The Gilded Age Flashcards

1235650152	Gilded Age	A period of intense change that transformed the United States from a rural nation to a modern industrial society
1235650153	Industrialization	process of social and economic change where a human group is transformed from a pre-industrial society to an industrial one
1235650154	Urbanization	where cities and societies become more urban
1235650155	Immigration	foreign citizens leaving their homeland to live and work in a different country
1235650156	Robber Barons	Businessmen and bankers who dominated the industries
1235650157	Rural	large and isolated areas of a country, often with low populations
1235650158	Republicans	Keep economic growth going with industry, railroads, mines and fast growing cities.
1235650159	Democrats	Represented business interests but wanted to reduce tariffs, supported banking and railroad goals, and opposed imperialism and US overseas expansion.
1235650160	Laissez-faire	the policy that is based on the idea that governments and the law should not interfere with business, finance, or the working conditions
1235650161	Tariffs	Taxes imposed by a government on imported goods
1235650162	Political Machines	An organization that controls enough votes to maintain political and administrative control of its community. Helped provide service to rapidly growing cities that are poorly organized.
1235650163	Social Darwinism	Theory that maintained that societies evolved by a natural process through which the most fit members survived and demonstrated by wealth, property and social status.
1235650164	Trusts	Big companies that dominated the economic scene
1235650165	Melting Pot	A place where immigrants of different cultures or races form an integrated society
1235650166	Birds of Passage	Immigrants who would enter America and would work until they made enough money to return home and buy a piece of land
1235650167	Americanization Movement	A system designed to assimilate immigrants into America by educating them in speech, ideals, traditions, and ways of life.
1235650168	Tenements	A large old building which is divided into a number of individual flats
1235650169	Mechanization	A process, they cause it to be done by a machine or machines, when it was previously done by people
1235650170	Labor Unions	An organization that represents the rights and interests of workers to their employers, for example in order to improve working conditions or wages.
1235650171	American Dream	The opportunity and freedom for all citizens to achieve their goals and become rich and famous if only they work hard enough.
1235650172	Assimilation	The process whereby a minority group gradually adopts the customs and attitudes of the host culture
1235650173	Progressive Era	Where reformers were committed to improving the conditions in American life by protecting the social welfare, promoting moral improvement, creating economic reform, and fostering efficiency.
1235650174	Progressives	People who favored change in order to improve social welfare, moral standards, economic means, and efficiency for American citizens
1235650175	Direct Primary	A system of voting that allowed citizens to hold elections to choose candidates from each party to run for office in general elections
1235650176	Recall	A process where voters could remove an elected official before his/her term expired if enough voters signed a petition to demand this special election
1235650177	Direct Initiative	A lawmaking change that allows citizens to propose and pass a law directly without involving the state legislature if enough voters sign a petition to place the proposal on a ballot
1235650178	Square Deal	A term used to describe various progressive reforms sponsored by the Roosevelt administration that included trust-busting, mediation, regulating food and drugs, and conservation of natural resources.
1235650179	Bull Moose Party	A name given to the Progressive political party, formed to support Theodore Roosevelt's candidacy for the presidency
1235650180	Socialists	Members who belonged to the Socialist Party who believed in the equal distribution of the wealth, very popular among the working class
1235650181	New Freedom	Used to describe President Wilson's progressive policy in attacking large concentrations of power to give greater freedom to average citizens. This policy included passing anti-trust measures, a new tax system, and establishing a federal reserve