Chapter 19 – The Era of Progressive Reform: 1890 – 1920.

• The period between 1890 and 1920 in American history has come to be known as the Progressive Era.
• Many Americans wanted relief from problems brought on by rapid industrialization, urbanization, and population growth. 
• The Progressive Movement was not one unified reform movement, but instead describes a wide variety of reform efforts, both social and political, aimed at improving U.S. society.

 

Major targets for reform included:

• The growing power of “big business”
• Political corruption
• Social problems including vice, crime and poverty, which were particularly apparent in urban areas.

Section 1: The Origins of Progressivism
A. The Populist Party – an earlier political movement that called for a number of the reforms that would be achieved by Progressives.

• had sought to give more political control to the people.
• had called for increased government regulation of big business.
• looked for the government to provide more aid and protection for farmers and workers.

B.  Socialism – belief that the government should have a large degree of  control over the economy and should provide extensive social services to its citizens. 

• Socialists called for a more even distribution of wealth than was present under the capitalist system. 
• The Socialist Party of America was formed in 1901 and by 1912, its candidates acquired over 1000 municipal offices.

C.  Labor Movements. 

• Labor unions wanted government involvement in the economy mainly to provide protection for workers. 
• Unions focused on the goals of shorter hours, better pay, and safer working conditions. 

D.  Settlement Houses- tried to improve conditions for the urban poor.

• Settlement houses were run mainly by middle class women who were college educated.  These women incorporated the use of sociology into their efforts at reform and helped to establish the profession of social work. 
• Settlement houses offered services to immigrants and other poor city dwellers.  These included education, child care, employment training, health care, and legal counseling.
• The first settlement house in the U.S. was Hull House in Chicago set up by Jane Addams in 1889.  By 1910 there were over 400 settlement houses in the U.S.  
• They often conducted investigations of city problems such as tenement houses and sweatshop labor.  The results of these investigations were then publicized to gain support for reforms. 

E.  Muckrakers-  reporters and novelists who wrote stories that exposed corruption in politics,business, and society.

• Ida Tarbell published a series of reports about the corrupt business practices of the Standard Oil Trust.
• In The Jungle, Upton Sinclair exposed the unsanitary conditions of the meatpacking industry.  This novel outraged Americans, and led to federal inspection of meat and other food industries.
• Jacob Riis wrote How the Other Half Lives, about poverty in immigrant neighborhoods.  Riis took many photographs that clearly showed American readers the dismal life of the poor.
• Lincoln Steffens wrote The Shame of the Cities about the corrupt political machines of different cities.
• The goal of muckrakers was to incite the public to demand action against abuses and injustice.

F.  Municipal Reform - Although Progressivism would grow to a
national scale, it began as individual movements in various cities. 

• Reformers in cities were opposed to the corruption of the political machines and their bosses. 
• They wanted to end the spoils system that was crucial to the power of political machines and replace it with a civil service based on merit.

Goals of the Progressives-

• Political reform.  Mainly the end of corruption, but also supported numerous issues such as women’s suffrage and direct election of senators.
• Regulation of business.  Wanted an end to the abuses of monopolies and trusts, competition needed to be maintained.  Felt the government should protect workers from unfair labor practices.
• Social Welfare Programs.  To guarantee a minimum standard of living to all Americans.  These included unemployment and accident insurance for workers, basic health care, and a social security system for the elderly and disabled.
• Also included some of the goals of earlier reform movements such as Women’s Rights and the Temperance Movement
• Although the Progressive movement wanted increased government control of society and the economy, it was a moderate reform movement.
• It typically did not call for radical changes in the political and economic structures of the U.S. such as those supported by Socialists and Communists. (whose popularity was growing in Europe)

Section 2: Progressive Legislation
A.  City Reforms – Reform-minded politicians began to run for office and challenge the control of political machines and bosses.

• Reforms were carried out by Progressive politicians and sometimes by the old political bosses as well. 

• An important city reform involved regulating utilities, such as electricity, water, and gas, which had been controlled by monopolies.  Many cities took over ownership of utilities and made them more affordable to residents. 

• Cities passed legislation that established building safety codes and public health programs, as well as improving city services such as fire, police, and sanitation.

B.  State Reforms – largely followed the example set by Governor Robert La Follette of Wisconsin.

• Many states passed reforms to give voters more power over their governments.  Some of these reforms were eventually adopted at the national level. 
1. Direct Primaries – gave voters the right to choose candidates for elections, instead of leaving it up to political parties. 
2. Direct Election of Senators – Senators would now be elected by voters instead of chosen by state legislatures. 
3. Initiatives – gave voters the right to propose a new law if they could get enough people to sign a petition.  This law would then be submitted to voters in the next election. 
4. Referendum – gave citizens the right to vote on whether to approve or reject a law passed by state legislatures. 
5. Recall – provided a procedure to remove elected officials from office without waiting for the next election. 
• States passed legislation to protect workers.  This included minimum wage laws, limits on working hours, and restrictions on child labor. 
• On March 25, 1911, a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in New York City killed 146 workers who had been locked in to prevent employee theft.  This tragedy led to efforts to improve fire safety as well as reduce other workplace hazards. 
• By 1920, most states passed laws enabling workers to receive payment for workplace accidents. 

C.  Constitutional Amendments

• 16th Amendment (1913) - gave Congress the right to collect income taxes.  This was seen as a way for the government to obtain more of its income from the wealthy. 
• 17th Amendment (1913) - provided for direct election of senators.
• 18th Amendment (1919) - outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcohol (Prohibition).
• 19th Amendment (1920) - gave women the same voting rights as men.

