Progressive Roots

● When the 1900's dawned, there were 76 million Americans. 1 out of 7 were foreign-born.
○ These people, ethnically and racially diverse, were brought together in a large reform movement
that swept through the country
● A new reform movement immediately began, led by "Progressives". Their goals were to stop monopolies,
corruption, inefficiency, and social injustice.
○ The method of the progressives was to strengthen the state—to give more powers to the
government. Their overarching goal was to use the government "as an agency of human welfare."
● The roots of Progressivism began with the Greenback Party (1870's) and the Populist Party (1890's). A
modern industrial society seemed to call for more government action and to take a step back from pure,
laissez-faire capitalism.
● Writers used the power of the pen to make their progressive points.
○ Henry Demarest Lloyd wrote Wealth Against Commonwealth (1894) which struck at the Standard
Oil Company.
○ Thorstein Veblen wrote The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899) criticizing people who made
money seemingly for money's sake. He spoke of "predatory wealth" and "conspicuous
consumption."
○ Jacob Riis wrote How the Other Half Lives (1890) about the lives of the poor. He wanted to divert
attention from America's infatuation with how the rich live and show the life of squalor in the New
York slums. This book would influence Teddy Roosevelt, a future New York police commissioner.
○ Theodore Dreiser made his points through his realist fiction. In The Financier (1912) and The
Titan (1914) he criticized promoters and profiteers.
● Other causes gained steam during the Progressive era.
○ Socialists, influenced by strong European governments, called for more government action in the
U.S. and started gaining votes in the ballot box.
○ Advocates of the "social gospel" (Christian charity) called for helping the poor.
○ Universities took an economic perspective on the issue
○ Female suffragists also called for social justice, as well as the right to vote. They were led by Jane
Addams and Lillian Wald.

Raking Muck with the Muckrakers

● Around 1902, a new group of social critics emerged—the muckrakers. They typically exposed what they
saw as corruption or injustice in writings. Favorite outlets for the muckrakers were liberal, reform-minded
magazines like McClure's, Collier's, Cosmopolitan, and Everybody's.
○ They were called "muckrakers" first by Teddy Roosevelt. It was a derogatory term, him being
unimpressed with their tendency to focus on the negatives and "rake through the muck" of society.
● The muckrakers were very active and prolific…
○ Lincoln Steffens wrote "The Shame of the Cities" (1902) which exposed city corruption in cahoots
with big business.
○ Ida Tarbell wrote an exposé in McClure's that laid bare the ruthless business tactics of John D.
Rockefeller and the Standard Oil Company. Some thought she was just out for revenge because
her father's business had been ruined by Rockefeller. But, all of her facts checked out.
○ Thomas Lawson exposed the practices of stock market speculators in "Frenzied Finance"
(1905-06), published in Everybody's. (He'd made $50 million himself playing the market.)
○ David Phillips wrote "The Treason of the Senate" (1906) in Cosmopolitan. He said that 75 of the
90 U.S. senators represented big businesses rather than the people. He backed up his charges
with enough evidence to also impress Teddy Roosevelt.
○ John Spargo wrote The Bitter Cry of the Children (1906) exposing, and critical of, child labor.
 ○ Ray Stannard Baker wrote Following the Color Line (1908) about the still-sorry state of life for
Southern blacks.
○ Dr. Harvey Wiley criticized patent medicines which were largely unregulated, habit-forming, and
normally did more bad than good. He and his "Poison Squad" used themselves as guinea pigs for
experiments.
● Muckrakers were loud about the ills, but didn't offer cures. To the muckrakers, the cure for societal ills was
democracy. They had no faith in politicians leading the charge, but wanted to get the story out to the
public. Muckrakers believed that the public conscience would eventually remedy the problems.

