CHAPTER 21
The Progressive Era, 1890–1920
TRUE/FALSE
1. Among the varied sources of progressivism were populism and the Mugwumps.
2. Muckrakers were journalists who worked first and foremost for politicians—an arrangement
that often perpetuated political and corporate corruption.
3. An example of a progressive innovation was the recall, whereby corrupt or incompetent
elected officials could be removed through a public petition and vote.
4. The phrase “Square Deal” is associated with Theodore Roosevelt.
5. Progressives generally believed government should not interfere with Big Business.
6. Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington to the White House dinner but gave into the criticism
of white southerners and never invited another black leader again.
7. William Howard Taft viewed his role as president as an administrator rather than an innovator.
8. Like Roosevelt, Taft was able to use his political skill to get a lower tariff through Congress.
9. Woodrow Wilson was a minister’s son who grew up in the South.
10. Wilson was a weak president who trusted Congress to adopt the proper policies.
11. Under Roosevelt, the nation established its first regular federal income tax.
12. Theodore Roosevelt considered the Federal Trade Commission to be the cornerstone of
his program for Big Business.
13. Alice Paul encouraged American suffragettes to use more aggressive approaches in their
campaign for the vote.
14. Through the Federal Farm Loan Act, Wilson tried to pass the first federal legislation directed
to assisting farmers.
15. Progressivism faded as an organized political movement because international issues pushed
aside domestic concerns.
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which of the following statements accurately characterizes the Progressive Era?
a.
The Progressive Era saw the dramatic rise of revolutionaries who believed that governments should
play a far smaller role in the lives of individuals and leave concerns regarding the welfare of the
people to the people themselves.
b.
The Progressive Era was defined by the impulse to destroy capitalism rather than to regulate it, as
the United States was on the verge of becoming a socialist nation dominated by the ideas of only
one of the two major political parties.
c.
The Progressive Era saw a lack of action on the part of reformers, as the Gilded Age had
successfully brought about the separation between politics and Big Business as well as the thorough
regulation of industrialization.
d.
The Progressive Era first began with the onset of the Great War, as the rush to prepare to meet
wartime industrial levels and embark on military projects forced politicians to engage in regulation
and reform on an unprecedented scale.
e.
The Progressive Era saw remarkable social activism and political innovation, in part due to the
belief that America was experiencing a crisis of democracy because of the urban industrial
revolution and the evidence of fraud by elected officials.
2. Which of the following statements accurately describes the scope of the progressive impulse?
a.
Progressivism was primarily an urban movement and almost solely made up of Democrats.
b.
Progressivism was primarily an eastern movement comprised mostly of working-class reformers.
c.
Progressivism was a primarily northern movement that focused on women’s issues.
d.
Progressivism was a national movement including both rural and urban reformers of different
backgrounds.
e.
Progressivism was a primarily rural movement that, most of all, built upon the successes of
populism.
3. What assumption did progressives share?
a.
Governments must become more active to address the problems created by rapid industrial and
urban growth.
b.
The Democratic party must once again hold national political power in order to meet the war head–
on.
c.
Racism was an injustice, and the law should not discriminate between African Americans and white
Americans.
d.
Women were equal to men in ability and should be afforded the same opportunities in professional
and political spheres.
e.
Society would only progress when competition was allowed to take place without governmental
regulation.
4. What was the single biggest economic factor that ignited the spirit of progressives?
a.
the economic depression of the 1890s
b.
the failure of the populists’ quest for silver coinage
c.
Republican tariff policies in the 1880s and 1890s
d.
the annexation of the Philippines
e.
the passage of an amendment authorizing an income tax
5. What did the muckrakers consider their primary objective?
a.
converting Americans to socialism
b.
exposing social problems to the public
c.
increasing the circulation of sensationalist newspapers
d.
proposing detailed legislation
e.
destroying the Republican party
6. Ida M. Tarbell is best known for her investigation of
a.
Standard Oil Trust.
d.
Congress.
b.
McClure’s magazine.
e.
poverty in America.
c.
J.P. Morgan Bank.
