Political Developments: Political Corruption of the Gilded Age and reactions against Laissez-Faire Politics Flashcards
Define Pork-barrel politics
The way politicians passed laws as a way to give out funds to reward people who had supported their campaign
Which political machine did the Tweed Ring have?
Tammany Hall
What did the Tammany Hall political machine do to help people?
Helped get immigrants settled in America by finding them a job and somewhere to live
What did Tweed tell immigrants to do once he had helped them?
He encouraged them to vote for him in New York elections
How did society feel about corruption by the 1890s? What was there a rise of?
People in the USA were much more aware of it and there was a rise in Populism
What act was heavily supported for Congress to pass in 1890?
Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890
What did the Sherman Antitrust Act do?
Made it so that monopolies could no longer be formed
What was the significance of introducing the Sherman Antitrust Act?
The large force causing a lot of the corruption would now no longer be able to exist
Which group of workers especially saw Cartels and Trusts as an enemy?
Farmers
Name a large Farmer Trade Union which supported Farmers’ Rights
The Granger Movement
When was the Granger Movement founded?
1867
What was the scale of the Granger Movement by the mid 1880s?
By 1885, it had over 850,000 members.
What is the overall subject of workers coming together for the same interests in their work also known as?
Trade Unions
What was the main Industrial Trade Union for the 1870s and 1880s?
The Knights of Labor
What did all of the Trade Unions want by the time of the Gilded Age?
They wanted legislation passed to reduce corruption
Give an example of a Court ruling against the Trade Unions and the year it happened in the Gilded Age
A Supreme Court ruled a case to the benefit of monopoly owners in 1886
What year did the Illinois Supreme Court rule a case in favour of Trade Unions?
1877
What was the case with Trade Unions before the Civil War?
They were relatively unorganised
What was the first properly established Trade Union and when was it founded?
National Labour Union, formed in 1866
How many union delegates represented how many workers when the National Labour Union was around?
77 delegates represented 60,000 workers
What happened to the National Labour Union?
Due to the 1873 Economic Panic, many workers lost their jobs so the Trade Union fell apart
When did the National Labour Union membership peak and how many members did they have?
They peaked in 1872 with 300,000 members
How many members did the National Labour Union have by 1877?
50,000
Who was Terrence Powderly?
The leader of the Knights of Labor
What did Powderly campaign for?
8 hour days for workers
When were the Knights of Labor founded?
1869
How many members did the Knights of Labor have in 1886?
750,000 members
What happened in May 1886?
Haymarket Riot
What was the Haymarket Riot initially like?
It was a peaceful demonstration
What made the Haymarket Riot in to a riot?
Someone threw a stick of dynamite at a police officer
How many ended up being killed in the Haymarket Riot?
11 people
What was the short term impact of the Haymarket Riot disaster for the Knights of Labor?
They got most of the blame for being the largest trade union present at the riot
What was the Long term impact of the Haymarket Riot on the Knights of Labor?
Within a decade there were barely any of them left
What caused the 1877 Railroad strike?
Baltimore and Ohio announced a fourth paycut to their workers wages
Why were there so many paycuts for workers in 1877?
Companies were trying to recover after the 1877 Financial Crisis
Who dealt with the strikes of 1877?
Military intervention
How many troops were killed when trying to prevent the 1877 Railroad Strike?
25
How did the 1877 Railroad strike end? What had the workers caused?
The troops brought an end to it but the workers in Pittsburgh alone had caused $10 million worth in damage
What was the impact on society of the 1877 Railroad Strike?
It made them worry if there was going to be another form of uprising and a war when the Civil War had only ended 12 years ago.