Political Progressivism

● The progressives generally came from the middle class. They felt somehow sandwiched between the big
business trusts and tycoons on the top and the immigrant, working class on the bottom.
● Progressives pushed for a variety of political reforms to help their cause. They favored and generally got
the following accomplished:
○ The initiative where voters could initiate laws, rather than waiting and hoping a legislator might do
it.
○ The referendum where voters could vote proposed bills into law, circumventing unresponsive
legislators altogether.
○ The recall where voters could remove elected officials rather than waiting for his term to expire.
The thought was, "We voted them in, we can vote them out."
○ The secret ballot, called the Australian ballot, to help get a true vote and avoid intimidation at the
polls.
○ The direct election of senators by the people. At the time, U.S. senators were chosen by state
legislators, not the people. This became reality in 1913, with the 17th Amendment.
■ Faced some opposition at first
○ And female suffrage. This would have to wait a bit longer (until 1920).
■ Some liberal states in the west granted women the right to vote

Progressivism in the Cities and States

● Progressivism really got its start and took off on a more local level rather than national.
○ Cities were fed up by the political machine-ran governments
● Galveston, TX successfully used the city-manager system (1901). The idea was to use professional
people trained in their field of city management, rather than using "friends" of a corrupt mayor or city boss.
The result was much greater efficiency and other cities took note of Galveston.
● Local Progressives cracked down on "slumlords," rampant prostitution, and juvenile delinquency.
○ Issues ignored in “red light districts” by corrupt police
● Reformers looked to English and German systems as an example
○ How to keep water clean, light their streets, and run their trolley cars
○ Public ownership of utilities → governments wanted to stop the corrupt practice of buying from
franchises
● Eventually progressivism crawled up to the state level
● Wisconsin was the Progressive leader for states. Led by Gov. Robert "Fighting Bob" LaFollette (became
governor in 1901) Wisconsin was able to grab power back from the big businesses (railroad and lumber)
and return it to the people.
○ Made a plan for regulating public utilities
● Other states followed suit and sought to regulate rialroads and trusts and formed public utility comissions
to do this
○ California was a leader in reforms. Led by Hiram Johnson (1910), prosecuted grafters and took
away a lot of the power of the SPR → went on to form his own political machine
 ○ Charles Evans Hughes was governor of New York in (1906). Gained fame by investigating gas
and insurance companies and the coal trust.

Progressive Women

● Women were an indispensable catalyst in the Progressive army. They couldn’t vote or hold political office,
but were active none-the-less.
○ They were exposed to these issues and given a side door to work through via settlement houses
and women’s clubs
■ Women’s clubs used to be focused on literature, but shifted to focus on reform movements
around (1904)
● It was decided that there were separate spheres for men and women → women were expected to be in
the house and taking care of the family
○ Women felt reform was an extension of their duties in the house → that is why they focused mainly
on issues that related to that
■ Child labor, pensions for mothers with dependent children, temperance, and food regulation
● Female activists used organizations as wedges into the federal bureaucracy
○ National Consumers League (1899)
○ Women’s Trade Union League (1903)
○ Children’s Bureau (1912)
○ Women’s Bureau (1920)
● Women also advocated for worker’s rights. Florence Kelley, a former resident of the Hull House, became
the State of Illinois’s first factory inspector and in 1899 she took control of the National Consumers
League
● Court decisions impacted women.
○ The Supreme Court case of Muller v. Oregon (1908) said that laws protecting female workers
were indeed constitutional. The case was successfully argued by attorney Louis Brandeis saying
women's weaker bodies suffered harmful effects in factory work.
■ This victory, however, came with a cost to women. Brandeis' own argument of weaker
female bodies would later be used to keep women out of certain "male" jobs.
○ A loss occurred in the case of Lochner v. New York (1905). In the case, the Supreme Court struck
down a 10-hour workday for bakers.
■ It was not upheld until (1917)
● Women reformers gained speed after the Triangle Shirtwaist Company burnt down in 1911, trapping and
killing 146 mostly young, women workers. The tragedy gained much attention and gave the women
momentum.
○ The public outcry prompted many states to pass laws regulating hours and conditions in such
"sweatshops" and to pass workers' compensation laws (1917)
● Alcohol had long been under fire by women. During the Progressive era, temperance would reach its
peak.
○ Were a place where all sorts hung out → lots of prostitution and corruption there, by 1900, cities
had one saloon for every 200 people
○ Francis Willard, founder of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) got 1 million
women to join the cause against alcohol. The WCTU was joined by the Anti-Saloon League. They
were well-organized and well-financed.
○ Many states and counties went "dry." In 1914, 1/2 of Americans lived in dry areas.
○ The movement culminated in 1919 with the 18th Amendment (AKA Prohibition) that banned
alcohol's sale, consumption, and possession.
TR’s Square Deal for Labor