7. Which of the following figures was considered the greatest champion of the social gospel
movement and worked in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of New York?
a.
Ida Tarbell
d.
Jacob Riis
b.
Walter Rauschenbusch
e.
Upton Sinclair
c.
Washington Gladden
8. Who wrote the book Working People and their Employers and argued that true Christianity
was based on the idea that “thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself”?
a.
George F. Baer
d.
Washington Gladden
b.
Ray Stannard Baker
e.
Ida M. Tarbell
c.
Henry Demarest Lloyd
9. What did advocates of the social gospel believe?
a.
Social Darwinism held the answer to dealing with the problems of modern society and should be
implemented in legislation.
b.
Churches needed to help solve the problems created by a rapidly industrializing and urbanizing
society.
c.
Karl Marx’s call for a socialist revolution was necessary to fix the problems created by
industrialization.
d.
A tax-supported, state-sponsored church should serve as a unifying force between different social
classes.
e.
True salvation for society would come with secularization and turning away from traditional
religion.
10. Which of the following was true of the leaders of the settlement house movement?
a.
They directed their attention to the problems faced by the working poor and immigrant
communities living in cities.
b.
They often expressed moral disapproval of the behavior of immigrants and favored well-off
families when choosing tenants.
c.
They spoke against the social gospel movement and initially focused only on political rather than
social reform.
d.
They tended to consist of second-generation lower-class immigrants helping first-generation lower-
class immigrants.
e.
They encouraged people in the cities to move to the rural areas by providing lodging there.
11. What was the first place in the United States to extend equal voting rights to women,
underscoring how the larger region to which it belonged was the most supportive of
women’s rights?
a.
Nebraska
d.
Wisconsin
b.
New York
e.
the Wyoming Territory
c.
Florida
12. Which of the following statements accurately describes the women’s suffrage movement
during the Progressive Era?
a.
The movement was successful not only in bringing the women’s vote to all states in the matter of a
year but also in staying free of social and ethnic prejudices.
b.
Rather than being concerned with matters of federal law or directing attention toward the
government, the movement focused on businesses’ treatment of women workers.
c.
Suffrage activists varied in their motivations and approaches, such as the range of issues they were
willing to raise along with the women’s vote.
d.
African American women tended to be the leaders of suffrage organizations because the civil rights
movement had erupted and made the two issues inseparable.
e.
Since the Gilded Age had brought the right to vote to affluent women, suffragists used the energy
of the Progressive Era to campaign to extend this right to women of all classes.
13. Which of the following is an example of progressives’ efforts to empower citizens’ voices
within politics?
a.
the social gospel
d.
the poll tax
b.
eugenics
e.
Prohibition
c.
the direct primary
14. What did the Seventeenth Amendment do?
a.
It authorized the popular election of U.S. senators.
b.
It gave women the right to vote.
c.
It called for direct primaries.
d.
It authorized the federal income tax.
e.
It made the production and distribution of alcohol illegal.
15. Who was Frederick W. Taylor?
a.
He was a harsh critic of industrialization in general and publicly lamented the rise of capitalism and
the monotonous work it brought.
b.
He championed the idea of “scientific management,” showing employers how to cut waste and
improve productivity.
c.
He was one of the leaders of the women’s suffrage movement, insisting that it needed the help and
voices of strong and able men.
d.
He was founder of the National Child Labor Committee and successfully brought about legislation
that only permitted those over the age of eighteen to work.
e.
He was a popular congressman who authored the bill on reclamation for the western states and was
a champion of Prohibition.
16. Where was the commission system of city government first adopted?
a.
Atlanta, Georgia
d.
Springfield, Missouri
b.
Durham, North Carolina
e.
Columbia, South Carolina
c.
Galveston, Texas
17. Who originated the Wisconsin idea of efficient government?
a.
Lewis Hine
d.
Robert M. La Follette
b.
Hiram Johnson
e.
Louis Brandeis
c.
