MdN APUSH

Unit Six 1900-1920

IMPERIALISM
&
THE PROGRESSIVES

Imperialism
As the 19th century came to a close, many voices cried for American expansionism to match the imperialistic
ambitions of Europe and Japan. The dream for global destiny was justified by such logic as the expansion of
overseas markets, desire for a stronger navy, and the spreading of Christianity to uncivilized peoples around
the globe. Eventually, this expansionism translated into conflict, climaxing in 1898 with the Spanish-American
War.

James G. Blaine, Pan-Americanism: As Secretary of State, Blaine fostered closer U.S.-Latin American
relations and brought about the first Pan-American Congress in order to forge commercial, social, economic,
military, and political cooperation among the 21 republics of North, Central, and South America.

Venezuelan boundary dispute: Venezuela had a dispute over its boundary with the British Colony of Guiana.
In 1895, while the British refused to resolve the issue, United States Secretary of State Richard Olney sent a
message to London declaring that the US would be "practically sovereign on this content."

Bering Sea seal controversy: When the US purchased Alaska in 1867, it included some small Pribilof Islands
in the Bering Sea. Congress leased the island to a US company which killed seals with the understanding that
they would not kill more than 10,000 male seals per year. This led to the regulation of pelagic sealing in 1893.

"Yellow journalism": Two rival newspapers in New York City, William Randolph Hearsts Journal, and
Joseph Pulitzers World, sensationalized editorializing on the issues to increase circulation. One of Hearsts
gimmicks was "The Yellow Kid," which gave the name of Yellow Journalism to this tactic.

Josiah Strong, Our Country: Reverend Josiah Strong wrote the book Our Country: Its Possible Future and
Present Crisis expressing his fears of the inability of relief organizations to cope with the explosive growth of
the urban poor in the 1870s and 1880s.

Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan: The Influence of Sea Power upon History (1890) helped create and
develop the expansionist movement. Mahan, former head of the Navy War College at Newport, Rhode Island
wanted to expand United States Navy to build an isthmusian canal, and to establish strategic colonies as cooling
stations, and to protect US political and economic interests.
Samoa, Pago Pago: Americas Navy wanted to establish a port in the Samoan Islands, so their ships could
refuel in the island of Pago Pago. This was an example of the United States Navys expansion efforts in the
pacific. Their goal was to obtain more ports so they could have more ships out on the ocean to control the seas.

Virginius: In 1873 a Spanish gunboat captured the Virginius, a ship fraudulently flying the American flag, in
Cuba. Secretary of State Fish and the Spanish minister came together in Washington and signed a protocol
bringing the end to the Virginius affairs. Spain paid the US $80,000.

de Lme letter: On February 8, 1898, Hearsts Journal published a private letter written by Spanish minister to
the United States Depuy de Lme regarding his reservations for Cuban independence and disparaging President
McKinley. Many Americans would have agreed, but they resented hearing it from a Spanish diplomat.

Maine explodes: When an explosion rocked the Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898, killing 266
American crewmen, irritation turned to outrage. A review of the evidence later concluded that a ship-board
ammunition explosion caused the blast. Still, a navy inquiry blamed the blast on a "Spanish mine."

Teller Amendment: The U.S. had been motivated o war in part by the desire to aid the Cubans in their
attempt to liberate themselves from the colonial rule of Spain. To this end the Teller Ammendment was added
to the Declaration of War. It speciffically prohibited the annexation of Cuba, as a cause of the war.

SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR: The Spanish-American War lasted just three months with only a few days of
actual combat. Action started on May 1, 1898, when George Deweys fleet steamed into Manila Bay in the
Philippines and seized or destroyed all ten Spanish ships anchored there. The war ended after Spanish Admiral
Pascual Cervera attempted to break through American forces losing 474 men. The Filipinos celebrated their
freedom from four hundred years of Spanish rule on July 4,1898.

Assistant Secretary of Navy Theodore Roosevelt: Theodore Roosevelt was appointed as Assistant Secretary
of the Navy by President William McKinley in 1897. Roosevelt was an impatient disciple in the Spanish-
American War, acting largely on his own. In 1898, Roosevelt resigned to become second in command of the
Rough Riders.

Commodore Dewey, Manila Bay: The first action of the Spanish-American War came in 1898 when
Commodore George Deweys fleet steamed into Manila Bay in the Philippines. This fleet destroyed and
captured all ten Spanish ships that were assigned in Manila Bay. One American and 381 Spanish men died in
the attempt.

Cleveland and Hawaii: In 1887 the United States gained the right to establish a naval port in Pearl Harbor.
President Grover Cleveland was troubled with the crisis in Hawaii since Hawaiians claimed to want annexation.
However, once their queen was overthrown, Hawaiians were uncertain if they wanted annexation at all.

Queen Liluokalani: Liluokalani was the Queen of Hawaii who did not like Americans since they built their
port in Pearl Harbor. Queen Liluokalani was overthrown when Hawaiis sugar prices dropped 40% and planters
wanted the independent Republic of Hawaii.

Annexation of Hawaii: In 1890 under the McKinley Tariff, domestic sugar growers ended the duty-free status
of Hawaiian sugar. After Hawaiis sugar prices dropped 40% and Queen Liluokalani was overthrown, the
Hawaiians decided to request United States annexation.

Rough Riders, San Juan Hill: The battle of San Juan Hill was fought on July 1, 1898 during the American
advance on Santiago during the Spanish-American War. A division including the Rough Riders, under the
command of General Kent, captured the hill, placing the American army on high ground overlooking Santiago.
Treaty of Paris, 1898: The Treaty of Paris ended the Spanish-American War and developed an American
empire overseas. In the treaty, Spain agreed to abandon Cuba and exchange Puerto Rico, Guam and the
Philippines to America for $20 million. The treaty gave the United States a new imperialistic reputation.

American Anti-Imperialist League: The critics of imperialism were many and influential. Forming the Anti-
Imperialist League, they believed that every country captured by the U.S. had the same rights under the
Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico: By the terms of the Treaty of Paris in 1898, Spain recognized Cubas
independence and ceded the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and the Pacific Island of Guam to the United States in
exchange for $20 million. As 1899 dawned Americans possessed an island empire from the Caribbean to the
Pacific.

Walter Reed: In 1900 Walter Reed was appointed to the Yellow Fever Commission as a result of his
investigation of the disease. After being sent to Cuba to find out more about Yellow Fever, he discovered that
the disease was carried by a mosquito. He later became a curator at Army Medical Museum and a professor at
Army Medical College.
Insular Cases: The decisions regarding whether the Constitution applies to Puerto Rico and the Philippines are
known as the Insular Cases. They ruled that the residents are inhabitants but not citizens of the United States.
Because of this ruling, these countries were not honored by the Constitution and were treated as colonies.

Platt Amendment: Senator Orville Platt, at the request of the War department, made a revised bill to remove
some of the restrictions stated in the Teller Amendment. The Platt Amendment stated that the United States
would withdraw from Cuba if they did not sign a treaty with any other foreign power. It also gave the United
States the right to interfere with Cuba if they believed that it was not a fit enough country to take care of itself.
Also, they established the right to hold a naval base in Cuba.

Protectorate: When a more powerful state controls the economy, foreign affairs, or police power of another
state, it is considered a protectorate. In the case of the United States, Cuba was a protectorate as a result of the
Platt Amendment. Other examples might include Nicuaragua, the Dominican Republic, Hawaii, and other
Pacific islands.

Aguinaldo, Philippine insurrection: In 1896 Emilio Aguinaldo started a Filipino movement for
independence to get out of Spains control. When Spain surrendered, Aguinaldo drew up a constitution and
proclaimed the Philippiness independence. When the Treaty of Paris gave the United States power over the
Philippines, Aguinaldo became angry and tried to fight. He soon realized that he would lose and gave up.

Secretary of State John Hay, Open Door Notes: John Hays Open Door Notes was a policy that explained the
importance of American commercial influence on foreign policies. The Open Door Notes stated that the pre-
thought "informal empire" was correct as opposed to overseas colonies being favored by imperial power.

