Business and Politics 1870-1895 The Gilded Age Business and Politics 1870-1895

Gilded Age Called the Gilded Age based on a book of the same name by Mark Twain Close relation of big business and politics Characterized by the rise of industry and big business 2 great Wall Street scares and depressions in 1873 & 1893 Transformation of a rural society to an urban industrial society

Major Industries Railroads Over 193,000 miles of track by 1900 Jason “Jay” Gould Steel Closely tied to the rail industry Cheaper and easier methods of production led to a boom in the industry Andrew Carnegie

Industry Oil Used as a lubricant and source of lighting before the invention of the automobile Standard Oil John Rockefeller Banking J.P. Morgan

The New South Solid Democrat region Small scale industrialization Railroads were first industry to emerge Textiles became the dominate industry Iron and steel production also grew, but were mostly dominated by northern interests Tobacco was the only truly profitable crop Most of the South remained agricultural

Presidential Politics Rutherford B. Hayes 1877-1881 Disputed election Ended Reconstruction Alienated himself from his party James Garfield 1881 Assassinated on July 2, 1881 Vice-president Chester A. Arthur replaced Garfield Civil Service Act 1883

Presidential Politics Grover Cleveland 1884-1888 First Democrat since 1856 Scandal ridden campaign. Rivals claimed that Cleveland had an illegitimate child Interstate Commerce Act 1887 Passed to govern railroads Sherman Antitrust Act Ended practice of limiting competition 1893 Depression began, and J.P. Morgan bailed out the economy with an influx of foreign gold 1894-1895 Harsh winter and government inaction led to the rise of Populism