Florence Kelley
18. Which of the following best describes the method used by most progressives to solve the
problem of economic power and its abuses?
a.
adopting a socialist program of public ownership
b.
following the principles of laissez-faire government
c.
regulating giant corporations
d.
allowing business to work out its own destiny
e.
lowering taxes so that companies would raise wages
19. As president of the WCTU, Frances Willard lobbied for legislation that would ________ alcohol.
a.
change the minimum age to legally purchase
b.
raise taxes on
c.
reduce tariffs on
d.
ban
e.
regulate the manufacturing of
20. The National Child Labor Committee pushed to
a.
allow as many immigrant children to enter the workforce as possible.
b.
open more technical schools.
c.
create federal legislation allowing children to work more hours.
d.
enact laws prohibiting the employment of young children.
e.
grant employees’ children scholarships.
21. What was the significance of the events at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company in 1911?
a.
A strike resulted in the intervention of federal troops, representing the eagerness of the government
to improve conditions.
b.
The factory popularized the idea of scientific management principles because within one year of
adopting them, its output had tripled.
c.
It took the death of workers as a result of a tragic fire there to result in meaningful government
regulation of dangerous workplaces.
d.
The labor force was comprised almost entirely of American-born workers willing to work for low
wages, which convinced similar companies to hire fewer immigrant workers.
e.
The daily experiences of the workers there became the subject of Upton Sinclair’s influential book
The Jungle in which he interviewed textile sweatshop owners.
22. Which of the following statements accurately describes the Sixteenth Amendment?
a.
It officially gave women in all states and territories the right to vote in national and state-level
elections.
b.
It instated a graduated income tax to help slow the concentration of wealth held by the richest
Americans, in accordance with progressives’ demands.
c.
It made the fifty-hour workweek the standard for all Americans, regardless of the industry in which
they worked or their social class.
d.
It went against progressives’ call for lowering income taxes and leaving the levying of income
taxes strictly to state governments.
e.
It implemented a series of tariffs to capitalize on the economic boom the government experienced
due to the Civil War.
23. Which of the following occurred during the coal strike of 1902?
a.
President Theodore Roosevelt won support for his forceful leadership against corporations and his
work refereeing the dispute.
b.
Thousands of striking miners marched on Washington, starting a riot that lasted three days and
endangered many politicians.
c.
President Theodore Roosevelt threatened to use the army to force strikers back to work due to the
demand for coal.
d.
The government response was identical to that of Gilded Age presidents, showing how little had
changed after all.
e.
The mine owners and the United Mine Workers participated in lengthy talks together and
established a close, collaborative relationship.
24. What was the title of the novel that described the terrible conditions of the meatpacking industry?
a.
Chicago
d.
Maggie
b.
The Great American Fraud
e.
How the Other Half Lives
c.
The Jungle
25. Who was Theodore Roosevelt’s close friend Gifford Pinchot?
a.
He was the president’s chief speechwriter.
b.
He was a strict prohibitionist who pushed for the Seventeenth Amendment.
c.
He was one of the most famous muckrakers.
d.
He was the attorney general who broke up the Northern Securities Company.
e.
He was a forestry expert and leading conservationist.
26. What was Theodore Roosevelt’s position on the matter of environmental conservation?
a.
He believed strongly that natural resources should be preserved, but felt that this was a matter for
state, not federal, action.
b.
He angered many conservationists by his appointment of Gifford Pinchot, a businessman with no
experience in conservation, as head of the Division of Forestry.
c.
He believed in environmental preservation and, as a result, set aside federal land for conservation
purposes created a number of national forests.
d.
He was worried about what limits placed on logging and mining opportunities would do to the
economy and large industries and, thus, attacked promoters of conservation.
e.
He had spent little time outdoors himself and remained indifferent on the issue of conservation,
leaving the matter entirely up to Congress.
27. Which of the following was a result of the Brownsville Riot in 1906?
a.
Roosevelt supported the African American soldiers.
b.
Roosevelt dishonorably discharged the entire regiment of African American soldiers.
c.
Congress impeached Roosevelt.
d.
Congress protested Roosevelt’s actions.
e.
The state of Texas discharged the entire African American regiment.
28. How did William Howard Taft win the presidency?
a.