Boxer Rebellion: The Boxers, a secret group of Chinese men known as I Ho Chuan, opposed Christianity in
their country. Numbering 140,000, the Boxers killed thousands of foreigners as well as Chinese suspected of
being Christian. British, American, Russian, Japanese and French soldiers were sent to China to end the "Boxer
Rebellion."

Extraterritoriality: Extraterritoriality is a principle in international law that allows certain visiting foreign
citizens or their property to be exempt from the laws of a host nation. Foreign heads of states traveling abroad
and diplomats representing their home countries are examples of people benefiting from extraterritoriality.

Most favored nation clause: The most favored nation clause is a commercial treaty that regulates special low
tariffs on goods imported to the United States. All countries awarded the Special Nation Status must be treated
equally. Duties for the same group of goods should be the same low regardless from which country signatory of
the status they are imported.

Roosevelt & Progressivism

Many intellectuals increasingly challenged the foundations of the social order. Voices of reform thundered over
the nation calling for democratic government, better cities, and the curbing of corporate power. This movement,
labeled progressivism, found its first national leader in Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt actively pursued many of
his goals: labor mediation, consumer protection, conservation, business virtue, and activism abroad. His
successor, Taft, continued in Roosevelts aims but lacked his political genius.

Election of 1900: candidates and issues: William McKinley, the Republican candidate, beat William Jennings
Bryan, the Democratic candidate, for President. The Republican campaign theme of prosperity, summed up in
the slogan "A Full Dinner Pail," easily won him a second term. McKinley had 284 electoral votes where as
Bryan had 115.

Roosevelts Big Stick diplomacy: One of Roosevelts most famous statements was "speak softly and carry a
big stick." An example of his meaning in this statement was when Canada wanted the Alaskan land that
America owned. They were fighting over the boundaries because of gold found in the area. Roosevelt simply
stated that if the boundaries would change, there would be serious consequences. Because of his problem
solving method, Roosevelt was known to use "Big Stick" diplomacy.

Clayton-Bulwer Treaty: The Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850 stated that both the United States and Britain
promised not to claim control over any canal built between the oceans that separated their countries. This
included the Panama Canal which America later took over anyway.

Hay-Pauncefote Treaty: In 1901, the United States planned to construct the Panama Canal. This meant they
would be in need of a new treaty. Secretary of State John Hay and British Ambassador Sir Julian Pauncefote
agreed on a new treaty that would drop Englands claim on the canal.

Panama Revolution: Financed by Philippe Bunau-Varilla, chief agent of the New Panama Canal Company, the
Panama Revolution was a planned revolt by Panamanians against Colombian occupation of the Isthmus of
Panama. The United States did not encourage the revolution, but it did make clear that it would not allow it to
fail.

The Panama Canal: When a French company supposed to build a canal across the Isthmus of Panama went
bankrupt, it offered to sell its assets to the United States. The Hay-Herrn agreement, which would have granted
the US a ninety-nine-year lease on a strip of land for canal construction, was rejected by the Colombian senate.
Determined to have a canal, Roosevelt found a collaborator in Philippe Bunau-Varilla, who organized a
"revolution." After Panama was recognized, the canal building commenced.

Virgin Islands purchased: Denmark, in 1917, sold to the United States its West Indian territories for $25
million, including the Virgin Islands. These islands, located at the perimeters of the Caribbean, were of great
military importance during the Second World War. They mainly served to protect the US mainland as well as
the Panama Canal.

Goethals and Gorgas: George Goethel was a civil engineer who directed a completion of the Panama Canal.
William Gorgas helped to make it possible to construct Panama Canal by killing mosquitoes carrying yellow
fever and malaria. Theodore Roosevelt later appointed these men important positions in The Panama Canal
Zone.
Venezuela Crisis, 1902: In 1902 the country's debts became so large that European creditor nations blockaded
Venezuela; the United States intervened to obtain arbitration of the dispute. Castro's departure for Europe in
1908 opened the way for his deputy, Juan Vicente Gomez, to seize power.

Drago Doctrine: Luis Maria Drago was an Argentine diplomat who formulated a supplement to the Monroe
Doctrine known as the Drago Doctrine. In 1902, Great Britain, Germany, and Italy imposed a joint naval
blockade on Venezuela in order to coerce that country into paying its debts.

Roosevelt Corollary: In 1904, Roosevelt created the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. This
doctrine justified U.S. intervention in the affairs of Latin American nations if their weakness or wrongdoing
warranted such action. An example of this interference was the American intervention in Haiti when it was not
wanted. The document was primarily a pass for the US to interfere with other countries business when it was
not wanted nor needed.

U.S. intervention in Haiti: In 1915, President Woodrow Wilson sent the United States Marines into Haiti. The
purpose was to calm the anarchy that the US claimed existed in the country. In 1916, Congress ratified a treaty
that would allow the US ten years of control over Haiti to maintain order and give political and economic
assistance.

Dominican Republic: In 1915, after bloody upheavals in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, Wilson ordered
the marines. A Haitian constitution favorable to U.S. commercial interests was ratified in 1918. The marines
remained in the Dominican Republic until 1924, and in Haiti until 1934.

Revolution in Nicaragua: In 1911 a US-supported revolution in Nicaragua brought to power Adolfo Daz, an
officer of the American-owned Nicaraguan mining property. American bankers loaned the Daz government
$15 million in exchange for control of most of Nicaragua. When a revolt broke out, Roosevelt ordered in the
marines.

Russo-Japanese War, Treaty of Portsmouth: The Russo-Japanese war (1904-05) was the first conflict in
which an Asian power defeated a European country. Fighting began when the Japanese attacked the Russian
fleet at Port Arthur after Russia, which had occupied Manchuria during the Boxer Uprising in China, refused to
withdraw its troops.

San Francisco School Board Incident: American relations with Japan suffered when the San Francisco school
board, in 1906, ordered all Asian children to attend segregated schools. Summoning the school-board members
to Washington, Roosevelt persuaded them to reverse this discriminatory policy.

Elihu Root: As secretary of war in the cabinets of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, Root
reorganized the army and established the Army War College. As Roosevelt's secretary of state from 1905 to
1909, he reformed the consular service, improving US relations with Latin America, and sponsoring a series of
arbitration treaties.

Taft-Katsura Memo: By the Taft-Katsura Memo of 1905, the United States and Japan pledged to maintain the
Open Door principles in China. Japan recognized American control over the Philippines and the United States
granted a Japanese protectorate over Korea.

Gentlemans Agreement: In the 1890s, workers feared their jobs would be taken by the Japanese
immigrants and they wanted a law preventing any more immigrants to move to the United States. In 1907 Japan
proposed the Gentlemens Agreement which promised that they would halt the unrestricted immigration if
President Roosevelt promised to discourage any laws being made that would restrict Japanese immigration to
the US.
Great White Fleet: This was a naval fleet that went on a voyage around the world. After 15 months, when the
fleet returned, President Roosevelt met all the crew members personally. The two objects of this voyage were
being friendly with the nations allies but also to show other nations the naval power of the United States.

Lodge Corollary: When a Japanese syndicate moved to purchase a large tract of land in Mexicos Lower
California, Senator Lodge introduced a resolution to block the Japanese investment. The Corollary went further
to exclude non-European powers from the Western Hemisphere under the Monroe Doctrine.

Root-Takahira Agreement: In 1908, Japan and the United States signed the Root-Takahira Agreement.
Through this document the two nations promised not to seek territorial gain in the Pacific. These two nations
also promised to honor an open door policy in China.

Lansing-Ishii Agreement, 1917: Robert Lansing, Secretary of State under President Wilson, negotiated the
Lansing-Ishii agreement on November 2, 1917 with Japan, whereby the United States recognized Japan's
special interests in China. However, the US still felt they had a right to China.

Jones Act, 1916 (Philippines): In 1916, Congress passed the Jones Act which provided for a government for
the Philippines and committed the United States to granting Filipino independence. The government created
was based on the Constitutional model. In 1934, a bill was finally passed to actually grant the Filipinos their
independence.