● President Roosevelt had been moved by muckrakers and the Progressives' ideals. He made and Square
Deal and pursued the "three C's": (1) control of the corporations, (2) consumer protection, and (3)
conservation of natural resources.
● A strike took place in 1902 at the anthracite coal mines of Pennsylvania. The workers (140,000, most
illiterate immigrants) called for a 20% pay increase and a reduction of work hours from 10 to 9 hours.
○ The coal bosses refused to negotiate with them, thinking they had a high and mighty attitude
○ Coal supplies dwindled and the nation felt the effects of the coal shortage so TR called in strike
workers to the White House. Roosevelt was not impressed with the coal mine leaders.
○ Roosevelt finally threatened to use federal troops to operate the mines. At this threat, the owners
agreed to go to arbitration. The workers were given a 10% increase and the 9 hour day. The
workers' union, however, was not officially recognized for bargaining.
● Roosevelt called on Congress to form the Dept. of Commerce and Labor, which it did (1903). The
department split in half ten years later.
○ The Bureau of Corporations would investigate interstate trade and become important for breaking
up monopolies during the "trust-busting" days.

TR Corrals the Corporations

● The Interstate Commerce Commission (1887) had been designed to regulate railroads but it was proving
to be ineffective. Therefore, it was decided that more needed to be done.
○ Congress passed the Elkins Act in 1903. It banned and prosecuted rebates awarded by
railroaders.
○ The Hepburn Act placed restrictions on free passes handed out by railroads (usually to the press
to ensure good reports).
● Teddy Roosevelt nurtured the reputation of a trust buster. TR concluded, however that there were "good
trusts" and there were "bad trusts." The bad trusts had to go.
○ TR's most noteworthy target was the Northern Securities Company (1902) run by J.P. Morgan
and James Hill.
■ TR busted up Northern Securities (his decision was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1904).
Busting J.P. Morgan's outfit angered Wall Street but this high-profile bust furthered TR's
trust buster image.
○ In all, Roosevelt attacked some 40 trusts, including busting the beef, sugar, fertilizer, and harvester
trusts
○ Despite his reputation as a trust buster, TR allowed the "good trusts" to survive. He believed his
actions against the bad trusts would prevent the good ones from going astray.
○ William Howard Taft, who succeeded Roosevelt, would actually be more of a trust buster than TR.
Taft actually busted more trusts than TR.
■ Another example occurred over the U.S. Steel Company. U.S. Steel wanted to acquire the
Tennessee Coal and Iron Company. TR had said that the move of this good trust would be
okay, but Taft felt otherwise. Roosevelt was very angry over Taft's reversal of his position.

Caring for the Consumer

● American meat was found to be tainted, and foreign markets no longer wanted to take it and threatened to
throw out the canned goods with botulism
● Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle about the meatpacking industry's horrible conditions. Sinclair's goal was
to reveal the plight of the workers. But, the real effect was to gross out America and initiate action in
Congress.
 ○ TR has an investigation team look into the meat packing factories → they found evidence of the
horror described in the book
○ His book motivated Congress to pass the Meat Inspection Act (1906). Henceforth meat and meat
packing companies would be inspected
■ Large companies saw this as a way to weed out their smaller enemies
○ The Pure Food and Drug Act (1906) was also passed. Its goal was to ensure proper labeling of
food and [Link] to prevent tampering.

