Nwrhs Us History Ch 10 & 11 Vocabulary

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The Gilded Age

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term coined by Mark Twain - period after Civil War, politicians/govt were corrupt, unrestricted capitalism

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graft

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slang term for political corruption

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political machine

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an unofficial system of political
organization, most prevalent in American cities between about 1875
and 1920 that was characterized by total "behind-the-scenes" control of municipal politics.

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Tweed Ring

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notorious city machine in New York City led by "Boss" Tweed

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William "Boss" Tweed

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first political boss of Tammany Hall in New York City; built control by election and appointment of friends; managed to steal millions of dollars of city funds

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kickback

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contractor would pad bill for city work and "kick back" a percentage to politicians

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Thomas Nast

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famous editorial cartoonist in New York City; focused on political corruption; instrumental in downfall of Boss Tweed

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Tammany Hall

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name given to the Democratic political machine that dominated New York City politics from 1854-1934; local machine leaders drew power from their own neighborhoods - great deal of graft was used to "help" the needy in the neighborhood wards

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wards

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small administrative divisions of a city- usually defined as neighborhoods

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lobbyists

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people paid to represent a company or a special interest group

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townships

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smaller divisions of a county broken up into local government districts

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Ulysses S. Grant

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US President 1869-77; Republican; former Union general; presidency was plagued by suspicion of scandal; Although there is no evidence that Grant himself profited from corruption among his subordinates, he did not take a firm stance against malefactors and failed to react strongly even after their guilt was established.

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Rutherford B. Hayes

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US President 1887-81; Republican; nicknamed "Old Granny"; election close; Southern Democrats were assured he would end Reconstruction and pull federal troops from the South; rescued presidency from domination of Congress; very HONEST man

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patronage

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the assumed right of elected officials to control political appointments to unelected positions (politicians would put their friends in high positions)

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Pendleton Act 1883

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established the US Civil Service Commission and placed most federal employees on a merit system; marked the end of the "spoils system"; brought about after a "dissatisfied" office seeked assassinated President Garfield

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Chester Arthur

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US President 1881-85; Republican; became president when Garfield was assassinated; champion of civil service reform; passed the Pendleton Act; lowered tariff rates; suspended Chinese immigration for ten years

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James Garfield

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US president 1881; Republican; leader of the "Half Breeds" who supported civil service reform and lenient treatment of the South

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free-traders

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farmers, consumers, shippers & importers who argued that a protective tariff was unfair govt interference with the laws of supply and demand - they said that tariffs were subsidies paid to manufacturers out of the pockets of consumers

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protectionists

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defended the tariff as a means of nurturing fledgling industries in the US; argued that tariffs kept wages high by shielding them from competition with cheap foreign labor

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Benjamin Harrison

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US President 1889-93; Republican; favored attempts to freely spend the mounting treasury surplus; helped form Pan American Union; signed Sherman Anti-Trust Act

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antebellum

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period before the Civil War

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Samuel Clemens/ Mark Twain

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popular humorist and writer; wrote vivid & hilarious stories; Tom Sawyer; Huckleberry Finn; his writing bridged the gap between popular and "highbrow" literature

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realism

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European influenced movement that strove for accurate representation

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Stephen Crane

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wrote Red Badge of Courage; realist novel that depicted a Union soldier's fear and cowardice under fire

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Joseph Pulitzer

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published the New York World newspaper; sensationalism; first to use "scare headlines"; introduced serialized comic strips; if he could not find news - Pulitzer made it.

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expatriates

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people who choose to live outside their native countries

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yellow journalism

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sensationalism over facts!
exaggeration; lack of fact checking; some stories were deliberate lies

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pooling

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competing railroad lines would divide traffic services

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The Grange

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early national farm organization

involved the affiliation of local farmers into area "granges" to work for their political and economic advantages.

one of the first special interest groups

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cooperatives

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nonprofit stores owned by farmers

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Interstate Commerce Act 1887

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first federal law to regulate interstate commerce --

declared rates that railroads charged must be reasonable and just; forbade pooling; rr's were required to publish rates; make annual financial reports to federal govt; created the ICC (Interstate Commerce Commission)

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greenbacks

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US paper money issued during Civil War; prices began to drop, farmers began to demand inflation

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inflation

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rise in price of goods

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deflation

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general reduction in the level of prices

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gold standard

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currency is convertible into gold; restricts currency supply (because production of gold does not increase very fast) and drives prices down

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Bland-Allison Act

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1878; required that the Treasury buy silver and issue currency against it

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third party

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minor political party

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Populist Party

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third party in 1892 that won electoral votes; expression of farmers' grievances; comdemned political corruption, newspapers dominated by business, and the condition of labor; Against worldwide adoption of gold standard; did not want to overthrow capitalist system but change the rules

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J.P. Morgan

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financier and banker; most powerful banker on Wall Street; bought federal bonds below value & made millions; world's first billion dollar corporation

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William Jennings Bryan

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1896 Democratic presidential candidate; "Cross of Gold" speech blasted supporters of gold standard; gifted orator

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William McKinley

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US president 1897-01; Republican; launched "trust-busting" era; led US into Spanish-American War

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temperance movement

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movement in support of total abstinence from alcohol; blamed many of society's ills (joblessness, domestic violence) on alcohol; tried to persuade people to become "teetotalers"

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Susan B. Anthony

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civil rights leader; led effort to grant women the right to vote;

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Karl Marx/socialism

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German political philosopher; writings formed basis of communism & socialism; THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO & DAS KAPITAL; predicted capitalism was doomed; fewer would control wealth while more people would become proletariat (people without property) Eventually proletariat would rise up and take control of society

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conspicuous consumption

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the use of vast resources just for show; the production of excess unwanted goods, which must be consumed to justify continued production

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riders

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irrelevent amendments to laws