Jones Act, 1917 (Puerto Rico): The Jones Act of 1917 was passed by the United States to regulate trade in
Puerto Rico. It established the Sea Land service to prevent carriers and shippers from using unfair pricing
practices. Its establishment encouraged parallel pricing for all carriers.

Mexican Revolution, Daz, Huerta, Carranza: Rebels, led by Francisco Madero in 1911, overthrew Porfirio
Daz. In 1913, Madero was overthrown by a military regime led by Victoriano Huerta. The US refused to
recognize Huertas government because it had come to power violently. Eventually, this led to Mexican-
American hostilities.

Mexican migration to the U.S.: In the period from 1877 to 1910 economic conditions were worsening in
Mexico. By 1914 more than 100,000 Mexicans had migrated to the United States. These new immigrants found
mainly in railroad industries and agriculture where jobs were vacated by the war. They filled partly the US need
for labor during war.

"watchful waiting": "Watchful waiting" refers to Wilsons policy towards the events unfolding in Europe. In
effect, it was Americas policy of neutrality throughout most of the First World War. This policy was taken
although it was clear that the United States had obvious ties to Britain and would likely favor it.

ABC Powers: The ABC powers consisted of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. In 1914, the ABC powers called a
conference to prevent a war between the United States and Mexico caused by the Veracruz Incident. When
president Carranza rejected the proposal for a new Mexican government, the conference came to an end.

Pancho Villa, General Pershing: During the political turmoil of Mexico in 1916, bandit Pancho Villa
murdered 16 Americans, then burned down Columbus in New Mexico. With the U.S. outraged, General John J.
Pershing was sent with 12,000 troops to catch Villa with no avail. Massive US response angered some
Mexicans and led to hostilities.

Archangel expedition: In 1918, Allied forces landed in the port of Archangel, Russia to defend Allied military
stockpiles from German attack. Allied forces later became anti-Bolshevik and seized the port. Allies favored the
Whites during the period of Russias civil war. United States involvement in this campaign compromised
American neutrality.
Democracy, efficiency, pragmatism: Democracy is a form of government in which a substantial proportion of
the citizenry directly or indirectly participates in ruling the state. Pragmatism is a philosophical movement,
developed in the United States, which holds that both the meaning and the truth of any idea is a function of its
practical outcome.

Wright Brothers, Kitty Hawk: Wilbur and Orville Wright created the modern field of aeronautics. After over
200 calculations and tests at Kitty Hawk they built the first practical airplane, marking the beginning of the
individual progressive spirit. They were highly honored internationally and a monument to them was built at
Kitty Hawk.

"Muckrakers": Those American writers who early in the 20th century wrote both fiction and nonfiction to
expose corruption in business and politics were called the muckrakers. Muckraker was a term first used by
President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. They were given this name because of their tendency to "spread the
muck around."

Henry Demarest Lloyd, Wealth Against Commonwealth: A leading opponent of business monopolies, Henry
Demarest Lloyd was one of the pioneer muckrakers of the late 19th century. He developed his antimonopoly
theme as financial writer and editor at the Chicago Tribune.

Thorstein Veblen, The Theory of the Leisure Class: Thorstein Veblen is best known for his book The Theory
of The Leisure Class (1899). Veblens book is a classic of social theory that introduced the concept of
"conspicuous consumption." Veblen continued to write other books dealing with the same general theories.

Jacob Riis, How the Other Half Lives: A journalist, photographer, and reformer, Jacob August Riis publicized
the plight of immigrants in New York City slum tenements. His photographs, articles, and books focused on the
squalid living conditions of the city's poor and spurred legislation to improve those conditions.

Lincoln Steffens, The Shame of the Cities: An eminent American reformer and journalist, Joseph Lincoln
Steffens, was a leader of the muckrakers. He wrote a series of articles that documented corruption in American
cities, asserting that some cities were run by political bosses who remained in power with the help of powerful
businessmen.

Frank Norris, The Octopus: The U.S. novelist Frank Norris was a noted pioneer of naturalism in literature. His
novels portray the demoralizing effects of modern technology on human fate. His best-known works, The
Octopus (1901) and The Pit (1903), attacked the railroad and wheat industries in the United States.

Ida Tarbell, History of the Standard Oil Company: As a Pennsylvania journalist, editor, and biographer,
Tarbell became famous as a muckraker through her well-documented articles on political and corporate
corruption in McClure's Magazine and American Magazine.

David Graham Phillips, The Treason of the Senate: Author of many popular problem novels of the early 20th
century, Phillips was also a prominent journalist. His "Treason of the Senate" series of articles (1906) in
Cosmopolitan magazine were an important contribution to the muckraking movement in American journalism.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Woman and Economics: Gilman was a leading American feminist writer known
for Woman and Economics (1898), a feminist classic she wrote. It attacked the commonly accepted idea that
women should be economically dependent on men while suggesting alternatives such as cooperative kitchens
and day-care programs.

John Dewey, The School and Society, "progressive education," "learn by doing": Deweys ideas of
progressive education, described in The School and Society, greatly affected educational techniques. He
founded the Laboratory School, a school in which students learned of life by actively doing things rather than
following a strict curriculum.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Supreme Court: Holmes was a professor of law at Harvard who resigned to
become a member of the Supreme Court. As a jurist he interpreted the Constitution in a very liberal manner,
earning him the name "the Great Dissenter" among his colleagues.

Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts: The Boy and Girl Scouts, formed to educate the youth of America, heavily embody
Deweys concept of "learn by doing." They focused on teaching children of their proper patriotic role in society
and working to broaden the horizons of their members though a number of varied activities.

Edward Ross: Ross wrote one of the first books dealing with social psychology. He analyzed the transmission
of social behavior through society by its transmission from one person to another. His ideas conflicted with
McDougalls, another psychologist who believed that the process of evolution created instinctive sociological
behavior.

Richard Ely: Ely, a progressive economist, was an economics research professor at Northwestern University.
He founded the American Economic Association in 1899 and was the first economist to suggest that
government interference in regulation of the national economic was not harmful but even sometimes helpful.

Initiative, referendum, recall: These were three types of progressive electoral reforms passed by some western
states. Initiative allowed voters to enact laws directly. The referendum allowed voters to express their opinions
of specific issues. Through recall voters were able to directly remove public officials from office.

Direct primary: The direct primary was another progressive municipal reform. It originated in Wisconsin
(1903) and rapidly spread throughout the rest of the United States. It provided that the members, not the
leadership, of each party nominate the partys nominees for public office.

Australian ballot (secret ballot): Many electoral reforms gave voters greater control over the government,
especially at the ballot boxes where voters could be easily swayed. By 1910 all states had replaced the corrupt
system of preprinted ballots with a new secret ballot, begun in Australia, which was much more difficult to rig.

Triangle Shirtwaist Co. fire: An accidental fire at the Traingle Shirtwaist Company killed 141 workers. It
prodded the concerns of many progressive reformers since the workers, locked in the factory and unable to
escape, were killed by brutal working conditions. These concerns raised new questions of human and immigrant
rights and of existing labor laws.

International Ladies Garment Workers Union (ILGWU): This union of American needle-trade workers
launched drives to improve working conditions, end the practice of workers paying for their own equipment,
and raise working rates. It is remembered for the militancy of its early organizational drives and its fight against
sweatshops.

Anti-Saloon League: During and after the American Civil War the laws regulating many aspects of saloons
were either reduced or eliminated. As a result, many people united in this league in their fight against saloons.
By 1916 they enacted anti-saloon laws in 23 states and in 1917 they passed the 18th amendment beginning
prohibition.

Square Deal: Roosevelt, on a speaking tour against the Northern Securities Company, called for a "square
deal." This progressive concept denounced special treatment for the large capitalists and is the essential element
to his trustbusting attitude. This deal embodied the belief that all corporations must serve the general public
good.
Forest Reserve Act, 1891: The Forest Reserve Act, strongly supported by Roosevelt and Pinchot, created a
system of national forests, consisting of approximately 200 million acres, which were protected from the short-
sighted greed Roosevelt saw in many large companies. Through this act Roosevelt also enlarged Pinchots
forest staff from 123 to 1,500 people.

