1900 American Society Flashcards
What was the Bill of Rights?
Guarantees Americans a set of freedoms and rights, including the right to vote, freedom of belief, information and law
By 1919, what were many states refusing to recognise?
The vote of women, African Americans and American Indians
By the early 1900s, how many different nationalities were living in USA?
Over 100
Population of USA by 1900
110 million
What had immigration made the USA?
A ‘melting pot’ of different religions, races and cultures
Who were the first Americans?
American Indians/ Red Indians
What did the American Indians live in across America for thousands of years?
Tribes
Who took much of the Indians land?
White Europeans
What were the Indians forced to live in?
Reservations
How many Indians were there when the Europeans first arrived, how many by 1900?
5 million
Down to 250,000
When did a wave of new immigrants flood into America?
From 1850 onwards
Where were the immigrants coming from?
Mainly eastern and southern Europe
Ireland, China, Japan and South America
Why did the immigrants crowd into the large industrial towns and cities?
To look for work- many were poor and illiterate
What group of Americans saw new immigration from 1850 as a threat to their way of life?
White Anglo Saxon Protestants (WASPS)
When did the white settlers arrive from Europe?
1600s
Where did the white Europeans particularly come from?
Britain
Netherlands
Germany
What did the largest group of white settlers (the British) begin to regard the USA as?
Part of the British Empire
By 1900s, what group had become the most powerful group in America?
White English speakers
% of American people owned what % of land?
10% of Americans owned 90% of wealth
What group owned 90% of the wealth?
Descendants of the white immigrants with high status and influence
Commonly known as WASPs
What group of people were taken to work as slaves in South America?
Africans
Between what years were Africans taken as slaves?
1600 and 1800
When did slavery end?
1865
By 1920, how many African Americans were there?
10 million, mostly in southern states
Why did African Americans have limited freedom?
No right to vote
Denied access to good jobs, decent housing and proper education
In the early 1920s, was who were among the poorest in the country?
African Americans
