1. Intro to Progressivism & Imperialism
Please pick up a copy of the unit guide and Class Notes #21: Progressivism from the cart; check for your new table
Take out your homework (Focus #23: Progressive Reformers) for discussion today. Any “Industrial America” make-up assignments and binder checks (from students who were absent on 2/26) need to be turned in today by 4:15 p.m.
Working on your own, take the first five minutes of class to complete Part I of the class notes
We will:
*introduce the unit
*identify how and why the Progressive Movement emerged in the early 20th century *examine several issues/problems that were addressed by “muckrakers” c. 1900

2. What were three major problems facing American society around 1900?
Progressivism
Reforming America’s Modern Industrial Society in the Early 20th Century
What were three major problems facing American society around 1900?

3. The Progressive Challenge
Progressives of the late 19th and early 20th century sought to address the problems of an increasingly industrial and urban society through social reforms, often seeking government intervention to achieve their goals
Support for the Progressive Movement was more broad-based than the Populist Movement of the 1890s; middle-class Americans supported progressive policies as a way of preventing potential social revolution
Problems around 1900 included:
Poor living and working conditions for laborers
Pollution and environmental degradation
Income and social class gaps
Lack of competition due to the rise of monopolies/trusts
Government corruption at all levels
Lack of political rights for many groups

4. Progressive Solutions
Progressives sought utilitarian approaches to smooth out the rough edges of unrestrained free-market capitalism – the idea of the “greatest good for the greatest number”
They believed in the application of scientific “management” to better society; accepted the idea that every problem has a pragmatic solution
They also believed that government could and should play a role in promoting social welfare
The progressive movement drew heavily on the influences of the Enlightenment – progress, rationalism, liberalism, and humanitarianism

5. Muckrakers
Theodore Roosevelt labeled investigate journalists as “muckrakers”, reflecting their efforts to point out the problems of American society c. 1900
Upton Sinclair – author of The Jungle (1906) sought to persuade Americans to bring about labor reforms but led more directly to consumer safety legislation
Ida Tarbell – condemned Rockefeller’s business practices in The History of the Standard Oil Company (1904); encouraged trust-busting activities
Lincoln Steffens – exposed corrupt political machines in The Shame of the Cities (1904)
Ida B. Wells – African-American writer who brought the evils of lynching home to her readers

6. Uncovering Urban Poverty
Jacob Riis led the way among muckrakers for How the Other Half Lives (1890), which combined photos and written text to reveal the awful conditions of the urban poor in New York City

7. Political/Social Reformers
Robert La Follette – progressive Republican governor of Wisconsin who supported the “Wisconsin Idea” of electoral reform (direct primaries, initiatives, referendums, recalls) combined with business regulation, labor reform, and social welfare programs
Robert Wagner – New York politician who investigated the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911 and proposed significant labor reforms (
Florence Kelley – campaigned for child labor laws and labor reform for women workers; argued that consumers had just as much interest as laborers in bringing about much-needed changes

8. Before we leave… Turn in Focus 23 for formative credit.
Work on Homework 13 to turn in by next Thursday, March 6.