Newlands Reclamation Act, 1902: Roosevelt drafted the Newlands Reclamation Act when he noticed that
decades of rapid industrial growth had destroyed much of the limited natural resources of the land. It insured
that all natural resources would be managed by experts. Funding came from public-land sales and was used to
build irrigation projects.

Conservation conference, 1908: As Roosevelts conservative trend began to permeate through the public
mind, he began to create several groups to raise public awareness of nature and the necessity of conservation.
The first meeting was of the White House Conservation Conference, followed by the National Conservation
Commission.

Anthracite coal strike, 1902, George F. Baer: The Anthracite coal strike was the first strike in which the
government became involved but did not side with the management. Roosevelt instead mediated a series of
negotiations between the strikers and the owners over issues of wages, safety conditions, and union recognition.

Elkins Act, 1903, rebates: The Interstate Commerce Commission was initially created to regulate the economy
for the federal government. It was not originally given enough power to regulate the monopolized railroad
system. The Elkins Act strengthened the ICC by stiffening penalties against secret railroad rebates to favored
shippers.

Hepburn Act, 1906: The Hepburn Act, in conjunction with the Elkins Act, granted the Interstate Commerce
Commission enough power to regulate the economy. It allowed the ICC to set freight rates and, in an attempt to
reduce the corruption in the railroad industry, to require a uniform system of accounting by regulated
transportation companies.

Mann-Elkins Act, 1910: The Mann-Elkins Act further extended the regulatory ability of the ICC. It allowed
them to regulate cable and wireless companies dealing with telephone and telegraph lines. The ICC was also
given greater rate-setting power as well as the ability to begin court proceedings against companies disputing
the new rates.

"trustbuster": Teddy Roosevelt, deeply conservative at heart, did not want to destroy the big corporations
that he saw necessary to American life. He did, however, believe that they must be held to strict moral
standards. He earned the "trustbuster" name when he filed suit against the Northern Securities Company,
followed by 43 other cases. He left many of the larger companies serving the public good alone, but he broke up
many other large, monopolistic companies in the interests of American welfare and economy.

Northern Securities Co. case: This was the first company Roosevelt filed suit against in his trustbusting stage.
It was a large holding company formed by railroad and banking interests. In 1902 Roosevelt "trustbusted" them
by claiming they violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act in holding money against the public good. The company
was dissolved.

Meat Inspection Act: The Meat Inspection Act was passed by Roosevelt as a strong response to Sinclair's book
describing the conditions of food as well as wartime scandals in 1898 concerning spoiled canned meats. It
created strict sanitary requirements for meat, began a quality rating system, and provisioned for a federal
department to inspect meat.
Immunity of Witness Act: The Immunity of Witness Act, passed in 1906, prevented corporate officials from
pleading immunity in cases concerning their own corporations illegal activities. Previously, many officials
used this immunity plea to avoid testifying in any way concerning their actions.

W.E.B. DuBois: For more than 50 years W.E.B. DuBois, a black editor, historian, and sociologist, was a leader
of the civil rights movement in the United States. He helped found the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and was its outstanding spokesman in the first decades of its
existence.

Niagara movement: At a meeting in Niagara Falls, Ont., in 1905, W.E.B. DuBois and other black leaders who
shared his views founded the Niagara Movement. Members of the Niagara group joined with concerned liberal
and radical whites to organize the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in
1909.

Springfield Ill riot, 1908: The period of Booker T. Washington represented a period of increasing anti-black
violence. The large anti-black riot in Springfield in 1908 was representative of the peak of a period of harsh
discrimination, white resentment of black advances, and mass public segregation.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP): The NAACP was an organization
founded in 1909 by blacks and whites under such leaders as W.E.B. DuBois to safeguard civil, legal, economic,
human, and political rights of black Americans. It lobbied for legislation, sponsored educational programs, and
engaged in protest actions.

The Crisis: The Crisis was the magazine of the NAACP. It generally reflected the views of the blacks and
whites who headed the NAACP. W.E.B. DuBois was editor of The Crisis from 1910 to 1934. He often wrote
that Blacks should develop industry and business separate from the white economy in order prove their non-
dependence on white society

Brownsville Incident: Roosevelt, though not as racist a president as those before him, did not have a perfect
record. In 1906 he discharged an entire regiment of blacks accused of rioting in Brownsville. This unfair and
illegal action was later reversed by Congress once all involved parties had died.

Upton Sinclair, The Jungle: Sinclair was an American writer and reformer who wrote The Jungle. This book
exposed the unsanitary working conditions in the stockyards of Chicago, eventually leading to an investigation
of both working conditions and the conditions of food. It eventually led to the enactment of the Pure Food Act.

Pure Food and Drug Act: The Pure Food and Drug Act, enacted through the efforts of Harvey Wiley and
Sinclair in 1906, gave consumers protection from dangerous and impure foods. All products must be clearly
labeled and must explain a product which cannot be seen or judged by a consumer. This act solved problems
concerning fraudulently labeled items.

Panic of 1907: Roosevelts constant trustbusting of large corporations caused questionable bank speculations, a
conservative gold standard, and strict credit policies, eventually leading to the Panic of 1907. This panic
brought the need for banking reform to the forefront of political activity, finally culminating in the Federal
Reserve Act.

Election of 1908: candidates, issues: The Republican platform consisted of Taft and Sherman. They ran for
continued anti-trust enforcement, conservation, and increased international trade. William Jennings Bryan ran
for the Democratic Party on a similar anti-trust platform. The Socialist Party was represented by Eugene Debs.
Taft easily won.
Mark Hanna: Hanna was a successful American politician and businessman. He helped manage several
campaigns including the Republican presidential nomination of McKinley. Hanna was later selected chairman
of the Republican National Committee, an organization he used to collect a large war chest to assist in
McKinleys election.

Scientific management, Frederick W. Taylor: Taylor was an engineer who first integrated scientific
management with business. He became foreman of the Midvale Steel Company in 1878 and used mathematics
to determine maximum industrial productivity, using time and motion studies to find what each worker should
for the highest efficiency.

Wisconsin, "laboratory of democracy": La Follette enacted sweeping changes during his governorship of
Wisconsin in 1900. He adopted a direct primary system, began to regulate the railroads in his state, increased
corporate taxes, and passed other progressive reform legislation. He also created a legislative reference library
for lawyers.

Robert M. La Follette: La Follette, initially a Republican in Congress, broke from this party in 1924 when he
realized big business was dangerously out of control. The populace agreed with this opinion by electing him
governor as an independent. He took the reform movement, previously only found at the municipal level, to
new heights, the state. The new state level of regulation had some inherit problems, but as the progressive
movement entered the national government, these problems were solved.

Regulatory commissions: As the Progressive Era advanced, regulatory commissions became more prevalent
and numerable. The excesses of the monopolistic railroad companies became known to all. In an effort to end
the abuses of the rich capitalists regulatory commissions were created to divide the concentrated wealth.

Jane Addams, Hull House: Addams was a prominent social reformer in the US and Europe. In 1889 she
created Hull House in Chicago, a settlement home designed as a welfare agency for needy families. It also tried
to teach immigrants English customs. Addams also played an important role in the National Progressive party.

Florence Kelley, consumerism: Kelley was largely responsible for the regulation of child labor. She saw its
evils as a resident in Hull House for several years. In 1899 she was selected general secretary of the National
Consumers League, which used organized consumer boycotts and strikes to force improved factory conditions.

home rule for cities: Home rule was a new form of city government other than the mayor-council form that
emerged in the Progressive Era. Under this form of government the city was run by a committee of three elected
commissioners. They locally ran the county rather than allowing the state to handle affairs.