Roosevelt urged the Republican party to nominate him as his successor, and he promised to
continue the policies Roosevelt had begun.
b.
He promised to expand the authority of the executive branch and to rethink the distribution of
power among the other two government branches.
c.
He had a “crusading spirit” that rivaled Roosevelt’s and had held elected office for most of his
career.
d.
He was, in the Republican tradition, opposed to a lower tariff and promised to entirely dismantle
the American system of capitalism.
e.
He attacked Roosevelt’s progressive policies, which appealed to the many political and business
enemies Roosevelt had made.
29. President Taft’s domestic policies generated a storm of division
a.
overseas.
d.
in the military.
b.
within the Democratic party.
e.
within the Republican party.
c.
within the Progressive party.
30. Contrary to his party’s tradition, President Taft called for
a.
a moderately high tariff.
d.
a high tariff only on luxury items.
b.
no tariff.
e.
a drastically higher inheritance tax.
c.
a lower tariff.
31. Of the following, who eventually became chief justice of the Supreme Court?
a.
William Jennings Bryan
d.
William Howard Taft
b.
Herbert Croly
e.
Gifford Pinchot
c.
Louis Brandeis
32. What was the issue that provoked an open break between Taft and Roosevelt?
a.
Taft supported higher tariffs, but lower tariffs had long been one of the primary focuses of
Roosevelt’s economic policies.
b.
Taft reduced the size of the navy, which led Roosevelt to become deeply concerned about the future
of national security.
c.
Taft made an anti-trust suit against United States Steel Corporation, which was at odds with
Roosevelt’s business alliances.
d.
Taft supported the federal income tax, whereas Roosevelt had long argued it would hurt common
people and help corporations.
e.
Taft fired Pinchot after he showed opposition to the Taft administrations’ opening up protected
federal lands to commercial development.
33. Which of the following occurred during Taft’s presidency?
a.
He managed to unite a faction-ridden Republican party throughout his second term with his
towering personality.
b.
He opposed both the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Amendments and actively delayed their becoming
law.
c.
He consistently catered to Big Business and had far fewer anti-trust suits than those prosecuted
under Roosevelt
d.
Like Roosevelt, he appointed a conservationist and preserved more public lands in four years than
Roosevelt had in nearly eight.
e.
He regained Roosevelt’s trust while Roosevelt was away on safari through the selection of his
cabinet.
34. What role did Roosevelt play in the presidential election of 1912?
a.
Running against Taft of the Republican party and Woodrow Wilson of the Democratic party,
Roosevelt created the Progressive party with a platform that revealed his liberalism.
b.
Roosevelt was so desperate after it became clear that he would likely lose the Republican
nomination that he rejected many of his earlier ideas such as a minimum “living wage.”
c.
Roosevelt decided to run as Taft’s vice president because he had enough of the limelight but felt
pressure to use the office to promote certain business interests.
d.
Although he had lost most of his popularity and suffered for it during the party primaries, Roosevelt
managed to win the nomination by appealing to party bosses as party leader.
e.
Roosevelt proved victorious mostly due to the fact that the Democratic party had split in two due to
the controversial platform of the southerner Woodrow Wilson.
35. Which of the following statements accurately describes Woodrow Wilson’s background?
a.
He was a professor and college president.
b.
He was the leading Roman Catholic politician at the turn of the century.
c.
He was the progressive governor of Oregon.
d.
He got nearly all of his ideas from Populist reformers.
e.
He was the first Californian to win the White House.
36. Which candidate was shot during the 1912 presidential campaign?
a.
Eugene V. Debs
d.
Woodrow Wilson
b.
Theodore Roosevelt
e.
Grover Cleveland
c.
William Howard Taft
37. What significance did the election of 1912 have for progressivism?
a.
It was the first time a major party’s candidate had run on a progressive platform, marking the
transformation of progressivism from a small subset of politicians to a full-fledged movement.
b.
It signaled the resonance of Roosevelt’s progressive message, as he won enough votes to return to
the White House for an unprecedented third term.
c.
