Benjamin Harrison: 23^rd president

In the 1888 election, Harrison was the winner in the Electoral College. He supported the McKinley Tariff which imposed a tariff on imports to help American business but instead increased prices. Harrison almost exhausted the U.S. Treasury due to his Sherman Silver Purchase Act which required silver to be used in federal coins. He helped conserve forest reserves and expand the canal spanning Central America. The Sherman Antitrust Act was the first bill to attempt to limit corporations’ power. Internationally, Harrison was very active. He attempted to annex Hawaii and continued to expand and modernize the navy. He almost went to war with Chile due to an assault on American sailors. Harrison believed in trade and expanded it.

Grover Cleveland was the 22^nd and 24^th President of the United States. He was a strong advocate of laissesz faire, which was that the government should not get involved in the market. Military pensions were vetoed by the thousands by Cleveland during his presidency. Cleveland wanted to have lower tariffs because he believed it would weaken monopolies. Many acts were passed during Cleveland’s term, although he did not always fully back them up. The Dawes Act was made to help control the Indians. The Interstate Commerce Act was passed to restrict railroads. 81 million acres of public land in the West was put aside that had been unacceptably obtained by railroads or cattle barons. Cleveland was defeated in the Election of 1888 by Benjamin Harrison to become the 23^rd President of the United States.

Chester Arthur was the 21^st president who concentrated on domestic affairs. He supported the Pendleton Act which tried to eliminate patronage by requiring exams for government offices and ensured all promotions would be based on merit not connections.  He went against his Republican Party ideals by pushing for tariff reductions for the middle-class. He also supported the Chinese Exclusion Act which banned Chinese immigration for ten years. Arthur refurbished the White House. Arthur’s political policies were part of a period of transition in America.  Women were taking a more active role in society. He was willing to embrace reform in America. After the Civil War and the Reconstruction Era America needed to be reunified and Arthur helped that to happen.

 

The Gilded Age was a time of change in the United States. Women began to fight for rights and reform, attempting to ban alcohol. The immigration boom lead to different religions becoming dominant and to

the formation of new religions. Realism was the new literature movement, focusing on the motives of people and their actions instead of the connection with nature. Education became more important as school atten

dance became mandatory and colleges began to allow both genders and different races to attend school. Many transformations took place between 1870 and 1898.

Urbanization of the Gilded Age

Community High School District 117

President’s who tried to help

AP U.S. History

Volume 1, Issue 1

Special points of interest:

· New immigrants swarm American cities.

· Women taking control.

· Prohibition:: the fight against alcohol.

· The age of realism.