22 The Progressive Era 1895–1917

The Muckrakers At the beginning of the twentieth century magazines enjoyed increasing popularity. McClure’s Magazine pioneered investigative journalism. The November 1902 edition featured the first installment of Ida Tarbell’s two-year series on Standard Oil that exposed the corrupt practices and deals that had helped create the company. The Muckrakers At the beginning of the twentieth century magazines enjoyed increasing popularity. McClure’s Magazine pioneered investigative journalism. The November 1902 edition featured the first installment of Ida Tarbell’s two-year series on Standard Oil that exposed the corrupt practices and deals that had helped create the company.

The Progressive Era 1895–1917 The Changing Face of Industrialism Society’s Masses Conflict in the Workplace A New Urban Culture

Muckrakers Call For Reform Journalistic voice of progressivism Reflected worry about society, the effects of industrialization and urbanization, social disorder, political corruption Thousands set out to cure ills of society

The Changing Face of Industrialism

The Changing Face of Industrialism Industrial growth meant more goods at lower prices Residue of social problems from 1890s New century began on optimistic note

The Innovative Model T Henry Ford transformed auto industry with mass production Small profit on each unit, gross of huge profit on high volume of sales 1908: Model T introduced 1916: Federal government began highway subsidies

Rise of Mass Production Henry Ford built his first car in 1896, then produced improved models, each designated by a letter of the alphabet. Shown here are Henry Ford and a friend in a 1905 Model N, Ford’s best-selling model before the Model T debuted in 1908. The “Tin Lizzie” was Ford’s “motorcar for the multitudes,” affordably priced so that every family could own one. The automobile changed American life and the American landscape as it spawned the development of paved roads, traffic lights, and numerous auto-related businesses. Rise of Mass Production Henry Ford built his first car in 1896, then produced improved models, each designated by a letter of the alphabet. Shown here are Henry Ford and a friend in a 1905 Model N, Ford’s best-selling model before the Model T debuted in 1908. The “Tin Lizzie” was Ford’s “motorcar for the multitudes,” affordably priced so that every family could own one. The automobile changed American life and the American landscape as it spawned the development of paved roads, traffic lights, and numerous auto-related businesses.

The Burgeoning Trusts The trend toward bigness in industry accelerated after 1900 Bankers provided integrated control through interlocking directorates Trusts controversial Often denounced as threats to equality Some defended as more efficient

Figure 22.1 Business Consolidations (Mergers), 1895–1905

Managing the Machines Frederick Taylor advocated “Scientific Management” to increase efficiency Worker welfare, morale suffered Better paychecks Increased danger, tedium 1911: Triangle Shirtwaist Company fire demonstrated risks of factory work

Tragedy at the Triangle Company Fire nets were of no avail to the workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company who jumped from the upper stories to escape the flames. Speaking to a mass meeting after the fire, labor organizer Rose Schneiderman inveighed against a system that treated human beings as expendable commodities. Tragedy at the Triangle Company Fire nets were of no avail to the workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company who jumped from the upper stories to escape the flames.

Tragedy at the Triangle Company (continued) Fire nets were of no avail to the workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company who jumped from the upper stories to escape the flames. Speaking to a mass meeting after the fire, labor organizer Rose Schneiderman inveighed against a system that treated human beings as expendable commodities. Tragedy at the Triangle Company (continued) Speaking to a mass meeting after the fire, labor organizer Rose Schneiderman inveighed against a system that treated human beings as expendable commodities.

Society s Masses ’ Society’s Masses

Society’s Masses Employment expanded rapidly to increase production Women, immigrants, blacks, Mexican Americans entered work force

Better Times on the Farm Isolation reduced by mail and parcel post deliveries to farms Tenant farmers remained impoverished Western farmers benefited from vast irrigation projects

Women and Children at Work Women resisted ideals of domesticity to enter work force Women's labor unions defended rights of women, child laborers Sheppard-Towner Act 1921: Protected health of pregnant workers and their infants

Child Labor Breaker boys, who picked out pieces of slate from the coal as it rushed past, often became bent-backed and suffered respiratory diseases such as bronchitis and tuberculosis after years of working 14 hours a day in the coal mines. Accidents—and deaths—were common in the mines. Child Labor Breaker boys, who picked out pieces of slate from the coal as it rushed past, often became bent-backed and suffered respiratory diseases such as bronchitis and tuberculosis after years of working 14 hours a day in the coal mines. Accidents—and deaths—were common in the mines.