Municipal Reform: The beginning of the Progressive Era is marked by a great increase in municipal reform.
Nearly all elements of the urban population participated in these reform efforts. The middle class began the
movement and was the core of urban beautification. Businessmen pushed for citywide elections and for the city-
manager system of government. In reforms concerning the commoners, even the political bosses assisted. This
municipal level reform soon moved to the state level.

Tom Johnson, Sam (Golden Rule) Jones, Brand Whitlock, Hazen Pingree: These were all progressives who
reformed the political process. Johnson reformed public ownership of utilities in Chicago. San Jones reformed
profit sharing and education in Toledo, Ohio. Pingree reformed taxes, the honesty in government, and beautified
his city.

City manager plan, commission plan: This form of government replaced the traditional mayor/council version
in several cities. It began in Texas when progressives removed the corrupt mayor and council, replacing them
with five elected commissioners. They were experts in rebuilding the ruined city, which is what they were
elected to do.
Daniel Hudson Burnham, 1909 Chicago Plan: Burnham, in conjunction with John Root, built the first steel-
frame buildings that later developed into modern skyscrapers. Burnham was the designer of the famous Chicago
Plan, a plan in which many beautiful pre-skyscraper buildings were designed in Chicago.

William Howard Taft: As president, Taft focused primarily on a continuation of trust-busting and reuniting the
old conservatives and young progressives of the Republican Party. Taft also strongly supported a national
budgetary system. He was unable to reunite the two parties and, as a result, the Democratic party swept the
1912 elections.

Department of Labor (from 1903 Department of Commerce and Labor, Bureau of Corporations also in
1903): This department was created in 1913 with the intention of assisting the welfare and working conditions
of the general worker. It was empowered to investigate and report illegal corporative activities.

Payne-Aldrich Tariff, 1909: This tariff was initially intended to lower several other tariffs, but after numerous
compromises in the Senate it became a protective measure. Many Progressive reformers considered this a sign
that the companies and various special interests were preventing consumer prices from reaching reasonable
levels.

Ballinger-Pinchot controversy: Pinchot charged that Ballinger was giving the nation's natural resources to
private corporate interests. Under investigation it was found that Ballinger did nothing illegal though he did
bend the government's environmental policies. Since Taft have given him support, Taft lost standing with the
progressive Republicans.

Insurgents: Insurgents was a nickname for a small group of reformist Republicans. This group, including La
Follette and Norris, turned against Taft after his passage of the 1909 tariff and completely separated after he
supported the Payne-Aldrich Tariff. The separation between progressive and conservative republicans was
caused by this group.

Uncle Joe Cannon (Old Guard): Cannon was a Republican who served as Speaker of the House from 1903 to
1911. He strongly opposed many progressive reforms and was thus not very popular in the house. Progressives
and Democrats joined to remove much of his power in 1910, allowing the Republican-Democratic coalition to
run the Senate.

Senator George Norris: Norris was a reformist senator who favored federal regulation of public utilities.
Through a change in House rules he ended the rule of the Speaker of the House Joseph Cannon. He also created
the Tennessee Valley Authority, a dam building company. As he ignored the limitations of party politics he
slowly lost support.

Rule of reason: Standard Oil case, American Tobacco case: In 1911 a progressive interpretation of the
Sherman Act was enacted by the Supreme Court. According to this "rule of reason" principle, only
"unreasonable" combinations restraining trade were illegal. This interpretation emerged when the court broke
these two companies into smaller firms.

"dollar diplomacy": In an effort to avoid Roosevelts "big stick" economic policy, President Taft sought to
avoid military confrontation by using money to increase foreign interest in the US. He planned to donate large
sums of money to generate economic, social, and political stability in Latin America rather than sending the
military to force stability. His efforts were largely a failure as most of the money never reached the actual
people of Latin America. Most of the money was stolen by corrupt government officials.

Secretary of State Knox: Knox was responsible for the creation of the Latin American Division of the State
Department. He planned to promote better relation, but the US kept a portion of the military in the Dominican
Republic. This was planned to quiet revolutionary thoughts and to prevent foreign financial problems.
Manchurian railroad scheme: In an attempt to force Japan and Russia to sell their land in Manchuria for
railroad investment, President Taft moved to construct his own competing rail system. China refused to approve
Tafts plan and Japan and Russia began to grow suspicious of the USs motives.

Roosevelts Osawatomie, Kansas speech: The differences between Taft and Roosevelt were revealed in
Roosevelts 1910 Osawatomie "New Nationalism" speech. Roosevelt unveiled a plan in which he called for a
protection of welfare over property, opposing Tafts support of numerous tariffs as well as the Old Guard in
Congress.

Taft-Roosevelt split: In 1912 the Democrats finally regained control of the presidency due to the Taft-
Roosevelt split. Tafts inability to associate with the progressive elements of his party convinced Roosevelt to
return. Roosevelt formed the Progressive Party and thus siphoned enough votes to cause the Republicans to lose
the election.

Bull Moose Party: This party, formally known as the Progressive Party, was created by Theodore Roosevelt
after his split with Taft. It was created in his anger of Taft being nominated in the Republican Party. They
advocated primary elections, woman suffrage, and prohibition of child labor. They outpolled the Republicans
but lost to the Democrats.

Progressivism to Wilson
In 1912, the divided Republicans were no match for the united Democrats. Woodrow Wilson easily glided to
victory as the Democrats also took both houses of Congress. Except on the issue of race, the election identified
the party firmly with reform for the rest of the century. Wilsons agenda included tariff reform, banking and
currency reform, corporate regulation, and labor legislation. Four amendments to the Constitution within the
span of eight years demonstrated the efficiency of the progressive impulse.

Woodrow Wilson, New Freedom: The Democratic Party, to which Wilson belonged, had a past history of 45
ballots without a nomination. To overcome this stumbling block the Democrats united with the Progressives,
running under a compromise platform. Wilsons "New Freedom" campaign was concerned with progressive
programs similar to both parties. He did not, however, support trustbusting in the same way that Roosevelt did.
To him, all big business was morally evil and should be broken up.

Theodore Roosevelt, New Nationalism: In the election of 1912 Roosevelt was nominated under a platform
nicknamed "The New Nationalism." This platform followed the previous trustbusting and regulation trend as
well as alleviating many common progressive concerns such as child labor, womans suffrage, and minimum
wages. A Federal Trade Commission was also planned to regulate the economy. This platform was essentially
identical with many of the progressive reforms later passed under Wilson.

Herbert Croly, The Promise of American Life: Croly best captured the nature of progressivism in this book.
He dreamed of an activist government which would serve all citizens. Specifically, he suggested a redefinition
of government, democracy, and individualism. Roosevelt copied many of his ideas for his New Nationalism
platform.

Election of 1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft, Debs - issues: The election of 1912 was very interesting for most
Americans since there were 4 active political parties. Roosevelt tried to run with the Republican Party, but Taft
was chosen. He left and created the Progressive Party. Wilson ran with the Democratic Party. Debs continued to
run on the Socialist platform. All of the platforms dealt primarily with economic reform, indicating the change
that Americans wanted. Debs even received 900,000 votes.
Eugene V. Debs, Socialist Party: Eugene V. Debs was an American Socialist leader and five time presidential
candidate. In 1897 he created the Social Democratic Party of America. He received nearly one million votes for
president while he was imprisoned in jail. His Socialist party was quite popular until it splintered apart along
internal divisions.

Daniel DeLeon, IWW, Wobblies, "Big Bill" Haywood: The Industrial Workers of the World, nicknamed the
"Wobblies," was a radical labor group formed by "Big Bill" Haywood. They were never large, but they captured
many peoples imaginations as they preached revolution. Though they won several strikes, they were more
rhetoric than action.

National Monetary Commission: The National Monetary Commission examined monetary data collected by
the Pujo Committee and recommended a new form of banking. This advice, suggesting a secure Treasury
reserve and branch banks, later became the Federal Reserve System, used to adjust the value of money to keep
the economy stable.

Edgar Lee Masters, Spoon River Anthology: Edgar Lee Masters poems are unique in that they are presented
as the voices of a towns graveyard talking about their lives. His works realism and irony contrast with the
romantic and sentimental trends in progressive literature, demonstrating the revolt against conventional social
standards that was beginning.

