Questions & Answers: U. S. History - Progressive Era

Explain the influence of Progressives in the 19th and 20th centuries.
From the 1890s to the end of the First World War, Progressives set forth an ideology that drove many levels of society and politics. The Progressives were in favor of workers’ rights and safety, and wanted measures taken against waste and corruption. They felt science could help improve society, and that the government could—and should—provide answers to a variety of social problems.
Progressives came from a wide variety of backgrounds, but were united in their desire to improve society.

Review the work done to remove trusts and monopolies.
Muckrakers such as Ida Tarbell and Lincoln Steffens brought to light the damaging trend of trusts—huge corporations working to monopolize areas of commerce and so control prices and distribution. The Sherman Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act set out guidelines for competition among corporations and set out to eliminate these trusts. The Federal Trade Commission was formed in order to enforce antitrust measures and ensure companies were operated fairly and did not create controlling monopolies.

Review muckrakers of the late 19th century and the early 20th century.
“Muckrakers” was a term used to identify aggressive investigative journalists who brought to light scandals, corruption, and many other wrongs being perpetrated in late nineteenth century society. Among these intrepid writers were:
· Ida Tarbell—he exposed the Standard Oil Trust.
· Jacob Riis—a photographer, he helped improve the lot of the poor in New York.
· Lincoln Steffens—he worked to expose political corruption.
· Upton Sinclair—his book The Jungle led to reforms in the meat packing industry.
Through the work of these journalists, many new policies came into being, including workmen’s compensation, child labor laws, and trust-busting.

Review America’s interest in Cuba.
Spain had controlled Cuba since the fifteenth century. Over the centuries, the Spanish had quashed a variety of revolts. In 1886, slavery ended in Cuba, and another revolt was rising.
In the meantime, the US had expressed interest in Cuba, offering Spain $130 million for the island in 1853, during Franklin Pierce’s presidency. In 1898, the Cuban revolt was underway. In spite of various factions supporting the Cubans, the US President, William McKinley, refused to recognize the rebellion, preferring negotiation over involvement in war. Then The Maine, a US battleship in Havana Harbor, was blown up, costing nearly 300 lives. The US declared war two months later, and the war ended four months later with a Spanish surrender.

Review the 16th, 17th, 18, and 19th amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
The early twentieth century saw several amendments made to the U.S. Constitution. These included:
· Sixteenth Amendment, 1913 established a graduated income tax.
· Seventeenth Amendment, 1913 allowed direct election of Senators.
· Eighteenth Amendment, 1919 prohibited the sale, production and importation of alcohol. This amendment was later repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment.
· Nineteenth Amendment, 1920 gave women the right to vote.
These amendments largely grew out of the Progressive Era, as many citizens worked to improve American society.

Explain the work on the Panama Canal.
Initial work began on the Panama Canal in 1880, though the idea had been discussed since the 1500s. The Canal greatly reduces the length and time needed to sail from one ocean to the other by connecting the Atlantic to the Pacific through the Isthmus of Panama, which joins South America to North America. Before the Canal was built, travelers had to sail all the way around South America to reach the West Coast of the US.
The French began the work in 1880, after successfully completing the Suez Canal, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. However, their efforts quickly fell apart. The US moved in to take over, completing the complex canal in 1914.
The Panama Canal was constructed as a lock-and-lake canal, with ships actually lifted on locks to travel from one lake to another over the rugged, mountainous terrain. In order to maintain control of the Canal Zone, the US assisted Panama in its battle for independence from Columbia.

Review how some Native Americans supported U.S. troops or were forced into American culture in the 19th and 20th centuries.
The Spanish-American war, 1898-1902, saw a number of Native Americans serving with Teddy Roosevelt in the Rough Riders. Apache scouts accompanied General John J. Pershing to Mexico, hoping to find Pancho Villa. More than 17,000 Native Americans were drafted into service for World War I, though at the time they were not considered as legal citizens. In 1924, Indians were finally granted official citizenship by the Indian Citizenship Act.
After decades of relocation, forced assimilation and outright genocide the number of Native Americans in the U.S. has greatly declined. Though many Native Americans have chosen—or have been forced—to assimilate, about 300 reservations exist today, with most of their inhabitants living in abject poverty.

Review some key points of William Howard Taft’s presidency.
During William Howard Taft’s presidency, Taft instituted “Dollar Diplomacy.” This approach was used as a description of American efforts to influence Latin America and East Asia through economic rather than military means. Taft saw past efforts in these areas to be political and warlike, while his efforts focused on peaceful economic goals. His justification of the policy was to protect the Panama Canal, which was vital to US trade interests.
In spite of Taft’s assurance that Dollar Diplomacy was a peaceful approach, many interventions proved violent. During Latin American revolts, such as those in Nicaragua, the US sent troops to settle the revolutions. Afterwards, bankers moved in to help support the new leaders through loans. Dollar Diplomacy continued until 1913, when Woodrow Wilson was elected President.

Review some highlights of Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency.
Theodore Roosevelt’s famous quote, “Speak softly and carry a big stick,” is supposedly of African origins, at least according to Roosevelt. He used this proverb to justify expanded involvement in foreign affairs during his tenure as President. The US military was deployed to protect American interests in Latin America. Roosevelt also worked to maintain an equal or greater influence in Latin America than those held by European interests.
As a result, the US Navy grew larger, and the US generally became more involved in foreign affairs. Roosevelt felt that if any country was left vulnerable to control by Europe, due to economic issues or political instability, the US had not only a right to intervene, but was obligated to do so. This led to US involvement in Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and the Dominican Republic over several decades leading into the First and Second World Wars.

Review some key points of Woodrow Wilson’s presidency.
Turning away from Taft’s “Dollar Diplomacy”, Wilson instituted a foreign policy he referred to as “moral diplomacy.” This approach still influences American foreign policy today.
Wilson felt that representative government and democracy in all countries would lead to worldwide stability. Democratic governments, he felt, would be less likely to threaten American interests.
He also saw the US and Great Britain as the great role models in this area, as well as champions of world peace and self-government. Free trade and international commerce would allow the US to speak out regarding world events.
Main elements of Wilson’s policies included:

1. Maintaining a strong military

2. Promoting democracy throughout the world

3. Expanding international trade to boost the American economy