The Niagara Movement and the NAACP Most African Americans were poor sharecroppers, segregated by Jim Crow Laws and at mercy of violent white mobs Black workers gained least from prosperity 1905: W.E.B. DuBois, others rejected accommodation to racist society

The Niagara Movement and the NAACP (cont’d) "Niagara Movement" demands immediate respect for equal rights of all NAACP, Urban League, advocate African American rights

Immigrants in the Labor Force 1901–1920: Fresh influx of Europeans, Mexicans, Asians to labor force Non-English speakers considered a social problem

Figure 22.2 Immigration to the United States, 1900–1920 (by area of origin) Note: For purposes of classification, “Northern and Western Europe” includes Great Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, France, and Germany. “Southern and Eastern Europe” includes Poland, Austria-Hungary, Russia and the Baltic States, Romania, Bulgaria, European Turkey, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece. “Asia, Africa, and America” includes Asian Turkey, China, Japan, India, Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America, and all of Africa. Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, Bicentennial Edition, Washington, DC, 1975. Figure 22.2 Immigration to the United States, 1900–1920 (by area of origin) Note: For purposes of classification, “Northern and Western Europe” includes Great Britain, Ireland, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, France, and Germany. “Southern and Eastern Europe” includes Poland, Austria-Hungary, Russia and the Baltic States, Romania, Bulgaria, European Turkey, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Greece. “Asia, Africa, and America” includes Asian Turkey, China, Japan, India, Canada, the Caribbean, Latin America, and all of Africa. Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Historical Statistics of the United States, Colonial Times to 1970, Bicentennial Edition, Washington, DC, 1975.

Immigrants in the Labor Force (cont’d) Programs to "Americanize" them Immigration limitations Chinese immigration banned in 1902 Literacy tests used against other immigrant groups

Figure 22.3 Mexican Immigration to the United States, 1900–1920

Immigrants from Asia Japanese immigrants wait with a Methodist deaconess in the administration building of the immigration station at Angel Island, near San Francisco. Quota systems and exclusionary laws limited Asian immigration, while other laws placed restrictions on the immigrants, curtailing their right to own or even rent agricultural land. Some Asian immigrants, after months of detention at Angel Island, were refused permission to enter the United States and were forced to return to their homelands. (Source: Courtesy of the California Historical Society, FN-18240.) Immigrants from Asia Japanese immigrants wait with a Methodist deaconess in the administration building of the immigration station at Angel Island, near San Francisco. Quota systems and exclusionary laws limited Asian immigration, while other laws placed restrictions on the immigrants, curtailing their right to own or even rent agricultural land. Some Asian immigrants, after months of detention at Angel Island, were refused permission to enter the United States and were forced to return to their homelands. (Source: Courtesy of the California Historical Society, FN-18240.)

Conflict in the Workplace

Conflict in the Workplace Low wages combined with demands for increased productivity led to increase in labor unrest in early 1900s Industrial productivity fell Union membership soared

Figure 22. 4 Labor Union Membership, 1897–1920 Source: U. S Figure 22.4 Labor Union Membership, 1897–1920 Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1982–1983, 103rd ed., Washington, DC, 1982. Figure 22.4 Labor Union Membership, 1897–1920 Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Statistical Abstract of the United States: 1982–1983, 103rd ed., Washington, DC, 1982.

Organizing Labor A.F.L., led by Samuel Gompers was the largest union 1903: Women excluded from A.F.L. form Women's Trade Union League: Triangle Shirtwaist Co, Fire—1911 Hart, Schaffner Agreement: first successful collective bargaining 1905: Industrial Workers of the World— unskilled, foreign-born workers

A Radical Union Holding signs and banners that proudly display their union allegiance, including a sign with the slogan, “An injury to one is an injury to all,” women of the IWW participate in a strike at the Oliver Iron and Steel Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1913. The Clayton Act in 1914 legalized picketing and other union activity. A Radical Union Holding signs and banners that proudly display their union allegiance, including a sign with the slogan, “An injury to one is an injury to all,” women of the IWW participate in a strike at the Oliver Iron and Steel Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1913. The Clayton Act in 1914 legalized picketing and other union activity.

Organizing Labor (cont’d) Led major strikes Fears of class warfare increase Employers improved working conditions to avoid trouble Henry Ford doubled wages, reduced workday Plant production increased Union activity ended

A New Urban Culture A New Urban Culture

A New Urban Culture Mass production required mass consumption Growing middle class consumed new inventions and entertainment

Production and Consumption 1900–1920: New advertising techniques created demand for goods Goods increased U.S. standard of living Wealth increasingly concentrated

Living and Dying in an Urban Nation By 1920, the average life span increased substantially, infant mortality still high Booming cities took on modern form Zoning regulations, first in Los Angeles, separated industrial, commercial, residential areas

Popular Pastimes Ordinary people achieved leisure for first time in American history Spectator pastimes included baseball, football, movies, concerts Popular music: Sousa marches, ragtime, blues, jazz, vaudeville Light reading included romance, detective, science-fiction novels

Experimentation in the Arts Dance: Isadora Duncan Painting: Ashcan School, post-Impressionists Poetry: T.S. Eliot and Ezra Pound

Conclusion: A Ferment of Discovery and Reform

Conclusion: A Ferment of Discovery and Reform Racism, labor conflict remained Solid social and economic gains made Optimism that social experiments can succeed

Timeline Timeline

Timeline (continued) Timeline (continued)