Hist201 09 20 2014 Lecture 1 Civil War and Reconstruction The Civil War 1861 1865 Huge deal The forces that caused the war are not the same reasons why individuals fought Main cause of the war was slavery o States rights vs national rights o Tariffs North had different economic ideas than the south and west but north and west didn t support slavery o Taxes o Agrarian vs urban manufacturing Slavery determined wealth wealthiest were slave owners o Kept the class system stable because of race o Slavery determined power structure and wealth North did not invade south to end slavery they did it to stop the south from seceding or to reunify the country South seceded because they thought their institution of slavery was threatened Most white people in the south did not own slaves o They fought because their territory was invaded by the north o People felt loyalty to their state over their country mostly Individuals fought because they were peer pressured o It was a way to prove their patriotism o Are you man enough to see the elephant enemy coming outsiders southerners towards you Some fought for morals regarding slavery 1 5 of the union army was African American African Americans were forced into roles in the confederate army but were not fighting soldiers Reconstruction 1865 1877 Rebuilding the south Rebinding the nation Three elements o Economic o Political o Racial destroyed Civil war was the first experience of total war south was completely African Americans became freedmen Terrorist groups in the south fought to stop African Americans form becoming citizens Politics Compromise of 1877 Tilden D won the popular vote but Hayes R won electoral Democrats gave republicans the disputed states votes as long as Hayes agreed to end reconstruction Lecture 2 The Gilded Age Industrialization Immigration Urbanization Term Gilded Age comes from a novel written by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner Period that looked glittery on the outside but underneath is corruption and greed Enormous wealth Most important factor was industrialization Industrialization Changed America in 3 ways o Revolutionized material life o Altered daily economic life o Changed pace of capitalist expansion rapid acquisition and loss of wealth 25 years after Lincoln died America became the wealthiest nation Vast majority of Americans benefited Day shift swing shift and night shift for working men o Regimentation of the work day brought on by industrialization New Industrial Trends The creation of a national market Territorial expansion Mass production Consolidation and centralization the rise of trusts Labor conflict Technological innovation Urbanization Immigration Industrial Capitalism Deskilling of work force assembly line Railroads o First step in industrialization o Made industrialization possible o Greatest fortunes made in railroads private ownership Transcontinental railroad o Union Pacific o Central Pacific First great tycoon of the industrial age was Cornelius Vanderbilt Promontory Summit Utah May 10 1869 o Connected Union Pacific to Central Pacific 1700 miles o Created jobs people and goods could move across the country rapidly Railroad time o Railroads gave us time zones Problems o Poor construction o Irregular track gauges o Corruption period known as The Great Barbeque o Government was laissez faire Credit Mobilier Scandal Credit Mobilier of America Credit and finance subcontractor to the Union Pacific Was actually a dummy corporation secretly owned by Union Pacific s biggest stockholders They then hired their own company to 667 miles of the Union Pacific railroad for which they received government bonuses for every mile of track laid Overcharged the Union Pacific by 23 million and pocketed it all Almost bankrupt the Union Pacific but the secret owners of the Credit Mobilier made millions The Age of Consolidation is Here John D Rockefeller Consolidation combining competitive enterprises Vertical integration consolidating all aspects of production in one company from group to the gas tank Trusts super corporation whose board of trustees controls various corporate entities Monopolies ownership or control of an entire industry Sherman Anti Trust Act 1980 restraint of trade is a federal crime Anti democratic wealth distributed to fewer people Small businesses failed Benefits Enabled industrialization Transformed America By 1984 US was the world s leading industrial nation Lecture 3 Gilded Age Society Cont Class Structure 1900 consensus 76 million population Upper class o 12 o Earned more than 5000 year family income o Top 1 earned more than the aggregate income of the poorest 50 Controlled more capital than the 99 The gap is only growing greater than today Middle class o 500 5000 per year o 44 of the population o Owned 12 5 of the nation s wealth o Diverse and growing Poor o Less than 500 per year o 44 of the population o Owned 1 5 of nation s wealth o In some cities were largely immigrant most but not all Newport Rhode Island Old Money vs New Money Redefined what it meant to be rich Jobs included bankers and merchants Conspicuous consumption Thorsten Veblen o Defined New Money who were not shy about their spending habits Hereditary wealth money handed down to children Elite of the wealthy were call the 400 o Had 3 5 generations of wealth in the family Industrialization created New Money Noblesse Oblige Old Money if you re wealthy you have to give something back to society o Political class was below wealthy class New Money had no sense of public obligation Rockefeller and Carnegie were New Money but still gave back Old Money lived well but didn t flaunt wealth The Breakers summer cottage owned by Vanderbilt The Middle Class Grew big many people Consumer goods Leisure activities o Income high enough to afford inexpensive consumer goods that were increasingly available o Montgomery Ward Sears o Patent medicines filled with drugs and alcohol o Radical change in standard of living o Store bought bread and canned vegetables o Outdoor activities virility impulse o Regulated work time typically 10 hours day o Real estate for parks sense of loss for green space o Men were looking for new ways to plan their manliness virility o Men and women had the need for exercise golf lawn tennis impulse bicycling Proper cycling attire inappropriate for women Bloomers appeared in 1894 scandalizing society Cycling is detrimental to the advancement of morality Reynolds 1899 Bathing swimming swim costumes were scandalous Purity
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