Progressive Era & Imperialism Study Guide

Question 1

What does imperialism mean?

Answer 1

the policy of gaining authority over other nations or acquiring colonies

Question 2

How does imperialism relate to the US?

Answer 2

The US started to conquer more land to make more money, increase trade, spread Western ideals and culture, and because the strong were supposed to rule the weak

Question 3

What was the Progressive Era in the United States aiming to fix from the Gilded Age?

Answer 3

Progressive reforms such as, poverty, child labor, factory safety, women’s rights, temperance & political corruption

Question 4

What was the life of W.E.B. Dubois like?

Answer 4

-Born in 1868 Masachusetts
-Wanted immediate equality for blacks
-Thought black people shouldn’t have to earn equality

Question 5

What was the life of Booker T. Washington like?

Answer 5

-Born a slave
-Thought that blacks could earn equality overtime through working
-Established Tuskegee Institute in Alabama
-Recieve partial white support

Question 6

Why did the US become interested in gaining territories in the middle of the Pacific Ocean (Hawaii)?

Answer 6

-Sugar plantations were great for resources
-Acted as a stopping point for trade between America and Asia
-Gave the US a Pacific military presence

Question 7

What were the problems facing American farmers during the Progressive Era?

Answer 7

Drought, crop/animal disease, expensive railroad costs, high tariffs/taxes, farmers being able to pay their mortgages, and falling prices for crops

Question 8

How did supply and demand impact farmers?

Answer 8

Because the supply of crops was so high their prices dropped meaning less money for farmers

Question 9

What was the overall goal of the Populist Party?

Answer 9

Help farmers get out of debt and give people a greater voice in government

Question 10

What platforms did the Populist Party run under (what did they want)?

Answer 10

-Increase the nation’s money supply
-An 8-hour workday
-A graduated federal income tax
-Direct election of US senators
-Bimetallism

Question 11

What industry did Ida Tarbell seek to change?

Answer 11

Oil monopolies

Question 12

What industry did Upton Sinclair seek to change?

Answer 12

Meat Packing Industry

Question 13

What book did Upton Sinclair write about the quality of the meat packing industry?

Answer 13

The Jungle

Question 14

What industry did Jacob Riis seek to change?

Answer 14

Living conditions of the urban poor people

Question 15

What industry did Ida B. Wells seek to change?

Answer 15

African American Justice - anti-lynching

Question 16

Where does the name muckrakers come from?

Answer 16

Theodore Roosevelt gave a speech about the men and women who were “racking the muck” (exposing the negatives/undesirable side of working)

Question 17

Which president was responsible for breaking ground on the Panama Canal?

Answer 17

Theodore Roosevelt

Question 18

Why did the US want the Panama Canal opened so badly?

Answer 18

There wasn’t a waterway through North and South America so the Panama Canal would act as a great trade route

Question 19

What is the concept of Yellow Journalism?

Answer 19

Exaggerating headlines to make them more appealing

Question 20

How did Yellow Journalism lead to Americans supporting imperialism?

Answer 20

Blamed Spain for USS Maine exploding and called for war

Question 21

What were the causes of the Spanish-American War?

Answer 21

The sudden explosion of the USS Maine and American support for Cuba Philippines fighting for independence from Spain

Question 22

What are the effects of the Spanish-American War?

Answer 22

Treaty of Paris - Cuba becomes US Protectorate, Spain gives Guam and Puerto Rico to the US, and the US pays $120 million for the Philippines
The US becomes an imperial power