Unit 5:: Political and Business Reform: Populists and Progressives

The years between 1877 and 1920 generally receive little recognition from most Americans. Perhaps this is because those years are characterized by numerous attempts at political reform that were either unsuccessful or simply mundane. This span of time is divided into three eras: Reconstruction, the Gilded Age, and the Progressive Era. Both reform and the circumstances that encouraged it were present during all these periods. All were characterized by rapid change in the United States, which occurred as the result of increasing industrialization, immigration, urbanization, and territorial expansion. By 1920 this process had transformed the United States from a second-rate regional power into a world-class imperial power that could match its rivals in Europe. This exceptional growth was not without its pains, which is why reform became such an important topic. America’s poor lived in terrible conditions, working menial jobs for low wages. In addition, economic crises plagued the nation, with depressions occurring in both 1873 and 1893. Political corruption was also a problem, with big businesses buying the compliance of American legislators and local party leaders keeping themselves in power using party machines that dispensed government jobs and threats to gain support.