D. W. Griffith, The Birth of a Nation: D. W. Griffith revolutionized the field of motion pictures after his
production of The Birth of a Nation in 1915. This story demonstrated the power of film propaganda and the
racist effects it had on people. It also began a trend towards hour-long, dramatic, well-acted films.

Edwin Porter, The Great Train Robbery: The Great Train Robbery, produced by Edwin Porter in 1903, was
the first major American film. It used new innovations such as the intercutting of scenes shot in different
settings. These scenes were later unified to form a coherent narrative ending in a scene of suspense.

Nickelodeons: Nickelodeons, movies costing a nickel each, became extremely popular in the Progressive Era
due to the freedom they offered children from parents. Immigrant children could easily imagine away their
restrictive home conditions. Noticing the lack of moral oversight, many progressives moved to create
censorship boards for these films.

Scott Joplin, Ragtime: Scott Joplin was a pianist and one of the most important developers of ragtime music.
He believed that ragtime should evolve into an indigenous black American opera style. His 1899 release of
"Maple Leaf Rag" was the beginning of popular ragtime music.

Eugenics movement: The Eugenics movement is one of the best examples of progressive ideas contradicting
science. Some Americans believed that the society could be improved by controlled breeding. They
accomplished this by sterilizing many criminals and sex offenders. The right to do so was upheld in the court
case Buck v. Bell.

Mary Ritter Beard, Charles A. Beard, Historical revisionism: Mary and Charles were two historians that
pioneered a new perspective on history. They each believed that history must be reexamined from a modern
perspective and that the economic, political, and social threads of present time must be followed back to
generate a clearer picture.

Madison Grant, The Passing of the Great Race: This book, published in 1916, is a preview to the ideas later
espoused by Adolf Hitler. Written in the Progressive Era, this book calls for absolute racial segregation,
immigrant restriction, and a forced eugenics movement by crime and by race type.
Billy Sunday: Billy Sunday was an American Fundamentalist preacher and professional baseball player. He
conducted regular revivals throughout the nation, in which he used broadcasting to strengthen peoples bond
with Christianity. The broadcasts of his revivals are considered among the most effective ever.

Margaret Sanger: Sanger was a leader among birth-control advocates. She attacked the Comstock Law, a law
which prevented the distribution of birth control. In 1916 she opened the first American birth-control facility.
She was convicted for this "public nuisance," won an appeal, and eventually gained the right for birth-control.

Sixteenth Amendment: The Sixteenth Amendment, ratified in 1913, is an obvious indicator to the Progressive
era in which it was passed. It authorized the income tax thereby allowing the Underwood-Simmons Tariff of
1913 to lower many tariffs. This amendment invalidated an earlier Supreme Court decision calling the income
tax was unconstitutional.

Seventeenth Amendment: The Seventeenth Amendment, ratified in 1913, moved the election of senators from
the state legislatures to the general populace. It followed the ideas already laid down by the Australian secret
ballot and the direct primary. This law was intended to create a more democratic, fair society in the eyes of
progressives.

Eighteenth Amendment: The Eighteenth Amendment, ratified in 1919, prohibited the non-medical sale of
alcohol. This amendment resulted from intense efforts among various womens movements, proving to the
nation that women could effect political changes. This amendment is the midpoint of a growing drive towards
womens rights.

Nineteenth Amendment: The Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the vote in 1920, is a logical
progression from the prohibition movement. As women felt their power in politics increasing, they began to
demand the ability to vote from their male peers. In the spirit of progressivism they were granted the vote in
1920.

Charles Evans Hughes: Charles Evans Hughes was an American jurist and statesmen. As governor of New
York he eliminated much of the corruption in government, passing many progressive reform measures. He
served as the chief justice of the Supreme Court in the depression years of the 1930s and supported many
aspects of Roosevelts liberal New Deal.

Pujo Committee: The Pujo Committee researched and later reported on the concentration of money and credit
over the general populace. They found that the money and credit of the US is localized inside a small group of
rich capitalists. This committees findings later led to the creation of the Federal Reserve Banking system.

Federal Reserve Act: The Federal Reserve Act was a compromise designed to stabilize the currency in the US.
It split the US into 12 regions with one Federal bank in each region. Commercial banks bought stock from this
bank. The discount rate at which the federal bank lent the money determined the interest rate.

Underwood-Simmons Tariff: The Underwood-Simmons Tariff reduced the tariffs from the Payne-Aldrich
Tariff to about 29%. It included a graduated income tax, made legal by the sixteenth amendment to the
Constitution, to correct for this monetary loss. Wilson, noticing that it followed his principle of "New
Freedom," heavily advocated it.

Income tax: The income tax, originally declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, was later ratified as
the Sixteenth Amendment. This new power was first used in the Tariff Act of 1913 which set the tax of
corporate income at 1%. It also levied a 1% tax on all rich families. Income tax has been greatly increased as
tariffs have been lowered.
Federal Trade Commission, cease and desist orders: The Federal Trade Commission, created by the Federal
Trade Commission Act, promoted free and fair trade competition. It investigated economically unfair business
practices and regulated these. The commission also regularly generated statistics of economic and business
conditions to the public.

Clayton Antitrust Act, labors Magna Carta (?): The Clayton Act was designed to clarify the Sherman
Antitrust Act in terms of new economic issues that had arisen. Practices such as local price-cutting and price
discrimination were made illegal. The right of unions to strike, boycott, and picket was also confirmed. This act
would have been labors Magna Carta had it been followed, but unfavorable court interpretations rendered
many of its pro-labor sections powerless without further legislation.

Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan: From 1913-1915, Bryan served as Secretary of State to Wilson.
The USs stubbornness on the issue of neutrality rights led Bryan to resign his position in 1915. He felt that
instead of insisting on passengers rights, the United States should keep Americans off belligerent ships, a
differing view on neutrality.

arbitration treaties: The arbitration treaties were negotiated by Secretary of State Root with 25 other nations.
International disputes could be deferred to the Hague Tribunal as stipulated by the arbitration treaties. An
example of such a treaty is the Anglo-Japanese Alliance. The treaties were undermined by disputes of
individual national interests.

Panama Tolls dispute: In 1912, the United States passed a bill that would exempt the United States from
payment in the use of the Panama Canal. Great Britain opposed the move saying it violated the 1901 Hay-
Pauncefote Treaty. After some dispute the United States eliminated the exemption clause and the president
signed the bill in 1914.

Colonel House: Colonel Edward M House was part of the Wilson administration and served as an advisor to
the president. He later was part of the Roosevelt administration and was involved in New Deal legislation taking
his traditional Wilsonian democracy to the New Deal era and its actions.

Louis Brandeis, "Brandeis brief": In 1916, Woodrow Wilson appointed Louis Brandeis, a Jew, to the
Supreme Court, which was briefly opposed because of anti-Semitism. In 1908 in Muller v. Oregon, his
Brandeis brief provided evidence as to why women need limited work hours. This represented the Courts
adapting to the new, changing industrial society.

La Follette Seamans Act: Passed in 1915, the La Follette Seamans Act improved working and living
conditions as well as making ships safer. It applied to US ships as well as any ship docked in a US port.
Included provisions regulating work hours, as well as pay and food quality. The act was designed to attract
Americans to ocean occupations.

Keating-Owen Act: The Keating-Owen Act, passed in 1915, attempted to prevent the problem of child labor. It
forbade interstate shipment of products whose production was due to the labor of children under fourteen or
sixteen. This law was particularly important because it was the first attempt by Congress to regulate interstate
commerce.

Workmens Compensation Act: The Workmens Compensation Act heightened the rights of employees to
bring legal action against their employers for injuries. Prior to this act, the employee had to prove they were not
at fault and that it was not a normal risk. This act created scales of compensation for any injury, regardless to
the party responsible.

