THE PRICE OF PROGRESS - wm.edu

THE PRICE OF PROGRESS

And so these men of Indostan, disputed loud and long,each in his own opinion, exceeding stiff and strong,Though each was partly in the right, and all were in the wrong!

So, oft in theologic wars, the disputants, I ween,tread on in utter ignorance, of what each other mean,and prate about the elephant, not one of them has seen!

Sandy.menaquale@gmail.com

Sandy.menaquale@gmail.com

THEPRICEOFPROGRESS• RailroadsImpactonAmericaandNativeAmericans• ThosewhoBuilttheRailroads– Immigrants• TheMenWhoProfitedfromtheRRs– THETITANS• TheLaborMovementthatbeganwiththeRRs• ManifestDestiny,Imperialism,TheoryofSocialDarwinism

• RECONSTRUCTION,REDEMPTION,andJIMCROW• SYSTEMICRACISMandACTIVISM

“Unusual”RESOURCESUSEDFORWEEKONE

• RailroadsinUSHistory(1830– 2010)4dvd series,wrl.org• NOTHINGLIKEITINTHEWORLD,TheMenWhoBuilttheRailroad,StephenAmbrose• KillersoftheFlowerMoon,TheOsageMurdersandtheBirthoftheFBI,DavidGrann• ”America’streatmentofthosewhomadeitGreat”AvaChin,WashPost 5/26/19• TheRailorad Journey,TheIndustrializationofTimeandSpaceinthe19th Century,Wolfgang

Schivelbusch• https://www.history.com/news/transcontinental-railroad-changed-america• https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/tcrr/

• https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/25/nyregion/westchester-opinion-why-study-history-and-whose-history.html

THE PRICE OF PROGRESS

TheGildedAgeLate1860’sto1896

https://virginia.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/amex30ga-soc-definingera/defining-the-era-the-gilded-age/

WORLDFAIRSandWORLDEXPOS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORFkbmHymdE

https://www.sethkaller.com/item/2138-24887-Bartholdi-Plans-for-Statue-of-Liberty-Right-Arm-and-Torch-Exhibit-at-1876-Philadelphia-Centennial-Exposition

THE2ND INDUSTRIALREVOLUTION

PROGRESSIVEERA1897- 1920

THE PRICE OF PROGRESS

https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/ip/108646.htm#:~:text=The%20Progressive%20movement%20began%20with,work%20to%20improve%20U.S.%20society.&text=These%20territories%20captured%20in%20the,varied%20response%20toward%20U.S.%20occupation.

REDEMPTION&JimCrowERA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SG4MSypTHy8

1870to1950orBEYOND???https://www.ferris.edu/htmls/news/jimcrow/origins.htm

THE PRICE OF PROGRESS

• CensusMandatedbyArtI,Sec2oftheConstitution

1790– 4million1810– 7million1830–12.5million1860– 31million1870- 38million

USAdoublesinsizebetween1880and1920addingover50millionpeople

GrowthinPerspectiveYear• 1790• 1800• 1830• 1870• 1880• 1900• 1910• 1920

Population• 4million• 5.3million• 12.8million• 38.5million• 50.2million• 76million• 92million• 106million

MORETHAN67MILLIONMOREPEOPLEINUSAIN50YEARS

WHYSoMuchGrowth?

• BeginningsofFederalRegulationsonImmigration

• HomesteadActof1862• ImmigrationWaves• IndustrialRevolution

HOMESTEAD ACT OF 1862https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/homestead-act#:~:text=The%201862%20Homestead%20Act%20accelerated,free%20acres%20of%20federal%20land.

https://www.peoplesworld.org/article/today-in-labor-history-homestead-act-signed-for-good-and-bad/

Eventhoughoddswereagainstthem,peoplefromallwalksoflifesettledintheGreatPlains.Families,singlemen,singlewomen,formerslaves,immigrantsallqualifiedfor160acres!

HomesteadAct,signedbyA.Lincoln onMay20,1862,butnotimmediatelyenacted.Lincolnsignedthe EmancipationProclamation,freeingtheslavesonthatvery sameday,the HomesteadAct of1862 was enacted.

https://teachingamericanhistory.org/blog/homestead-act/

RAIRAILROADS

NATIVE AMERICANS

MANIFEST DESTINY

ROBBER BARONS

LAND GRANTS

INNOVATIONSINVENTIONS

IMMIGRATION

1876 PRESIDENTIAL

ELECTION

STOCK MARKET

OnlyfittingthatLincolnwouldendhispoliticallifethewayhebeganit– bytrain• https://www.up.com/heritage/history/lincoln/index.htm

RailroadsatthetimeofLincoln’sDeath

• Cobbledtogetherpiecemealbylocalentrepreneursandenterprisingtowns• Tendifferentcarrierstoconnectthefuneralroute,withnamesnolongerrelevantlikeNorthernCentral,Camden,Amboy,Columbus,Indianapolis,Lafayette,andMichiganCity

• Traincarshadtobeferriedacrosstheriversbecauserailroadsdidn’thavetheresourcestobuildbridges

• DifferingtracksizesinterferedwithlongdistanceshippingacrosstheUSA• BestqualityandconsistencycamefromEngland,butnotallRRcompanieswerewillingto“splurge.”

• 22,000milesoftrackintheNorth,9500milesoftrackintheSouth,butmostdestroyedduringtheCivilWar.

• MinimalRRtrackwestoftheMississippiRiver