1. Politics in the Gilded Age Corruption, Scandals, and Entertainment

3. Railroads Oil Steel Banking Mechanization of Agriculture Electricity Labor

4. Railroads Oil Steel Banking  Reconstruction  Political Machines  Money Issue: 70s & 90s  Tariffs: 1880s  Populism  Progressivism  “New Immigrants”  Job opportunities  Social stratification  Poverty and Crime  Social Gospel  Progressivism Mechanization of Agriculture Electricity Labor

5. THEMES OF THE GILDED AGE Politics: hard vs. soft money ('70s & '90s); tariff ('80s); corruption due to greed, patronage & trusts (throughout late 19 th c.) Industrialism: U.S. became the world’s most powerful economy by 1890s: railroads, steel, oil, electricity, banking America was transformed from an agrarian nation to an urban nation between 1865 and 1920. Urbanization: millions of "New Immigrants" came from Southern and Eastern Europe, mostly to work in factories.

6. THEMES OF THE GILDED AGE Unions and Reform movements sought to curb the injustices of industrialism. Farmers increasingly lost ground in the new industrial economy and eventually organized (Populism) The "New West": farming, mining, & cattle raising By 1900 society had become more stratified into classes than any time before or since.

7. Gilded Age Politics Voters turned out in higher percentages than in any other time in history, nearly 80% Voting outside of party lines was rare. The major reason lies in the sharp ethnic and cultural differences in the membership of the two parties Democrats could count on the “Solid Democratic South” through the 1950’s Republicans usually counted on winning the Midwest and Northeast A politically potent organization was the Grand Army of the Republic made up of Union veterans of the war The lifeblood of both parties was patronage - disbursing jobs in return for votes, kickbacks, and party service. The Solid Democratic South from 1880-1932

8. Scandals - were rampant during the Gilded Age The infamous Tweed Ring of New York City is a classic example. Those who tried to bring them down paid the consequences. The political cartoons of Thomas Nast and The New York Times finally brought down Boss Tweed and others Another was the Crédit Mobilier, a railroad construction company formed by insiders who hired themselves and then charged huge costs to build the Transcontinental Railroad Others included the Whiskey Ring which it was learned had robbed the Treasury of millions and Grant's Secretary of War Belknap who pocketed $24,000 selling junk to the Indians. One of the many Thomas Nast cartoons attacking New York’s “Boss” William Tweed. He was convicted of stealing between $75 to $200 million as the head of Tammany Hall.

9. Era of Forgettable Presidents Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Benjamin Harrison left mostly blanks and blots on the political historical record. Grant Hayes Garfield Arthur Cleveland Harrison

10. 1881: Garfield Assassinated! Charles Guiteau: I Am a Stalwart, and Arthur is President now!

11. Pendleton Act (1883)  Merit System  The “Magna Carta” of civil service reform.  1883  14,000 out of 117,000 federal govt. jobs became civil service exam positions.  1900  100,000 out of 200,000 civil service federal govt. jobs.

12. 1884 Presidential Election Grover Cleveland James Blaine * (DEM) (REP)

13. A Dirty Campaign Ma, Ma…where’s my pa? He’s going to the White House, ha… ha… ha…!