Federal Warehouse Act: Wilson heavily supported the Federal Warehouse Act, which allowed farmers to
more easily secure long-term, low-interest credit, using land or crops as the loan security, from regional Farm
Loan Banks. Prior to the passage of this act, farmers had to use actual money or property as security, making
loans harder to obtain.

Federal Highways Act, 1916: The Federal Highways Act of 1916 was pushed by Wilson and supported by the
Democratic congress. It stated that federal funds would match appropriations made by states funds for highway
construction. This aided the automobile industry and allowed for the existence of more cars.

Adamson Act, 1916: The Adamson Act of 1916 was a compromise that avoided a railroad strike. It set an eight
hour day for interstate railroad workers with a salary of one and a half for overtime work. The act signaled a
major victory for railroad workers. An example of Wilsons sympathy to labor and was one of his important
worker protection laws.

Smith-Lever Act: The Smith-Lever Act, enacted in 1914, created a system of agricultural extension work
funded by federal grants. Students not in college benefited because they were taught agricultural skills by
county agents. It was part of the governments plan to encourage a growth in American agriculture.

Smith- Hughes Act: The Smith-Hughes Act of 1917 created the Federal Board for Vocational Education to
encourage agricultural growth. Furthermore, it gave the federal government greater control over education
because it required that states submit proposals for education to a federal board.

First World War

When war burst upon Europe in August 1914, most Americans wanted no part. Wilson immediately proclaimed
American neutrality and called on the nation to be neutral "in thought and in action." Yet the United States and
Britain were linked by extensive economic ties and many Americans felt close emotionally with the British.
Fearing a world dominated by imperial Germany, and seething over violation of neutral rights on the seas,
Wilson declared war in 1917.

"Sick man of Europe," Ottoman Empire, Balkan Wars: The ancient Ottoman empire had lost its grip
throughout the late 1800s. In the Balkan Wars, Balkan States gained their independence from the Ottoman
Empire, called the "sick man of Europe." From it, the newly independent nations of Romania, Bulgaria, and
Serbia were created.

Triple Entente: Allies: Beginning in the early 1900s, Britain, France and Russia had signed treaties with each
other. After Austria declared war on Serbia, Germany declared war on the allies (Russia and France), in turn
drawing Great Britain into the war. This system of alliances had escalated what was once a localized incident.

Triple Alliance: Central Powers: The Triple Alliance consisted of Germany, Austria- Hungary, as well as
Italy. Germany, with its blank check provision to Austria- Hungary, had in encouraged the war declaration on
Serbia. Afterwards, Germany declared war on Russia and France, Serbias allies by treaties.

loans to the Allies: In total, the United States lent the Allies over $10 billion. Great Britain owed the United
States over $4.2 billion by the end of the war. This great indebtedness led to conflict later when the United
States attempted to collect. Also, it led to increased reparations for Germany because of allied indebtedness.

British blockade: In an attempt to win the war of attrition that was World War I, Great Britain utilized its
sizable navy to blockade all trade going in and out of Germany. Germany responded with its U-boats,
eventually going on the offensive in 1917 by itself blockading Britain at the cost of American involvement.
Lusitania, Arabic pledge, Sussex pledge: In 1915, the British Lusitania was sunk bringing protests from
Wilson. The Arabic was sunk in the same year and Germans followed with the Arabic pledge promising to stop
attacks on passenger vessels. In 1916, Germans sunk the Sussex and made the Sussex pledge to promise a
stoppage of attacks.

election of 1916: Hughes, Wilson, issues: Wilson ran for reelection for the Democrats on the call that he had
kept the United States out of the war. Charles Evans Hughes was the Republican candidate who attacked the
inefficiency of the Democratic Party. Wilson won the election, so was able to continue his idealistic policies.

unrestricted submarine warfare: On January 31, 1917, Germany announced it would resume unrestricted
submarine warfare, a repudiation of the Sussex pledge, and sink all ships without warning whatsoever. This
action was backed by the German belief that this would lead it to victory before the Americans could become
involved in the war.

Zimmerman Note: Also known as the Zimmerman Telegram, the Zimmerman note was a message
intercepted by British intelligence from Germany to Mexico in 1917 proposing that in the event of a German
war with the United states, Mexico should attack the US. It would be a Mexican opportunity to retake the
Mexican Cession. This was one of a few events which led to widespread public support for the Allies and
eventual United States involvement in the World War.

Russian Revolutions, 1917, March and Bolshevik: In March 1917 a revolution overthrew Russias tsarist
regime. The second Revolution, commonly called the October Revolution, was an armed coup organized by the
Bolshevik party. These revolutions were caused by and led to Russia pulling out of World War I.

war declared, April 1917: On March 2, 1917, President Wilson called a special Congressional session for
April 2, in which he proposed the declaration of war against Germany. The declaration was passed by the
Senate by a vote of 82 to 6 and in the House by a vote of 373 to 50 before it was then signed by Wilson.

Wilsons "Peace without victory": In 1916 President Wilson called for a "peace without victory." His words
were a call to the European nations to stop the conflict based on a balance of power and to form a peace in
which nations together would keep the peace. Wilson foresaw the vengeful atmosphere that would follow a
prolonged war.

"Make the world safe for democracy": "Make the world safe for democracy" was Wilsons famous line
justifying United States involvement in the World War. It was based on the belief that from this international
power struggle, a democratic revolution could arise. In other words, a new democratic world order led by the
United States would follow.

Creel Committee: The Committee on Public Information, formed in 1917, was headed by journalist George
Creel. At the beginning of the first World War, Americans sided with neutrality. The CPI was a propaganda
committee that built support for the war effort in Europe among Americans. It depicted Germans and other
enemies on bad terms, and served to censor the press. Anything German was frowned upon. The Creel
Committee, or CPI, was successful in raising widespread American support for the war effort.

bond drives: Treasury Secretary William Gibbs McAdoo organized the raising of funds, or Liberty Loans,
necessary for the war with five campaigns between 1917 and 1919 with much excitement. People felt obliged to
buy bonds because they were afraid of being seen as unpatriotic. Eventually, they raised over $21 billion for the
war.

War Industries Board: Created in July 1917, the War Industries Board controlled raw materials, production,
prices, and labor relations. It also encouraged production by allocating raw materials, standardizing
manufactured products, instituting strict production and purchasing controls, and paying high prices to
businesses.

Bernard Baruch: Bernard Baruch was a Wall Street broker before being chosen by President Wilson in 1918
to head the War Industries Board. He was aided by a coalition of 100 businessman who advised him on fiscal
policy. This was part of Wilsons effort to take stronger action in the war effort.

Herbert Hoover, Food Administration: The Food Administration was created in 1917 as part of the war
effort, and a response to the poor harvests of 1916 and 1917. Headed by Herbert Hoover, it set prices for
agricultural goods high to encourage the production of agricultural products. It encouraged conservation with
such days as "meatless Tuesdays."

Espionage Act, 1917; Sedition Act, 1918: The Espionage Act of 1917 enacted fines and imprisonment for
false statements, inciting rebellion, or obstructing recruitment or the draft. Also papers which opposed the
government could be banned from the U.S. postal service. The Sedition Act of 1918 made illegal any criticism
of the government. It was poorly applied and used to trample civil liberties during the war hysteria as in the
example of the imprisonment of Eugene Debs.

Eugene V. Debs imprisoned: Eugene Debs was questionably imprisoned and was given a 10 year prison term
for giving a speech at a Socialists convention. The speech criticized American policy, involvement in the war
and for warning of the dangers of war and militarism. His imprisonment was an example of the reactionism and
hysteria of the period.

AEF: From 1917-1918, the AEF, or American Expeditionary Force, sent 2 million men to France under
General John J. Pershing. Most enlisted in search of action and adventure. The United States insisted the AEF
be independent of French and English armies because it was believed the U.S. would have a stronger bargaining
voice with a separate army.

selective service: As part of US mobilization for war, on May 18, 1917, the Selective Service Act was passed.
Men from 21-30 were to register for the military. At the time, the United States military was in poor disarray
and men were desperately needed. Made into a party-like atmosphere, 24 million registered, and 3 million were
actually drafted.