It caused Democrats to retreat from progressivism, as they sought to distinguish themselves from an
all the more cohesive and powerful Republican party.
d.
It offered voters a choice of four candidates who, despite their differences, believed in the
progressive idea that an active government could resolve modern social problems.
e.
It marked the end of an organized and active progressive movement in America, as the majority of
candidates embraced a platform that demonized the efforts of progressivism.
38. Which of the following was a major factor in Wilson’s initial rise to the presidency?
a.
Many Republicans supported his nomination
b.
Wealthy Democrats poured millions of dollars into his campaign.
c.
The United States was at war during his campaign.
d.
He had far more political experience than the other candidates.
e.
The Republican party had split in two.
39. Which of the following statements characterizes Woodrow Wilson’s New Freedom platform?
a.
It proposed vigorous anti-trust action to break up corporate concentration.
b.
It favored big government and severely limiting states’ rights.
c.
It sought to do away with the tradition of presidents speaking of their religious faith.
d.
It accepted gigantic corporations as a fact of modern economic life.
e.
It was also known as a New Nationalism platform.
40. Who was Eugene V. Debs?
a.
a strong promoter of capitalism who entered politics thanks to business ties
b.
William H. Taft’s confidant and running mate in the election of 1908
c.
the progressive management expert who developed a system of optimizing efficiency
d.
a politician who made a name for himself through anti–immigration policies
e.
the Socialist candidate who came out surprisingly strong in the 1912 election
41. What was the state of the Socialist party during the Progressive Era?
a.
It was considered one of the two main political parties due to the popularity of Theodore Roosevelt
as president.
b.
It had not yet become a political party, but the beginnings of its ideology were already visible in the
Democratic party.
c.
It rose to power due to members’ certainty that the political system was in good enough shape to
return to this traditional party.
d.
Its membership grew dramatically, as it offered an alternative to a stalemated political system;
however, many also feared socialism.
e.
It only achieved support in the Northeast and generally appealed to affluent groups above all others
due to its message.
42. What did Roosevelt and Wilson have in common?
a.
They were both laidback presidents who believed that those who governed best were those who
governed least and left most political responsibility to the people.
b.
They were both reserved presidents who rarely spoke to the public out of concern that they needed
to focus on day-to-day tasks.
c.
They excelled at working with people who disagreed with them and ushered in an era marked by
profound bipartisanship.
d.
They were both activist presidents who helped bring about the modern presidency by expanding the
scope of the executive branch at the expense of Congress.
e.
They both enjoyed Republican majorities in the House and Senate, but were unable to push through
much legislation because of the distractions of war.
43. Which of the following statements describes the Underwood-Simmons Tariff?
a.
It raised the average tariff and hence was supported by Wilson.
b.
It lowered the average tariff and hence was opposed by Wilson.
c.
It raised the average tariff and hence was opposed by Wilson.
d.
It lowered the average tariff and hence was supported by Wilson.
e.
It kept tariffs the same as under Taft and Roosevelt.
44. What was the purpose of the Federal Reserve Act?
a.
to end the Great Depression, which had begun during the end of Roosevelt’s last term as president
b.
to nationalize the banking system so that all banks became public institutions rather than private
corporations
c.
to promote the gold standard in such a way that the banking system of the United States was
identical to that of the Civil War
d.
to require every state-chartered bank to become a member of the Federal Reserve system and
regulate them closely
e.
to adjust the nation’s currency supply and create a national banking system to promote growth and
ensure the stability of member banks
45. Which of the following was true of the Clayton Anti-Trust Act?
a.
It was more lenient toward Big Business than was the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
b.
It outlawed price discrimination and exempted labor unions from anti-trust laws.
c.
Labor union leaders originally opposed it.
d.
Theodore Roosevelt considered it the crowning achievement of his administration.
e.
It made it possible for corporate officials to be held responsible for violations.
46. Despite Josephus Daniels’s racist views, President Wilson still nominated Daniels for
a.
secretary of state.
d.
secretary of the interior.
b.
secretary of the navy.
e.
secretary of transportation.
c.
secretary of war.