 

 

Section 3- Progressive Presidents
A. Theodore Roosevelt - during his presidency he introduced a reform program known as “The Square Deal.”

• Roosevelt began to change the role of the federal government in the American economy.  He increased the regulation of big business and began to provide more support for labor and consumers. 
• In 1902, Roosevelt intervened in a coal miners’ strike and forced mine owners to agree to arbitration with striking union workers. 
• Roosevelt earned the nickname “trust-buster” when he decided to enforce the Sherman Anti-trust Act to regulate the power of big businesses. 

• In 1904, he embarked on the first of a series of anti-trust battles when he had his Attorney General sue the Northern Securities Company, a railroad monopoly owned by J.P. Morgan. 
• The Supreme Court ruled that the Northern Securities Company had to be broken up into several independent companies.
• Roosevelt would continue to enforce anti-trust legislation.  During his presidency, the government filed 42 anti-trust actions. 

• In 1906, Roosevelt responded to the uproar created by Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle.  He pressured Congress to pass the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Meat Inspection Act to ensure the safety and cleanliness of food products. 
• Congress also created the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with the authority to investigate and  regulate the production of food and medicines in the U.S.
• The Hepburn Act (1906) gave more power to the Interstate Commerce Commission and allowed it to limit railroad shipping rates.
• Roosevelt also believed strongly in the conservation of nature.  He was responsible for a tremendous expansion of the National Parks System.  Along with the head of the National Forest Service, Gifford Pinchot he helped preserve millions of acres of wilderness.

B.  William Howard Taft - was chosen by Roosevelt as his successor, believing he would continue with progressive reform.

• When Taft became President in 1909, he followed Roosevelt’s example.  He initiated numerous antitrust lawsuits, and continued to reserve natural areas.
• Taft lacked Roosevelt’s strong personality, and popularity with the people.  He often gave in to pressure from more conservative members of the Republican Party.  This led to conflict with Progressive minded politicians.
• Taft allowed for a high tariff, which Progressives had been against.  The tariff helped manufacturing businesses, but resulted in higher prices for consumers.
• The Ballinger- Pinchot Affair- was a scandal involving the use of government lands in Alaska.  The Secretary of the Interior, Richard Ballinger was accused of wrongdoing by Gifford Pinchot.  Taft fired Pinchot, and Ballinger resigned.  The scandal alienated Taft from conservationists, and angered Roosevelt.
• By 1910 Roosevelt was strongly criticizing Taft, claiming that he was not fighting for enough reforms.

C.  Election of 1912
In 1912 Roosevelt Challenged Taft for the Republican nomination, but conservative party members preferred Taft, whom they could more easily control.  The Progressive Party (Bull Moose Party) was founded and chose Roosevelt as its Presidential candidate.

• The Progressive platform contained a number of liberal ideas: women’s suffrage, direct election of senators, an end to child labor, an 8 hour workday, a workers compensation system, and continued regulation of big business.
• The Democrats ran the progressive governor of New Jersey, Woodrow Wilson.
• The Socialist Party ran a labor leader named Eugene v. Debs, who wound up earning 6% of the popular vote.
• Wilson ended up winning the election with 41.8 % of the popular vote.  Roosevelt had come in second with 27.4 %.

 

D.  Wilson’s Presidency

• Federal Reserve System (1913) - was created to regulate the banking industry.  It set up a number of Federal Reserve Banks that could control some of the activities of lower banks.

• It also gave the national government greater control over the money supply.

• In 1913, the Department of Labor was created to protect the interests of workers.  This department included a Children’s Bureau and a Women’s Bureau, both of which were headed by women. 
• Clayton Antitrust Act- was passed in 1914 to strengthen the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890.

• This act specified many activities that companies were banned from practicing.
• It exempted labor unions from antitrust laws, and gave legal recognition to strikes as long as they were conducted peacefully.

• The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was created to enforce the act, and develop further regulations of business practices.
• Wilson had a disappointing record on the treatment of minorities.  He fired several African Americans who held Federal positions when he took office.  He allowed government departments to segregate their offices if they did have any African American employees.
• In 1916 Wilson appointed the liberal Louis Brandeis to the Supreme Court.  Brandeis was the first ever Jewish Supreme Court Justice.

 

Section 4: Women’s Rights: Suffrage at Last

A.  Early Efforts - a formal call for women’s suffrage was made at the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. 

• Another early leader of the suffrage movement was Susan B. Anthony. Anthony used the tactic of civil disobedience to try to achieve women’s suffrage.  This included leading a group of women in an attempt to vote in Rochester, New York in 1872. 

• Along with suffrage, women also struggled for other improvements in their political and social rights.

B.  Suffragist Strategies

1. Attempted to gain passage of a constitutional amendment.  The first suffrage amendment was introduced in 1868, but was not passed. 
2. Attempted to gain suffrage in the individual states.  This approach met with greater success, by 1900 four Western states had granted women full voting rights.  By 1920, 28 states had granted women some level of suffrage.

C.  Influence of World War I – The U.S. entered WWI in 1917.

• As millions of American men went to the military, women stepped in to fill the jobs they left behind.   Women played a crucial role in the domestic war effort, keeping industries running to produce the supplies and armaments needed for the war. 
• By playing such an active role in industry, women weakened the argument of separate spheres for males and females. 
• In 1918, Congress passed a suffrage amendment and it was submitted to the states for approval.  The amendment gained approval on August 24, 1920.

Shortcomings of Progressivism

• The Progressive reforms of the early 1900’s were mainly focused on solving the problems of the cities, however not much was done to address the needs of people in rural areas.
• Another group that was largely ignored by Progressives was minorities.  Little was done to improve the condition of non-whites throughout the country.