1. An Overview & The Political Machines
The Gilded Age
An Overview &
The Political Machines
Due to copyright issue, this PowerPoint is without “Bells and Whistles”. It is recommended that you add in pictures when you use this presentation.
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2. Why it this called a Gilded Age?
Mark Twain
In a satirical novel written with Charles D. Warner, The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today 1873, Twain engages in social commentary concerning the state of our fast changing cities.
Twain refers to this as a “Gilded,” as opposed to Golden, Age, meaning the prosperity and culture that is seen is only on the surface and major problems lurk beneath the surface.
This book is on line at:
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3. Age of Prosperity (for some)
The Age of the Robber Barons:
Entrepreneurs & Industrialists were able to build great fortunes.
Vanderbilt, Carnegie, Rockefeller, etc.
The government created policies to support the industrialist.
High Tariffs kept foreign goods out, so consumers could only buy domestic goods.
Government supported owners over workers in labor disputes!
Picture of one of the Robber Barons or a political cartoons by Thomas Nast
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4. Ups and Downs of the Economy
In the period from , the US economy went through periods of growth and depressions, due to tariff and currency policies.
Major depressions occurred in 1873 and 1893.
Farmers were especially hard hit. Since the US put high tariffs on imports, Europe refused to buy our agricultural products.
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5. Wage Discrepancy
While wealth and affluence were growing and the new middle class was rising, the number of poor were also growing.
The poor (immigrants, minorities, unskilled laborers) flooded to the cities looking for work in the factories.
Farmers were greatly impacted by increased production (which seems like a good thing), but it drove prices down.
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6. Changing Economy means changing Social Structure
As the Industrial Revolution evolved into the factory system which created mass production of consumer goods, families and communities had to adjust to the changing economy.
Children entered into the workforce in order to provided for the family.
Add picture of child laborer
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7. Rise of Mass Media
New Technologies in printing allowed newspapers to increase their circulation.
The Muckrakers! People who wrote to expose the evils in society and businesses.
Picture of people reading a newpaper
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8. Other Topics Race Relations and Segregation
Indian Policy and Westward Expansion
2nd Industrial Revolution and Urbanization
Immigration
Civil Service Reform
Populism and the Farmers
Political Machines and corruption in government.
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9. The Political Machine
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10. The Political Machine
The political machine consisted of three elements:
Bosses or a county committee, which governed the party machine and controlled the politicians;
Election district captains who mobilized and organized support at the neighborhood level; and
Party loyalists who supported the machine with votes and financial support in return for jobs, favors, etc.
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11. How it worked?
The “Political Machine” mobilized the voters to get their candidates elected.
In return for the “Political Machine” getting them elected, the politicians would have to vote and create policies to support the goals of the machine.
The “Political Machine” ran on “patronage” or securing jobs for supporters.
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12. Layers of the Political Machine
While the County Committee or Boss dealt with the government officials, businessmen, and, sometimes, the criminal elements, the precinct captains mobilized the voters in the area by forming relationships with families.
The Precinct Captains could help family members get jobs and often ran a small social service organization, providing food and shelter for needy constituents. They also could get cheap immigrant labor for businesses that supported the Political Machine.
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13. Thomas Nast
As a political cartoonist for Harper’s Weekly, Nast attacked the Tammany Hall (Democratic) political machine that ran New York City in
Along the way, Nast created the Democratic Donkey, Republican Elephant symbols (he did not like the Democrats), the Tammany Tiger and even Santa Claus.
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14. Boss Tweed
"Stop them damn pictures. I don't care what the papers write about me. My constituents can't read. But, damn it, they can see the pictures."
Picture from Boss Tweed Page
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15. Political Machines Today
Few political machines are still in operation;
The Republican Party of Nassau County, New York, for example, retains control of more than 20,000 patronage jobs in the county.
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