Ch 5 Sec 3 Farmers and the Populist Movement

1.By the late 1800s, crop prices were doing what? Falling 2.In order to buy more land and produce more crops, farmers were going into what? Debt Often additional mortgages were taken out on farms

3.Because of high shipping rates, farmers held a grudge against whom? Railroad companies 4.What were Greenbacks? Paper money issued by the federal government during the Civil War Greenbacks could not be exchanged for silver or gold

5. After the Civil War, the federal government began to do what with greenbacks? Take them out of circulation The advantage of non-backed money is that government can inflate the currency, devalue the dollar, and thus make debt less burdensome. Debtors (farmers in the late 1800s) liked some degree of inflation; lenders (banks) hated it.

6. Thus with falling crop prices, a shrinking money supply, rising freight and storage costs, and rising farm debt, farmers were caught in what? A vicious cycle 7. What was the Grange? A farmers’ organization that fought on behalf of farmers versus the railroads It was formed in 1867

8. About 4 million farmers joined what? Farmers’ Alliances 9. What was born on July 2, 1892? The Populist Party It was born in Omaha, Nebraska 10. What was the goal of the Populist Party? To give debt relief to farmers and workers To give regular people a greater voice in government

11. What were some of the major planks of the Populist Party Platform? The federal govt should increase the money supply A graduated income tax should be implemented in which the wealthy pay a larger share A federal loan program Establish an 8 hour workday Restrict immigration

12. What was the Panic of 1893? Several railroad companies went bankrupt People panicked and began cashing in paper money for gold, thus reducing the money supply Stock prices collapsed on Wall Street Silver prices plunged The U.S. economy plunged into a depression

13. By 1896, how did party loyalties divide? Republicans represented the Northeast, particularly among bankers and merchant interests. Democrats tended to represent the South and West, particularly among farmers

14. What did the Bimetallism side want? They wanted the federal government to redeem paper money with silver and/or gold, thus increasing the money supply. 15. What did the Gold Standard side want? They wanted dollars to be backed by gold alone, thus restricting the supply of money.

16. Why did farmers and other common fold want bimetallism? Because silver was more plentiful than gold, the federal govt could print more paper money if it could be redeemed by silver. Thus more money would be in circulation, and in doing so, crop prices would increase and debt burden would decrease.

17. Why did some folks favor the Gold Standard? The scarcity of gold would keep the supply of money smaller, and thus each dollar would have greater value…and a stable value. Bankers and bank depositers liked a stable money supply and stable prices.

18. In 1896, Republican presidential candidate, William McKinley favored what monetary system? The Gold Standard 19. In 1896, Democratic presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan of Nebraska favored what monetary system? Bimetallism and unlimited coinage of silver

20. What was the “Cross of Gold” speech? It was William Jennings Bryan’s 1896 Democratic convention speech He argued that farmers and workers should not be crucified on a cross of gold. 21. Who won the Presidential election of 1896? William McKinley, the Republican He won re-election in 1900, but was assassinated in Vice President Theodore Roosevelt thus became President in 1901.

22. What became of Populism? Several Populist ideas lived on, despite the fact that Bryan narrowly lost the 1896 election. In general, politics on behalf of common people survived into the 20 th Century in the Progressive Movement. Modern Liberalism, to a degree, has roots in the Populist Movement. Oh yeah, the Gold Standard is dead…along with bimetallism. Your dollar is no longer backed with anything except the authority of our federal government.