Gilded Age Flashcards
Who came up with the term gilded age?
Mark Twain
1869 Gold Scandal
Gould and Fisk tried to manipulate the governments gold reserves
1875 Whiskey Ring scandal
Group of distillers conspired to defraud the government of millions in taxes
1873 Congress Salary Grab
Increased wages by 50% and made it retrospective for 2 years
What were the republicans divided over in the 1880 election?
Finding a successor for Hayes
Who did the Stalwarts group around for the 1880 election?
Rascoe Conkling
Who were the Half Breeds led by in the 1880 election?
James Blaine
How did Garfield strengthen control of the New York Customs House?
Removed Conkling
When was the Civil Service Reform League started and why?
1881, to campaign for an end to patronage
Pendleton Act 1883 who was it passed by as well?
Passed by Arthur, government jobs had to be awarded on merit and capability
Cleveland was supported by Mugwumps who were?..
Republicans who would rather support an honest Democrat
Which acts were passed in 1890 as part of Harrison’s presidency?
Sherman Anti Trust Act and Sherman Silver Act in 1890
How did the EC Knight case show that the Sherman Anti Trust Act was not effective and had loopholes and when was the case?
1895, the sugar company EC Knight got away with owning 98% share of USA’s sugar refining
Why was Harrison able to push through a republican agenda?
He had a cabinet full of men who had paid for his election campaign and Congress was also dominated by republicans
Give an example of Harrison pushing through a Republican agenda?
McKinley tariff act
What did Cleveland do following the depression in 1893?
Repealed silver
How did Cleveland respond to the Pullman Strike 1894?
Passed the Omnibus indictment act - an injunction against the strike - and sent troops to stop the strike
How many bills did Cleveland veto in his first term?
414
What is an example of a bill Cleveland vetoed?
Texas Seed Bill - which would have provided seeds to drought stricken farmers, arguing it was not the government’s responsibility to provide charity
Why did Cleveland veto more bills than any previous president?
He believed that he had to stop “bad laws”
What was the gilded age?
Period of greed in business and shameful corruption in politics at the end of reconstruction
What was the period of the gilded age?
1877-90
What years was Hayes president?
1877-80
Hayes was opposed by the stalwarts, who were they?
A faction of the Republican Party led by Roscoe Conkling
What system did the Stalwarts favour?
The spoils system (gave jobs to people who voted/donated)
Why was there the railroad strike of 1877?
Railroads cut wages
How long was Garfield president?
March 1881 to September 1881
How did Garfield strengthen federal authority over the New York Customs House
Kicked out Roscoe Conkling
What was the issue in the post office department?
Corruption in the post office department, allegedly stealing millions of dollars by employing star routes
How did Garfield reform the post office
He banned star routes and forced the resignation of Thomas J Brady (a ringleader) who was indicted in 1883
Who was Garfield shot by and what did this do?
Charles Guiteau (hero of the stalwarts) which increased support for reform
When was Arthur president?
1881-1884
Pendleton Act 1883
Called for a merit system for promotions within the service, gets rid of the spoils system
Chinese exclusion act 1882
Excluded paupers, criminals and mentally ill and halted immigration of Chinese labourers for a period of 10 years
How much did Arthur lower tariffs by?
1.47%
When was Cleveland president?
1884-1888
What did Cleveland do for the civil service?
Wouldn’t fire any Republican doing their job well and wouldn’t hire anyone based solely on party service
What did Cleveland do about the role of the federal government?
Limited the role of the federal government - typically Democrat as they prefer state governments
Texas Seed Bill
Vetoed $10,000 worth of support for Texas farmers during drought