Earth Control

● Americans had long considered their natural resources inexhaustible. By about 1900, they were realizing
this was not true and that conservation was needed. Acts of Congress began preserving the land…
○ The first conservation act was the Desert Land Act (1877). It sold desert land at a cheap rate on
the promise the land would be irrigated.
○ The Forest Reserve Act (1891) gave the president permission to set aside land as parks and
reserves. Millions of acres of old-growth forests were preserved under this authority.
○ The Carey Act (1894) gave federal land to the states, again on the promise of irrigation.
● Teddy Roosevelt's presidency truly started a new era in conservation. Roosevelt was a consummate
outdoorsman, was very concerned about the nation's timber and mineral depletion, and started the
conservation movement with action.
○ Others helped Roosevelt in the push to conserve, notably conservationist and Division of Forest
head Gifford Pinchot
○ TR got the Newlands Act (1902) to allowed the government to use money collected from the sale
of federal lands to begin massive irrigation projects out West. The Roosevelt Dam (on Arizona's
Salt River (1911)) and dozens of other western dams created reservoirs to water, and bring life to
the arid land.
○ TR wanted to save to the trees. By 1900, only 1/4 of the nation's once-vast virgin trees still stood.
■ Roosevelt set aside 125 million acres of forest land (3 times the acreage of his 3
predecessors). Large quantities of land were also set aside for coal and water reserves.
Purely as an example, he had no White House Christmas tree in 1902.
● The public shared TR's concern and passion for nature.
○ Jack London's outdoorsy novels became popular, such as The Call of the Wild about Alaska's
Klondike gold rush.
○ Outdoorsy organizations emerged, such as the Boy Scouts of America and the Sierra Club
(1892) (whose goal was/is conservation) and the Massachusetts Audubon Society to protect
birds from fancy hats (later became national)
● The Hetch Hetchy Valley of Yosemite National Park exposed a philosophical rupture among the
conservationists.
○ Hetch Hetchy was a beautiful Gorge that John Muir (naturalist) and the Sierra Club wanted to
save. San Francisco wanted to dam it up for the city's water supply. In this case, TR sided with the
city.
■ Notably, TR and Muir were good friends, but TR was a pragmatist—always seeking a
practical solution over an idealized solution.
■ The division was clearly shown. The question asked, "Should land be simply set aside and
untouched forever?" as John Muir advocated. Or, "Should the land be wisely managed for
man's benefit?", as Teddy Roosevelt advocated.
■ There needed to be control between
○ The federal government gave San Francisco the okay to dam up the valley. Roosevelt's policy of
"multiple-use resource management" was set. The policy tried to use the land for recreation,
 reservoirs (for drinking, irrigating, water recreation), saw-then-replant logging, and summer stock
grazing.
● Larger companies were able to take advantage of new policies

The “Roosevelt Panic” of 1907

● Theodore Roosevelt was loved by the people, witnessed by the "Teddy" bear. Conservatives thought of
him as unpredictable due to his Progressive ways they meddled the government into businesses.
○ After winning his election in 1904, he announced he would not seek a third term. This cut his power
a bit since everyone then knew he'd be out in four years.
● The economy took a sudden and sharp downturn in 1907. Wall Street was pounded, banks were run,
suicides went up, and there were many Wall Street "speculators" were indicted on sneaky dealings.
○ As with any economic downtown, the president was blamed, justly or not. Conservatives,
especially, charged that Roosevelt's meddling in business had fouled up the cogs of the economy.
They called it the "Roosevelt Panic."
○ The Panic did reveal the need for a more elastic currency supply. In other words, the banks needed
reserves to release into circulation if times got tough.
■ Congress passed the Aldrich-Vreeland Act (1908) authorizing national banks to release
money into circulation.
■ This law/action paved the way for the monumental Federal Reserve Act (1913).

The Rough Rider Thunders Out

● In 1908, TR was still very popular. He used his popularity to endorse a candidate that had similar policies
as himself—William Howard Taft.
○ Taft was a big fellow and very likable. The old saying was that "everybody loves a fat man" and in
Taft's case the saying seemed to fit.
○ The Democrats put forth William Jennings Bryan yet again. Bryan also painted himself as a
Progressive.
○ Riding on TR's popularity, Taft won the election easily, 321 to 162 in the electoral.
■ As a sign-of-the-times Socialist Party candidate Eugene Debs (of Pullman Strike fame)
garnered a surprising 420,000 votes.
● After the election, TR went to Africa on a hunting safari. His exploits were much followed and he returned
as energetic as ever, still only 51 years old.
○ TR's legacy was to begin to tame unbridled capitalism. He wasn't an enemy of business, but
brought it under control. He sought the middle-ground in between the "me alone" idea of pure
capitalism and the "father knows best" ideas of a government that controls people's lives.
○ Other parts of his legacy include: (1) increasing the power of the presidency, (2) he initiated
reforms, and (3) he showed that the U.S. was a world power and thus held great responsibilities.

