United States History Chapter 8 Politics, Immigration, and Urban Life ( )

Section 1 Politics in the Gilded Age

Explain Mark Twain’s reasoning for referring to the post-Reconstruction era as the “Gilded Age.” The term gilded refers to something that is “covered with a thin layer of gold” The “Gilded Age” suggests that a thin but glittering layer of prosperity covered the poverty and corruption of much of society This was the golden era for American industrialists, their wealth helped to hide the problems faced by immigrants, laborers, and farmers; it also helped to cover up the widespread abuse of power in business and government

Explain the Credit Mobilier Scandal. [Railroad scandal] The railroad company hired a company to lay down tracks, the company itself, charging extreme sums of money, which required more money from government To keep the money flowing the company sold stocks in the Credit Mobilier company, many of the stockholders were members of government, who would also make huge sums of money This was just one scandal of the time during the Grant Administration

How had the spoils system changed the American governmental system by the time of the Gilded Age? The widespread use of the spoils system led to many unqualified individuals in government This system would lead to corruption when dishonest appointees used their jobs for personal profit

What events would put an end to the unchecked corruption of the spoils system? What was the Pendleton Civil Service Act? Issue: 1880 presidential election, the Republican Party was split into several factions; Pres. Garfield represented one faction, while VP Arthur represented another; Garfield was assassinated by Arthur supporters in hopes of reaping the benefit of the spoils system Pendleton Civil Service Act – created the Civil Service Commission, which classified government jobs and tested applicants fitness for them

Section 2 People on the Move

Why did so many immigrants come to the United States during the later 19 th century? Fleeing crop failures in Europe Shortages of land and jobs Rising taxes Famine Religious and political persecution

In the late 1800s the patterns of immigration changed, known as the “new immigration.” How was this immigration new? Many of these immigrants were now coming from countries in central, southern, and eastern Europe, as well as the Middle East Between 1890 and 1920, about 10 million Italians, Greeks, Slavs, and Armenians arrived in the United States

In what areas would these “new” immigrants settle and live? Immigrants often sought to live in communities established by previous settlers from their homelands Many would settle in major cities: New York City, Boston, Chicago, Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee Few immigrants would settle in the South because this area offered little land and little job opportunities

Define ghetto. Area in which one ethnic or racial group dominates Many newly arrived immigrants chose to live near others of their ethnic group because of the comfort of familiar languages and traditions

How did the path of immigration differ for Asians as opposed to European immigrants? Most immigrants who entered from the West Coast came from Asia, especially the Chinese and Japanese Asian immigrants were often the targets of suspicion and hostility by Americans

What was the Chinese Exclusion Act? Prohibited Chinese laborers from entering the country

Section 3 The Challenge of the Cities

Millions of African Americans would migrate from the South to northern cities after the Civil War. Why? They hoped to avoid the segregation and racial violence of the South

Cities continued to grow daily, yet urban space was limited. How did these cities grow? Cities would grow upward when they could no longer grow outward Buildings began to grow higher and higher [skyscraper], made possible by steel

What were tenements? Low-cost apartment building that often has poor standards of sanitation, safety, and comfort, and is designed to house as many families as possible After a while a group of dirty, run-down tenements could transform into a slum

Tenement Housing

Identify the living conditions of the slums in the urban 19 th century city. Eventually poverty, overcrowding, and neglect would lead to the decline of neighborhoods:  The cities were filthy and foul, much of this came from the soot of coal-fired stem engines  Open sewers attracted rats and other disease- spreading vermin  The possibility of fire was always a threat  Contagious diseases [such as cholera, malaria, tuberculosis, diphtheria, and typhoid] thrived in the slums

What was a dumbbell tenement? Tenement building that is narrowed in the middle, forming airshafts on either side allowing light or air into the rooms This design was made possible because of government requirements for better ventilation in apartment buildings in the hope that it would slow the spread of disease

Dumbbell Tenement

What was the political machine? An unofficial city organization designed to keep a particular party or group in power, usually headed by a powerful boss Political machines worked through the exchange of favors The “machine” would hand out jobs, contracts, favors, etc. in return for the vote of their handpicked candidate  Immigrants were a popular target for the “machine,” often the “machine” was the only group that helped the immigrants

Define graft. Use of one’s job to gain profit This was a major source of income for the political machine

Section 4 Ideas for Reform

What was the Social Gospel Movement? In the 1880s and 1890s, urban churches began to provide social services to the poor The aim of these services was to reform the behaviors of society, rather than blame society [especially immigrants] for these problems This social reform movement sought to apply the teachings of Jesus directly to society, the movement focused on the gospel ideals of charity and justice

What was a settlement house? Community center organized to provide various services to the urban poor  Cultural events  Classes [such as English, cooking, etc.]  Child-care  Playgrounds  Clubs  Helped people to find jobs and deal with legal problems  Health care clinics The most famous of these was the Hull House in Chicago, ran by Jane Addams

Review nativism. Policy of favoring native-born Americans over immigrants The rising number of immigrants to positions of power in the cities helped provoke this new wave of anti-foreign bias

What goal did the nativists have during the later part of the 19 th century? They hoped to limit immigration from all countries to the United States They hoped to restrict the rights and any advantages these immigrants had in American society They feared that immigrants would dilute what they felt was the American culture

Review the temperance movement. An organized campaign to eliminate alcohol consumption The temperance fervor escalated in the late 1800s, these groups opposed drinking because of what they saw as links among saloons, immigrants, and political bosses