47. What was the response of Woodrow Wilson and his cabinet regarding racial issues?
a.
They remained silent on whether they supported racial segregation.
b.
They publicly challenged Jim Crow segregation laws in the southern states.
c.
They invited Booker T. Washington to speak at the White House.
d.
They segregated federal employees and largely ignored calls for racial justice from black leaders.
e.
They had the support of W. E. B. Du Bois in the election of 1916.
48. Who formed the National Women’s Party and led a protest in front of Wilson’s White House
for six months in 1917?
a.
Jane Addams
d.
Alice Paul
b.
Mary E. Lease
e.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
c.
Carrie A. Nation
49. Who was Louis D. Brandeis?
a.
the first Jewish member of the Supreme Court and a famed defender of unions
b.
a famous leader of the conservative opposition to federal labor laws
c.
Theodore Roosevelt’s vice-presidential running mate in 1912
d.
the president of the Tennessee Coal and Iron Company who worked closely with Wilson
e.
the president of the Federal Farm Loan Board in the face of economic disaster
50. What was the purpose of the Adamson Act of 1916?
a.
It prohibited most forms of child labor.
b.
It provided low-interest loans to farmers.
c.
It provided federal funds to build highways.
d.
It established the eight-hour day for railroad workers.
e.
It made the consumption of alcohol legal for soldiers.
51. Ultimately, what event led to the end of the organized progressive movement in the United States?
a.
the election of 1920
b.
the Great War
c.
the election of Eugene V. Debs as president
d.
the backlash against the first federal income tax
e.
the Great Depression
ESSAY
1. Why did progressivism arise when it did? What long– and short-term factors set the stage for
the birth of the movement?
2. Which of the progressive presidents was the most progressive? Which was the least progressive? Explain.
3. What changes did progressivism bring to America? How was America different in 1920 from
what it had been in 1900 because of progressivism?
4. In what ways was the election of 1912 significant? As part of your response, discuss the
candidates and issues that defined the election.
5. “From its beginning to its end, the progressive movement was, more than anything else,
paradoxical.” What evidence could be used to support this statement?
6. Who were the muckrakers, and what impact did they have on American society?
7. To what extent were progressives a unified group in the early twentieth century, and why?
What differences kept them from forming a single, united force?
8. Having been elected in his own right to a second term, Theodore Roosevelt set his sights on
regulation and control of business. Trace his agenda in these endeavors. Was he successful?
9. Discuss Roosevelt’s approach to conservation. What beliefs guided his actions as president in
this area?
10. In what ways is the rift between Roosevelt and Taft representative of larger trends of progressivism?
MATCHING
Match each description with the item below.
a.
was Woodrow Wilson’s closest adviser who worked behind the scenes to excite and mobilize
others despite not holding an official government position
b.
ran in the election of 1912 as a socialist who promoted Christianity over Marxism and democracy
over totalitarianism
c.
was an author and teacher who became a muckraker to call attention to abuses by oil companies
and insisted it was up to the people to fix them
d.
endorsed a Square Deal for “every man, great or small, rich or poor” that featured the “Three Cs”
marked by greater government control
e.
helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and questioned the
idea of a “New Freedom” for white Americans and a “new slavery” for Afro-Americans
f.
organized demonstrations on behalf of women’s rights during Woodrow Wilson’s presidency and
went on a hunger strike while in prison
g.
wrote Congressional Government and created the Federal Trade Commission to prevent the
creation of monopolistic trusts
h.
promoted the prohibition of alcohol as well as the creation of an eight-hour workday, the regulation
of child labor, and government-funded kindergartens
i.
served on the Ohio Supreme Court, was the first American governor–general of the Philippines, and
was a cautious and conservative progressive
j.
was the first Jewish member of the Supreme Court who designed the New Freedom to be a means
of restoring economic competition
1. Louis D. Brandeis
2. Alice Paul
3. Theodore Roosevelt
4. Frances Willard
5. Eugene V. Debs
6. William Monroe Trotter
7. Ida Tarbell
8. William H. Taft
9. “Colonel” Edward M. House
10. Woodrow Wilson