In this assignment this paper will recognize the major turning points in American history starting with the Progressive Era and going through the Great Depression. It will analyze how some historical events shape Americans current society, politics, economy, and culture. Another topic this paper discusses is how women and minorities have earned the right to vote in certain states. As well as describing pieces of legislation in the Roosevelt-Taft-Wilson progressive era years that has influenced the conduct of business to this day and the influences that have happened today. Also, this paper explains the role that the Spanish American War played in America's development of an Empire. Finally, explaining the boom and the bust of roaring twenties followed by the Great Depression affected by the federal government’s involvement in the national economy.
From the Progressive Era through the Great Depression, the two major historical points were the Women’s Right Movement and the Stock Market Crash. The Women’s Right Movement was started to show that women were indeed part of nations move to reform the country. One of the most important issues at that time were a woman’s right to vote. Women were no longer at “home”, they were working, being educated and participating in politics. Between 1890 and 1913 two groups were founded to highlight women’s suffrage and to push for reforms including allowing women to vote. Through the hard work and effort of the National American Woman Suffrage Association and the National Women’s Party women achieved the right to vote in 1920 when the Nineteenth Amendment was passed. The current impact of the women’s suffrage movement in society today is the fair and equal treatment of women, having and sustaining the right to vote, and entering into politics. Although more women today are using the rights that were gained in the 1900’s there is still a long way to go. Issues such as equal pay, “the glass ceiling”, and political involvement are still being fought for. Women today are at least half of the work force while some are also running households. The next major historical turning point was The Great Depression. The Great Depression took place during the years 1929 to 1933 over 9,000 banks closed and business investments were down to half. The gross national product (GNP) dropped down nearly to half as well. Unemployment rates went from 3.2 percent to nearly 25 percent in 1933; some stated were higher than the national average. This changed the United States in so many ways. Approximately the same time, there was a huge drought throughout many states in the Great Plains and westerly creating what was called the Dust Bowl. Farms were destroyed and food was scarce. Farmers had to leave what were their homes and their livelihoods to go elsewhere and try to make a living. At the same time, people lost fortunes in the crash of the stock market. Banks went under and people lost all their life savings. For the first time in America, there was unprecedented poverty and despair across the country.
As for the frontier states in the West, women worked side by side along with men in numerous ways. When pioneers headed west, they took upon themselves the task of forging new ground mostly by taking raw, unworked land and turning it into farms. This required women to “get dirty” right along with men. They did an extreme amount of physical labor and this, in some ways, made them seem more like equals. In the eastern and southern states, women were not usually engaged in physically demanding work. They rarely worked, but if they did, they did “women’s work” and did jobs such as seamstress, teachers, or perhaps nurses. They were considered as not quite as smart and not quite as able to make decisions. Women were supposed to be, for the most part, protected and taken care of. They were not considered to be able to be informed or intelligent enough to make such a major decision as voting.
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The Progressive Era was a period of social activism and political reform in the United States, that flourished from the 1890s to the 1920s.[1] One main goal of the Progressive movement was purification of government, as Progressives tried to eliminate corruption by exposing and undercutting political machines and bosses. Many (but not all) Progressives supported prohibition in order to destroy the political power of local bosses based in saloons.[2] At the same time, women's suffrage was promoted…
Century American History - 11 Instructor: Stuart Collins In the Progressive Era period that it was called the Social Activism, the reform of the political party in the 1890’s and to the 1920’s. The goals were to make the Progressive movement to refine the government. They have tried to remove the dishonest politicians. The support was from the Progressives to prevent the power in the local bosses that own the saloons. The women’s suffrage that it did endorse…
Progressive Era Progressivism is the study of politics, justice, liberty, property, rights, and laws. Progressivism was not just a particular movement, there were numerous issues addressed. Just to name a few of what the social movements were: labor, environmentalism and women rights. The progressive era problems were generated because of the new urban-industrial order. The massive social changes were too much and the cities became crowded into slums. They had mostly immigrants from…
Munroe Activists within the Progressive Era were severely effective, mirroring aspects of the United States that desperately needed reclamation. The Progressive Era reformers are still, and have been, epitomes to activists of other events such as Martin Luther King, Jr., who looked at Booker T. Washington as an example of an African American who has changed society. These reformers reflect onto political, social, and economic progressivism. Within the Progressive Era, there were many corruptions…
Taylor Garrant History November 11, 2013 Progressive Era From 1865 to 1900, America went from an Agrarian society to an industrial economy. As America was advancing, many people were taken advantage of by big business. The two groups of people who suffered most at the hands of big business were farmers and laborers. Both groups, farmers and laborers, suffered significantly, because of harsh working conditions, unfair pay, and corrupt practices. The Populist Party, which was the movement to have more political power for…
areas , because of the tales of work needed but where only after exposed to the actual truth of working as a child labor in harsh and unfair conditions . Only we have the abilities to ensure a better future for these young children , this the progressive era and we need to move forward and be realistic to what is actually going on in our…
The Effect of Immigration on the Progressive Era. The period of time between 1870 and 1919 marked the Progressive Era, an age of reform. During this period, there was a massive influx of immigrants to the United States. During a roughly fifty years following the 1860s, the number of cities/locations with a population of over fifty thousand residents grew from 16 to 109. This rapid increase in inhabitants caused a unique problem with the governing of this populations. Due to the fact that many villages in America…
Unit 2 Test [Industrialization through Progressive Era] Why did people in America migrate from the rural areas to urban areas? Mechanized farming machines created less need of people to work on the farms, so less pay and demand for workers. People then moved to the city in search of high wages and jobs. What was Upton Sinclair’s book, The Jungle, about? The book exposed unsanitary conditions of The Meat packing industry in Chicago. The novel depicted the poor quality of food preparation…
Antonio Nieto Mario Maestas Katie Balliett October 26, 2014 Period 6 Progressive Era Research Project The 16th Amendment The U.S. Congress controls this reform. The 16th amendment gives the government authority to collect and levy income taxes. This reform was ratified to be a graduated income tax method. This meaning that instead of the government asking for a set amount from each citizen, they ask for a set percentage. With this method, lower class population pays less tax than high…
The popularity of the Progressive Era grew with the desire to improve life in the Industrial Era by changing the government and their actions. The population wanted to limit the powers of big business and improve democracy for the public. The middle classed citizens, as well as the poor joined in on this cause seeing the opportunities that can arise from progressivism. There were many changes that came with the movement such as better schools, juvenile courts, system of parole and changes that…