Eddie Rickenbacker: Rickenbacker was an American Aviator during World War I. During the war, he served
in the US Air Service as commander of the 94th Aero Pursuit Squadron. Shooting down 22 planes, he was
Americas leading pilot. He received the Distinguished Service Cross as well as the Congressional Medal of
Honor.

Postwar Aims
During the war, Wilson believed that United States involvement would translate into a new democratic world
order. In a fourteen-point speech to Congress, Wilson summed up United States war aims and its noble
objectives. November 1918 saw the war grind to a halt. The peace conference, held at Versailles in 1919, was
dominated by conflict among the "Big Four," and the resulting treaty proved a disaster. Ultimately, Wilson
failed in his most cherished objective, American membership in the League of Nations.

aims of Allies and US at peace conference: The main goal of Wilson and the American delegation was to
secure an international peacekeeping organization; a peace based on Wilsons Fourteen Points. The aims of the
other allies were not as liberal as that of the US. The enormous reparations settled on was representative of this
atmosphere.

Fourteen Points: The Fourteen Points were Wilsons proposals and beliefs for a post-war world order. They
dealt with the things that led to the first World War. For example, the first points called for open treaties,
freedom of the seas, arms reduction and free trade. The other points dealt with self determination and finally a
general association of nations, the League of Nations. During the conference of Versailles, Wilson pushed the
Fourteen points and was partly successful.

VersaillesConference and Treaty: The Big Four dominated the conference in 1919 that determined the
postwar world order. Wilson promoted his Fourteen Points while other Allies sought vengeance. The treaty
found Germany liable for the war and established new nations based on self determination. It also made German
colonies mandates under the League of Nations and included the controversial article X that kept the US out of
the League. These provisions set the stage for World War II.

US Versailles delegation: The delegation was headed by President Wilson himself, and included Secretary of
State Robert Lansing, General Tasker Bliss, Colonel Edward M. House, and attorney Henry White. Blatantly
missing from the delegation were any Republican leaders, so the conference became not an American but a
Democratic affair.

Big Four: Wilson, George, Clemenceau, Orlando: The Big Four were the dominating four at the Versailles
conference after World War I. President Woodrow Wilson represented the United States, Lloyd George for
Britain, Clemenceau for France, and Vittorio Orlando represented Italy. Each had a different prerogative and
differing interests.

League of Nations: The organization promoted by Wilson in his Fourteen Points was the League of Nations.
The US never joined because of controversy over Article X of the League Covenant that took away the United
Statess freedom of determination in world affairs. Implemented at the Versailles conference, it existed from
1920 to 1946, meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, until it was taken over by the United Nations. After WWI, it
divided German colonies into mandates of various League members.

collective security: Collective security was the dogma behind Article X of the League of Nations covenant of
the Versailles Treaty. It stated that every nation would serve to protect the territorial integrity and existing
governments of all other League nations. Hence, it was felt that this would ensure peace in the postwar world
order. The belief manifested inself in the international world court that was established and later in the
establishment of the United Nations after the demise of the League.

new nations, self determination: The idea of new nations and self determination was behind some of the
aspects of the Treaty of Versailles. Self determination meant every nationality getting their own country, so new
nations were created to allow this. Yugoslavia, Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia Poland, Lithuania, Latvia,
Estonia, and Finland were new nations which filled this definition. Even with the doctrine of self determination,
boundaries for new countries still left many misrepresented and under others control.

reparations: Reparations were implemented by European powers wanting vengeance against Germany.
Germany was forced to pay a huge sum, some $33 billion to the Allies for civilian and veterans costs. This huge
amount led to Germanys economic downfall, allowing for the rise of Hitler and World War II

mandate system: As a provision of the Versailles Treaty, Germanys colonies became mandates of the League
of Nations and delegated to France, Japan and Britain. The colonies became in actuality, those of the respective
countries, which was one of their purposes in fighting the war.
Article 10 of the Versailles Treaty: The most controversial of the League of Nations covenants, Article 10
said that all nations must protect the territorial and political integrity of other League members. The article
meant that if one nation was engaged in war, all others must become involved. This article was a large part of
why the US rejected the League.

Article 231 of the Versailles Treaty: By Article 231, Germany accepted total responsibility for her and her
allies for starting the First World War. Reparations payments were based on this claim. It led to hatred among
Germans and inadvertently contributed to conditions precipitating World War II.

Senate rejection, Senator Henry Cabot Lodge, reservations: Senate reservationists did not fully oppose the
League except for mainly one Article. They did not want the United States going to war defending another
League member without Congresss permission, as was stipulated by Article X. They wanted that article
removed before ratification.

"irreconcileables": Borah, Johnson, La Follette: The irreconcileables were those in Congress who felt the
United States should not be a member of the League under any circumstances. They opposed nearly all of the
provisions of the League of Nations and felt that the League obstructed the United States freedom of self
determination. Wilson attempted to overcome them and get ratification for the League but was unsuccessful in
his campaign. The United States never joined the League of Nations.

Impact of the War

The war affected the lives of millions of industrial workers, farmers, women, and blacks in important ways. For
all its horrors, World War I brought prosperity to the American economy. The wartime mood also gave a boost
to moral-reform movements. Still, the wartime spirit saw new racial violence and fresh antiradical hysteria. The
antiradical panic crested in the Red Scare of 1919-1920. Americans, tired of idealism, revealed their feelings in
the election of 1920 leaving Republican Warren Harding in the office.

Womens Roles in World War I: Prominent womens leaders like Carrie Chapman Catt and Anna Howard
Shaw saw war as an opportunity for womens rights. Thousands of American Women took vacated jobs and
became involved in industrial production as well as volunteer agencies at home and abroad. Supplied Americas
labor needs.

Harriet Stanton Blatch: A prominent womens leader who during the war offered a view on why women
should play a role in the wartime effort. In a variant of Wilsons theme of determining the postwar peace,
women should play a role so that after the war, they will have an opportunity to gain power and rights.

black migration to Northern cities: During the war, blacks left their traditional homes in the South and
migrated North for job opportunities in the war industries. About 500,000 blacks migrated North during the
war. Led to racial tension and violence in the North. This growing concentration of blacks led to the Harlem
Renaissance.

wartime manpower losses: During World War I, military casualties alone accounted for just over 8.5 million
deaths on both sides. Russia and Germany by far lost the most men at 1.7 million killed each. In comparison,
the United States lost only 126,000 men. In all, over 21 million men were injured during the war.

Congressional elections of 1918: In 1918, the Republicans gained an advantage in both the House of
Representatives as well as the Senate. Republicans no who had traditionally supported Wilsons plans in Europe
no longer supported him because of his cry to voters for a Democratic Congress.
Red Scare, Palmer raids: In 1919, there was a string of bombings. Among the victims was Attorney General
A. Mitchell Palmer. In November 1919, Palmer led raids and arrested around 700 suspected communists and
anarchists. Some were deported under the Alien Act. The Red Scare in the United States followed Communist
revolutions in Russia.

strikes: 1919, coal, steel, police: Post-war strikes occurred because of an increase in prices. The most famous
strike was in a Seattle shipyard. The government responded with troops to break up the strike. Chicago police
struck and were all fired. The United Mine Workers of America under John L. Lewis struck as well, fueling the
Red Scare.

inflation during the First World War: As Americans were sent to Europe to fight in World War I, a labor
shortage was created. With the shortage came higher wages which led to more purchases and in turn, inflation.
The rise in prices was regulated by the WIB which set prices.

election of 1920: candidates, issues: Senator Warren G. Harding was the Republican dark horse with running
mate Calvin Coolidge. They advocated a "return to normalcy" from the war environment. James Cox, and
Franklin D. Roosevelt were the Democratic nominees. They ran on a platform endorsing the League with
reservations.

brief depression, 1920-1921: A brief depression occurred from mid-1920 to the end of 1921. It was due to
decreased European purchases from American industries after the war. Prices fell and unemployment was over
12% at its height. It was followed by the improved economy of the 1920s until the Great Depression struck.