Political Paralysis
in the Gilded Age
(1869-1896)
Chapter 23
Define the following terms and people:
“Waving the bloody shirt” –plutocrat – business and political insiders (leaders)
Political machine –
Filibuster –
Quorum –
Panic of 1873 (causes) –
1.
“The Gilded Age” or the “Era of Good Stealings” – 1870’s: Define the
following schemes of corruption on the municipal, state and national level. These
will lead to pushes to reform the civil service system.
Black Friday
Tweed Ring + Tammany Hall–
Thomas Nast –
Credit Mobilier Affair –
Whiskey Ring Belknap Scandal –
2.
“Currency Reform” – Define these terms
Ohio Idea –
“Hard money” –
Greenbacks (soft money) –
Contraction of the money supply –
Greenback Labor Party –
“Crime of 1873” –
Resumption Act of 1875 –
Comstock Lode and impact on currency issues –
Sherman Silver Purchase Act (1878) –
3.
Currency “Reform” –Analyze the difference in opinion between what debtors
(Agrarians) thought should happen to the money supply and what creditors
(Bankers) thought should happen to the money supply. Explain their opposing
reasoning. Who was successful in the end?
4.
Currency “Reform” What was the currency policy under the Grant and Hayes
administrations in the 1870’s? Which side was favored – agrarians or eastern
bankers?
5.
Define the minor divisions within the Republican Party by identifying the
following people or factions and what they tended to support.
Liberal Republicans (Horace Greeley) – 1872
Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) –
Stalwart Faction (Roscoe Conkling)
“Half-Breeds” (James G. Blaine) –
Mugwumps –
Mulligan Letters –
6.
Define the Compromise of 1877. Why was it significant? (2 reasons)
7.
Characterize the economic and political status of African-Americans in the South
following the end of Reconstruction in 1877 by defining these terms
Redeemers –
“crop-lien” system –
Jim Crow laws (ex.) –
Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896)
8.
How did the South ensure that African-Americans would be disfranchised from
the political process?
9.
Pendleton Civil Service Act (1881) – characterized as the “Magna Carta of Civil
Service Reform” what did it do? Did it achieve its ends? How did elected
officials get around it?
10.
Characterize the Republican government policy concerning the issues below in
the 1880’s and 1890’s and which constituent groups were favored by them and
which were hurt. Also, where did Cleveland stand on these issues?
Tariffs – (McKinley Tariff) –
Surplus –
Veteran pensions –
Public works projects to relieve the depression of 1893 –
11.
The Billion Dollar Congress – What does this phrase tell a student of history
about this time period? What were the actions of Czar Reed and what do they
illustrate about Republican tendencies in the 1890’s? Was there any long-lasting
impacts caused by the Congressional elections of 1890?
12.
Populist Party (1892) Define its constituency base and its platform.
13.
Why did the Depression of 1893 occur? What attempts did Cleveland take to
stem it?
14.
Though Cleveland had integrity, explain why he will lose his agrarian and labor
support in his second term in dealing with these issues and whether you think he
was correct in his actions (also, why)
Repeal of the Silver Purchase Act –
Pullman Car Strike (1895)
$100 million Gold Bond deal (“Morgan’s Errand Boy”) –
Wilson-Gorman Tariff (1894) –
15
The Forgettable Presidents - Define who they were and why they were called
this.
Left over issues:
Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882
Homestead Strike of 1892
16.
What are the theme/themes of this chapter? Provide at least three specific
examples of that theme(s).