Ch.20 Politics and Progress

 The late 1800s was a time of growth and expansion in Texas.  Railroads spread  Agriculture boomed  Industries expanded  Many new political issues emerge I. Reconstruction Ends

a)Inequality is still an issue i.Jim Crow Laws enforced segregation. ii.Whites also worked to limit African American political power. iii.Whites used intimidation and fear to prevent them from exercising their rights. II. Political Issues

b)Women in Texas i.Joined women’s associations to address social problems and women’s rights. i.Temperance Movement: aimed at reducing or stopping the drinking of alcohol. ii.Suffrage Movement: gaining the right to vote II. Political Issues (cont.)

i.More women began entering the work force and attending university. ii.UT was among the first schools to begin coeducation. II. Political Issues (cont.)

A.Before 1900, most families traveled by wagons and buggies. A 20 mile trip to town could take most of the day and normally required an overnight stay. B.Texas encouraged the building of railroads across the state by providing land grants to railroad companies. C.The Land Grant Law of 1876 authorized 16 sections (10, 240 acres)of land for every mile of track the railroad company laid. D.During this construction period, the state of Texas gave away more than 32 million acres. III. Railroads

Horse-Drawn Street Car in Texas late 1800s

What would have happened to these cities if the railroad had not been built through them? Houston San Antonio Waco Dallas Fort Worth Laredo

E. By 1900 a network of railroads totaling some 10,000 miles spread over Texas. F. Journeys that had taken days or weeks now took hours. G. Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth developed rapidly because they were railroad centers.

What connection do you see between the number of Railroad miles, and the total population of Texas?

Maps & Charts 1

Daily Focus Skills Transparency 2 Click the mouse button or press the Space Bar to display the answer.

A the meat-packing industry began in the city of Victoria, due to the development of the refrigerated railcar. B lumbering was the most important and valuable industry in the state.  Timber companies harvested the timber of East Texas. Orange and Beaumont became major sawmill centers.  Houston was mostly built by a lumber company owner. IV. New Industry Grows

B.These trusts: i.helped to prevent other companies from selling the same product or service ii.reduced or eliminated competition and free trade iii.Could hold a monopoly on a business, which allowed them to pay low prices for materials they bought and charge high prices for the goods they sold = huge profits. V. Monopolies Use Unfair Tactics A.In the late 1800s, large companies that operated in Texas joined together and formed trusts.

A.Cotton prices fell during 1875 and remained low through B.Overproduction of cotton continued this cycle of debt. C.Farmers also claimed that railroads charged higher prices to farmers who had no choice than to use the local railroad to ship their goods. VI. Farmers Become Trapped by Debt

Farmer’s Cycle of Debt Farmers borrowed extra money to buy more land, equipment, seed, and other supplies to produce more crops Producing more, or overproduction, lead to a drop in cotton prices. With lower crop prices and increased debts from land/equipment/seed purchases, many farmers could not get out of the cycle of debt.

A.Formal name of the Grange = Patrons of Husbandry. B.The Grange:  organization that called for economic changes;  set up cooperatives, or stores, throughout Texas where members could buy supplies more cheaply  pressured state legislature to deal with unfair shipping rates charged by railroads. VII. Texans Call for Reforms

C.Farmers’ Alliance : similar to the Grange, but larger and more involved in politics. D.Backed and voted for political candidates that supported their views. E.At its peak, the Farmers Alliance had nearly 3 million members. i.They included women, but denied membership to African Americans. VII. Texans Call for Reforms (cont.)

 Officially known as the People’s Party  Political party created by the Farmer’s Alliance to address the issues of rural Americans  Called for regulation of transportation, particularly railroads, and a more stable economy based on silver.  The story, The Wizard of Oz, is a parable about Populism written by a Populist supporter, L. Frank Baum VIII. Populist Party

A TX legislature passed antitrust law stopping companies from joining together to fix prices or limit production. B. Main reason for antitrust laws - unfair business practices by railroads. C. The law often has been used to prevent unfair practices. IX. New Laws Prohibits Trusts

A. In 1891, the legislature created the Texas Railroad Commission, a state agency to regulate railroads operating in Texas. B.Railroads ceased unfair practices, such as fixing prices and charging more for short hauls than for long hauls. C. Since then, the Railroad Commission has been expanded to regulate other industries, particularly the oil industry. X. Governor Hogg Regulates the Railroads

A.He was the first native-born Texan to become Governor; B.He helped write one of the first antitrust laws in Texas (and the U.S.) to protect the public from monopolies; C.He supported bills to increase education funding; D.He would not back down from a fight against big business; and E.Spoke effectively to Texans of their hopes and dreams = “one of our own”. IX. About Governor James S. Hogg

 Ima Hogg  Legend has it that James Hogg had two daughters, Ima and Ura.  Only Ima is real, but she went by Miss Ima.  She attended UT, founded the Houston Symphony, served on the Houston school board and supported many other organizations.