Taft: A Round Peg in a Square Hole

● At first, Taft seemed just fine. He was likable, seemed capable, and had a solid background in experience.
● Tricky problems soon bogged him down. TR had been able to work through problems due to his
force-of-personality and political instincts.
○ Taft took a hands-off approach toward Congress which did not serve him well.
○ He was a mild progressive only, more inclined toward the status quo than reform.
○ He did not judge the public opinion very well
The Dollar Goes Abroad as a Diplomat

● President Taft encouraged a policy called "Dollar Diplomacy" where Americans invested in foreign
countries to gain power.
○ Wall Street was urged to invest in strategic areas, especially the Far East and Latin America.
○ The Dollar Diplomacy policy would thus strengthen the U.S. and make money at the same time.
Whereas TR had used the in-your-face Big Stick policy, Taft used the sneakier Dollar Diplomacy
policy.
● A Dollar Diplomacy mishap occurred in China's Manchuria region.
○ Taft wanted to buy Manchuria's railroads from Russia and Japan, then turn them over to the
Chinese. This would keep the Open Door policy open, and strengthen the U.S.'s position in China.
○ Russian and Japan blocked Sec. of State Philander Knox's deal and Taft suffered a Dollar
Diplomacy black eye.
● Latin America was a busy spot for the Dollar Diplomacy policy. The Monroe Doctrine forbade Europe from
intervening, so the U.S. did.
○ The U.S. invested heavily in Honduras and Haiti, thinking they may become trouble spots.
○ Ordering Europe to stay away from Latin America, and investing heavily there, meant the U.S. now
had a vested interest and shouldered responsibility there.
■ Several flare-ups required the U.S. to intervene militarily including Cuba, Honduras, the
Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua (for 13 years).

Taft the Trustbuster

● Taft was more of a trust buster than Roosevelt; Taft brought 90 lawsuits against trusts during his 4 years in
office
● Perhaps his most noteworthy bust was the Standard Oil Company. The Supreme Court ordered in broken
into smaller companies in 1911.
● The U.S. Steel Company was under fire from Taft, even though Roosevelt had agreed to let the company
survive as one of his "good trusts." When Taft sought to break it up, Roosevelt was furious at his
successor's actions.

Taft Splits the Republican Party

● Two main issues split the Republican party: (1) the tariff and (2) conservation of lands.
● On the tariff, old-school Republicans were high-tariff; New/Progressive Republicans were low tariff.
○ Taft, as the mild Progressive, had promised to lower the tariff. As president, he sought to do just
that, if only a small reduction.
○ Sen. Nelson Aldrich added many increases to the bill while it was in the Senate. When passed
and signed by Taft, the Payne-Aldrich Bill actually broke his campaign promise and angered
many.
■ Pres. Taft even unwisely named it "the best bill that the Republican party ever passed."
○ In actuality, the Payne-Aldrich Bill split the Republican party.
● On conservation, old-school Republicans favored using or developing the lands for business;
new/Progressive Republicans favored conservation of lands.
○ Taft did set up the Bureau of Mines to manage mineral resources. This was a "Progessive-ish"
move and likely a popular one.
○ However, Taft's involvement in the Ballinger-Pinchot quarrel (1910) was unpopular.
■ Sec. of Interior Richard Ballinger said that public lands in Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska
would be open for development.
■ Chief of Forestry Gifford Pinchot was critical of the decision. Apparently siding with
Ballinger, Taft fired Pinchot—an unpopular move.
 ● The Republican party split became apparent in the 1910 Congress election.
○ In the election, the old-school Republicans and new/Progressive Republicans split the vote, thus
the Democrats won heavily in the House of Rep's.
○ Also, Socialist Eugene Berger of Milwaukee won a seat in Congress—again, showing the
movement toward Socialism.

The Taft-Roosevelt Rupture

● The Republican split turned from differing opinions to different parties. The National Progressive
Republican League began in 1911. Sen. Robert La Follette ("Fighting Bob" of Wisconsin) seemed destined
to become their candidate.
● Teddy Roosevelt was so upset about Taft's policies that TR dropped hints that he'd be interested in
running again for president.
○ He finally said, "My hat is in the ring!" arguing that he hadn't wanted three consecutive terms as
president.
○ La Follette was brushed aside and Roosevelt was named as the Progressive Republican.
● The Taft-Roosevelt showdown came in June of 1912 at the Republican convention. Both men vied for the
Republican nomination.
○ As the sitting president, Taft was nominated as the Republican candidate for 1912.
○ Roosevelt wasn't done, however. TR would simply run on his own as a third party candidate.