, leading to an industrial boom in the U.S.

30. Free Enterprise System The free enterprise system is the economic system in which citizens are free to run a business the way they want The system is based on the laissez-faire theory, meaning a business will succeed or fail and the government will not interfere

31. Free Enterprise System The free enterprise system allowed the United States to become a world industrial giant in the late 1800s and led to numerous new inventions

32. Bell develops telephone In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell developed the first telephone, which revolutionized communication by increasing the scale and speed of nationwide communications. "Mr. Watson -- come here -- I want to see you."

33. Edison and the Light Bulb In 1879, American inventor Thomas Edison developed the first light bulb. The invention led to the wide spread use of electrical power and factories being able to run at night. This in turn produced more jobs and more product, which led to lower prices.

34. The Bessemer Process The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel.

35. Captains of Industry Entrepreneurs & Industrialists like Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan were able to build great fortunes during the Gilded Age Railroads Steel Oil Banking Cornelius Vanderbilt Andrew Carnegie John D. Rockefeller J.P. Morgan • The government created policies to support the industrialists • High tariffs led to lower prices for American made goods • There were very few government regulations on big business • Government supported owners over workers in labor disputes

36. Captains of Industry … …or Robber Barons?

37. Millionaire’s Row, New York Carnegie Mansion

38. Tenements in New York City

39. Tenements in New York City

40. Social Darwinism Not everyone was able to achieve the American Dream Many people ended up broke trying to achieve wealth The belief that things that can not adapt to their environment will eventually die out is known as Social Darwinism “Survival of the fittest”

41. The Gospel of Wealth Many Christians rejected Social Darwinism because it contradicted the Bible • Many believed that those who profited from society owed something in return. • Gospel of Wealth. • Andrew Carnegie, who gave millions of dollars to numerous charities

42. Child Labor Immigrant children were put to work in sweatshops – jobs with harsh working conditions

43. Child Labor Businesses wanted to hire children because they were a cheap source of labor.

44. Child Labor Parents wanted children to work for 3 reasons: 1) their families needed the money 2) they thought hard work built character 3) they believed once children learned how to read, write, and do basic math, they were educated enough

45. Child Labor Child labor included factory work, mining or quarrying, agriculture, or doing odd jobs.

46. Child Labor Newspaper carriers were known as “Newsies”

47. Politics of the Gilded Age City Bosses and Political Machines

48. Political Machines Political machines controlled the activities of political parties in the city. Ward bosses, precinct captains, and the city boss worked to: • ensure that their candidates were elected; • make sure that city government worked to their advantage.

49. Role of the Political Boss • The “Boss” (typically the mayor) controlled jobs, business licenses, and influenced the court system. . Boss Tweed ran NYC

50. Residents Vote for candidates supported by political machines. How the Political Machine works Machines hand out jobs,contracts, and favors to City Residents Machines maintainpower over city governments Political Machines work to control city politics Run by powerful “Boss”who has influence with or over city officials