Chapter 20 Progressivism

Changes in American Life Due to the spread of greed and dishonesty, many Americans became progressives and pressured the government to regulate industry Urbanization (the movement of people to cities) occurred rapidly as people moved to get employment

Opportunity The number of schools also increased and more people went to college Some of this was made possible by philanthropists, wealthy people who donated money to various causes Women and blacks often went to colleges just for them The Tuskegee Institute was founded by Booker T. Washington and had George Washington Carver as a professor

Entertainment The amount of work required went down and time for leisure went up Many people went to baseball games and boxing matches as well as concerts and theaters Interest in literature also rose and Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) became one of the most popular writers of the time

Social Gospel Christianity began to be influenced by the social problems of the day and came up with the social gospel which did not emphasize the importance of salvation

Agnosticism and Darwinism Two other viewpoints gained popularity at this time One of these, led by Robert Ingersoll, said that man cannot know for certain if there is a God Another was created by Charles Darwin who came up with the theory of evolution

Reform and Outreach B.B. Warfield, a professor at Princeton, championed the inerrancy of the Bible Billy Sunday, a former baseball player, spoke against the dangers of alcohol Others shared this view and formed temperance societies, groups that were against alcohol

Interdenominational Organizations The Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) was formed to provide a form of entertainment in large cities The Salvation Army provided help for the poor and set up rescue missions to assist those who were down and out

Progressivism Progressives focused on making life better through reform and called their movement progressivism They wanted the government to take the lead in making changes

Government Corruption Corruption was rampant at all levels of government Boss Tweed was a leading example of this as he cheated taxpayers out of millions of dollars

Muckrakers Muckrakers, journalists who exposed society’s ills, gained popularity Lincoln Steffens exposed Philadelphia politicians who used non existent people to gain votes Ida M. Tarbell exposed the practices of Standard Oil Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle about the meatpacking industry in Chicago

Instituting Reforms To curb corruption, cities began hiring a city manager. Other cities tried a commission form of government that made it easier to find corruption Voters also instituted a recall that allowed politicians to be removed from office An initiative allowed voters to propose their own legislation and a referendum allowed voters to pass judgment on acts already passed A final reform was the direct election of senators

Instituting Reforms Reformers also focused on improving the standard of living through settlement houses which provided for the needs of women Chicago’s Hull House founded by Jane Addams was the most famous example

Protecting People and Resources The government took more action in regulating industry by passing the Pure Food and Drug Act which allowed for inspectors in slaughterhouses Conservation was another emphasis for Roosevelt. The first national parks were created during his terms Gifford Pinchot became chief forester and helped preserve land

The Election of 1912 After handpicking his successor in William Howard Taft, Roosevelt became upset with his policies and decided to run for president again Roosevelt created a new political party called the Bull Moose Party and took votes from Taft, allowing Woodrow Wilson to win

Woodrow Wilson and Business Wilson initially favored small government and set up the Federal Trade Commission, an agency focused on stopping abuses He also encouraged Congress to pass the Clayton Anti-Trust Act which defined the unjust acts which corporations could be punished for

Woodrow Wilson and Financial Reform Wilson believed in a low tariff and hoped that it would force American businesses to be more efficient. The Underwood Tariff of 1913 was the first major tariff decrease in 40 years Wilson also had the Federal Reserve System set up which gave control of the economy to one board