Why Did Farmers Express Discontent During 1870-1900

Register to read the introduction… The major issue was the Alliance's opposition to the gold standard to counter the deflation in agricultural prices. The populist wanted sliver currency because they believe it would make it easy to pay back debt and bring inflation. Document C shows that money was hard to come by between 1870-1880 and show the reason for the farmers wanting a silver currency. Farmers were hit hard with high debt, and it was thought that by going off of the gold standard that there would be massive inflation. If you owe $10,000, but you have massive inflation and $1 now has the value of what was previously $0.50, your debt is effectively cut in half. During the Civil War, the Homestead Act was approved to inspire westward development and the progression of farming. It was originally opposed by Northern manufacturers, who feared the loss of inexpensive labor; and Southern slaveholders, who feared the development of free soil. It was intended to branch Western immigration, but numerous frontiersmen would fail and arrive home. The Homestead Act provided settlers with 160 acres of surveyed public land. By living on the property for five years and improving it, a small fee would grant the settler the land. This served as a way to encourage the development of the family farm and fill in the normally unoccupied region in the Great Plains in which railroads facilitated this growth. Because of the severe environmental circumstances of the Great Plain region, the Homestead Act turned out to be less effective than anticipated. Document B talks about how it was also hard for colored farmers to make a living especially after the Civil War. …show more content…
“They had to get the local merchant or someone else to supply the food for the family to eat while the first crop was being made.” (Document B) After the Civil War they didn’t have much land and many became homesteaders who were given 160 acres along with regulations they must follow. Only 40% of the applicants actually completed the process and were given the extra land promised for them completion of 160 acres. However many found it difficult to make profit off such little amount of land during that time, for that was the reason most failed to finish the five year process. Document D shows us the Presidential Election of 1896 which represents the vote of farmers and those for industrialization. Farmers are that of the Democratic Party and the election was won over by the Republicans. These meant farmers had lost and politics would be falling off them and onto industrializing the states. This would continue to be this way seeing as Republicans won throughout many of the elections preceding the election of 1896, and neared the death of the Gilded Age for political parties. However, as soon as the Republican McKinley took office the tariff issue arose causing the Battle of 96. Essentially, anyone who possessed un-coined gold, such as successful prospectors, or those of whom they have sold it to, could carry it to one of the United States Mints and trade it for its equivalency in gold coins. However, free silver advocates wanted the …show more content…
They did not win the deserved praise they should have received for really developing our country. Agriculture had taken on a whole new meaning and what it meant to be a farmer wasn’t at all the same in fact now you couldn’t just be a farmer you had to be a specialist and businessman who were tied to railroading, banking, and manufacturing. Sadly, the farmers protest and cries for more appreciation and better wages didn’t make a difference but did open up several politics such as the fourth party “system.” The Grangers tried to steadily raise improvement for farmer’s collective plight, and the Populous Party tried to keep a strong alliance that would create a well-known voice for the farmers of this time. These two groups gave hope for the farmers and kept them going through the changes slowly but had to give up and come to conclusion that industrialist and manufactures were taking over and fair wages for farmers were not on the list of things that would be changing. As farms slowly became factories you could tell just how far industrialization had