Gilded Age

Question 1

Positive views of the gilded age?

Answer 1

• revisionist era in the 1960s and 70s - historians challenged the view that the gilded age was not just suffering and economic disparity.
• public scandals indicated corruption (but it was the same as other periods)
• presidential public attempts to reduce corruption via legal sources

Question 2

Negative views of the Gilded age?

Answer 2

Historians with cynical views
- Ray Gunger
- Hofstader
Traditional views criticise the spoils system.
-wish to be re-elected caused a diluting of ideological party differences (not bipartisan) —> criticised by historians of traditional views.

Question 3

Who were the four presidents of the Gilded age period?

Answer 3

Hayes, Garfield, Arthur, Cleveland

Question 4

Hayes facts:

Answer 4

• republican
  -served 1877-1881
• against the spoils system, tried to convince congress to outlaw it but failed
• elected because of the compromise of 1877
• not supportive of trade unions

Question 5

What is the compromise of 1877?

Answer 5

Formal agreement between southern democrats and allies of the republican Hayes to settle the result of the 1876 presidential election and marked the end of the reconstruction era.

Question 6

Garfield facts

Answer 6

• served in 1881
• assassinated in 1881
• supported reform of civil service, also against spoils system - believed it was ruining presidency
• republican
• his death increased the demand and support for the civil service reform

Question 7

Arthur facts

Answer 7

• 1881-1885
• passed the Pendleton act
• attempted civil service reform
• supportive of the spoils system
• Chinese exclusion act - banned all Chinese immigrants

Question 8

What is the Pendleton act?

Answer 8

• passed in 1883
• placed most federal employees on the merit system and marked the end of the “spoils system”

Question 9

What was the Chinese exclusion act?

Answer 9

• 1882
• provided an absolute 10 year ban on Chinese labourers immigrating to the United States.

Question 10

Cleveland facts

Answer 10

• 1885-89
• democrat
• not supportive of workers rights
• Passed the Dawes Act

Question 11

Dawes act

Answer 11

• 1887
• break up the power of the tribe by encouraging individual families to farm for themselves rather than rely on the tribes.

Question 12

What were Clevelands achievements?

Answer 12

• announced he would not fire any republicans doing well
• mostly used merit system for job appointments. However, more democratics got jobs later on.

Question 13

Unpopular policies for Cleveland

Answer 13

• Vetoed hundreds of private pension bills for AMerican Civil war veterans
• vetoed congress disability bill for non military personnel.
• Texas seed bill - congress wanted to give 10k for seeds after Texas went through drought however - Cleveland vetoed this.
  This shows that Cleveland had a Laissez-faire mindset, he did not believe the government should be supporting individual groups.

Question 14

What was the industry like in 1860s to 1890’s

Answer 14

• second rate industrial power but by 1890 the USA led Germany, Britain and France.
• industry was dominated by a few individuals and corporations = ruthless.

Question 15

What are robbers barons?

Answer 15

Successful industrialists whose business practices were often considered ruthless or unethical

Question 16

Robber barons facts

Answer 16

• benefitted from the Laissez faire attitudes of the governments - as they were no regulated y the gov, it gave them more freedom regarding business practices
• even though the big business men were not politicans, they had influence over them.
• idea of social Darwinism - survival of the fittest = adding to the idea that it was ruthless.
• supported by the Republican Party due to the norths industrialisation

Question 17

Vanderbilt

Answer 17

• Railroads
• William Vanderbilt made 100 billion in profits, upon death, he was the richest man in the US, later, he was the richest man in the world.

Question 18

Carnegie

Answer 18

• worked in the steel industry, brought a steel making process from the UK, made large profits in the US.
• notorious for making employees work 364 days of the year - one day off for the 4th of July. Shows the ruthlessness.
• monopolised the steel industry
• donated 350 million to charity - wanted to be more philanthropic to fix reputation however used his second in command to do his dirty work

Question 19

What were the two forms of criticism that Carnegie recieved?

Answer 19

• too socialist because of charity but also too money selfish (low wages given to employees)

Question 20

Rockefeller

Answer 20

-oil
- hated for secrecy and ruthlessness
- by 1880’s - controlled 85% of oil industry - would eliminate his rivals.