Business and Labor Flashcards
Thomas Edison
Inventor. Created the light bulb. This provided for safer work environments and allowed for longer work hours.
Eugene V. Debs
Head of the American Railway Union and director of the Pullman strike; he was imprisoned along with his associates for ignoring a federal court injunction to stop striking. While in prison, he read Socialist literature and emerged as a Socialist leader in America
Horatio Alger
heavy promoter of the success story. Popular novelist during the Industrial Revolution who wrote that virtue, honesty and industry would be rewarded with success, wealth and honor.
Andrew Carnegie
Dominated the steel industry. He made money by striking deals with the railroads and bought out rivals.
John D. Rockefeller
Had a big standard oil company. Believed in trusts. This is when companies ban together to drop prices or get rid of competition.
He got rebates from railroad companies.
J.P. Morgan
J.P. Morgan was a banker. Had holding companies (those that are formed only to buy up other companies)
Established railroads and bought U.S. steel.
Describe the Industrial Revolution in late 19th century
the change from an agricultural to an industrial society and from home manufacturing to factory production
Describe Big Businesses
a business that is so big, it can affect politics and government, and can influence society.
Describe Social Darwinism
Charles Dickinson’s law of evolution.Survival of the fittest survived in the marketlace.
Describe Morrill Land Grant Act
1862 law in which the federal government distributed millions of acres of western lands to the state governments in order to fund state agricultural colleges
Describe Horizontal Integration
The combining of a bunch of like businesses into one company.
Ex: the consolidation of different railroad lines into one company.
Describe Social Gospel
the religious doctrines preached by those who believed that the churches should directly address economic and social problems
Describe Dawes Severalty Act of 1887
An act that broke up Indian reservations and distributed land to individual households. Leftover land was sold for money to fund U.S. government efforts to “civilize” Native Americans. Of 130 million acres held in Native American reservations before the Act, 90 million were sold to non-Native buyers. (639)
Describe the Problems with immigration
The old immigrants didn’t like the new immigrants. They treated them lole criminals, diseased and paupers.
Describe Frederick Jackson Turner
American historian who said that humanity would continue to progress as long as there was new land to move into. The frontier provided a place for homeless and solved social problems.
Describe Ethnic Neighborhoods
When people moved to the U.S. they wanted to recreated life back home but better. So ethnic Neighborhoods were created.
Describe Nativism
Nativism Favoritism toward native-born Americans, caused immigrants issues with jobs and adapting to the new culture and language
Describe Wabash, St. Louis v. Illinois
A Supreme Court decision that prohibited states from regulating the railroads because the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce. As a result, reformers turned their attention to the federal government, which now held sole power to regulate the railroad industry
Describe the Influence of Robber Barons Labor Unions
v
Describe U.S. Presidents between 1876 and 1900
v
Describe the Bessemer Process
It was the new, cheaper and faster way to produce steel
Describe the Transcontinental railroad construction
v
Describe Haymarket Incident
This riot was a direct result of the extreme tensions between laborers and the wealthy business owners. The McCormick Reaper Company was on strike, 4 people had just been killed, tensions were high, and anarchists showed up and began speaking at the rally attended mainly by immigrant workers in May 1886 at Haymarket Square. It was originally intended as a rally to protest the establishment of a National Wage. Someone in the crowd threw a bomb, a riot broke out, 7 policemen died, and as a result 8 innocent German immigrants were arrested and the Knights of Labor were blamed for the riot. The riot resulted in the loss of all sympathy for laborers, and a fear anarchy in the middle class, which became a huge obstacle for the AF of L and Knight’s of Labor.
Describe Robber Barrons
Monopolies and businessmen. They had a great influence on government policies.
Describe City life at turn-of-the-century
During this time the U.S. had become the greatest industrial power in the world. Women and children were working and everybody was trying to get an indutrial job because there were so many available. Yet the wages were usually low and working conditions were bad.
Describe Captains of Industry
Aka, Robber Barrons. These include Andrew Carnegie, John D Rockefeler, J.P. Morgan and conrelius Vanderilt
Describe William McKinley’s election
Republican President who wins the 1896 election-wants to embrace silver because he knows it’s the right thing to do-but his party says elsewise
Describe New Immigrants
New immigrants came to the U.S. in 1880-1970. They came from Southern and Eastern Europe, Latin America and Asia.
Were treated badly by the old wave of immigrants.
Describe the Chinese Exclusion Act
This prohibited the Chinese from entering the U.S. Teddy Roosevelt promised Japan that if they stopped sending people over that they would treat the ones that are already here better. Called the Gentlemen’s Agreement..
Describe Relations between Indians and the U.S. Government
Bad. Constantly tense.
