Bell Ringer, 2/5 In your opinion, what does it mean to be progressive? Provide 2 examples of progress our country has made in your lifetime. Bonus: What group of people made up the populists party?

William Jennings Bryan The Rise and Fall of the Populist Party 1867-1896 William Jennings Bryan

Farmers’ Problems Crop prices fell Farmers went into debt, and their lenders foreclosed on their mortgages The railroad companies charged outrageous prices to ship crops

Farmers’ Demands Regulate the railroad companies (Stop them from charging such high rates) Make cash more available (back the dollar with silver, not gold, so dollar would be worth less) Favored Popular Vote, over Electoral Votes

POPULIST VIEW OF THEMSELVES REPUBLICAN VIEW OF POPULIST

1892 Presidential Election: Populist candidate won over a million votes!

1896 Election Democrats – 1890s Republicans – 1890s Southerners Farmers Supported low tariffs (wanted other countries to buy their crops) Northerners Wealthy business men Supported high tariffs (didn’t want to compete with other countries’ products)

1896 Election Populists decide to improve their chances by supporting the Democratic candidate, William Jennings Bryan, who agreed to support the silver-backed dollar.

“Cross of Gold” Speech

1896 Presidential Election: Bryan loses but carries most of the South and West

Central Historical Question Why did the Populist Party attract millions of supporters?

Conclusion Why were the speakers, like Lease and Bryan, popular in 1890s? What images and rhetorical devices did they use to excite their audiences? How did their audiences feel when they listened to these speeches? Do these themes resonate today? Which parts of these speeches could we expect to hear from today’s politicians? Which parts seem outdated?