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CHAPTER 21: THE PROGRESSIVE ERA, 1900–1917
Multiple Choice
1. In the early twentieth century, nearly __________ workers were injured at work each year.
A) 5,000
B) 50,000
C) 250,000
D) 500,000
2. Which of the following was part of the group known as new immigrants?
A) Irish
B) Finnish
C) Polish
D) German
3. The “progressive movement” was driven by __________.
A) the ideas of Eugene Debs
B) the leadership of the Populist Party
C) the contention that individualism, and not government help, could solve social ills
D) a general belief that moderate reforms were needed for social order and improved socio-economic
conditions
4. Native-born Americans often disliked new immigrants because they __________.
A) felt that the immigrants were taking desirable, middle-class jobs
B) believed that presence of immigrants hurt moves toward improving worker safety
C) viewed predominantly Catholic and Jewish immigrants as threats to social stability
D) objected to the Republican Party’s recruiting of immigrant voters
5. Proponents of the Social Gospel believed __________.
A) all Americans should worship in Protestant churches
B) religious ethics should be introduced into industrial relations
C) social Darwinism was compatible with Christian morality
D) that the Old Testament supported a class system
6. The main goal of the muckrakers was to __________.
A) raise the public’s awareness of social problems
B) support socialistic policies in the U.S. Congress
C) ruin the reputations of presidential candidates
D) end the legality of alcohol consumption
7. Theodore Roosevelt’s reform philosophy was closest to that of __________.
A) muckraking journalists
B) the gospel of efficiency
C) the Knights of Labor
D) the Social Gospel movement
8. The International Workers of the World differed from the AFL by __________.
A) organizing all types of workers from a wide variety of ethnic groups
B) refusing to support strikes as a method of protest
C) rejecting the sit-down strike as an effective labor tactic
D) only organizing skilled laborers in their union
9. An accomplishment of the Women’s Trade Union League was that it __________.
A) convinced Congress to end child labor
B) provided an outlet of protest without resorting to strikes
C) united working class and middle class women in one group
D) merged with the American Federation of Labor
10. What social changes during the progressive era enabled women to demand equal rights?
A) the increased number of women in the workforce
B) the increased number of women among the clergy
C) the increased number of women serving in state and local government
D) the increased number of women enrolled in colleges and universities
11. Progressive reformers looked to __________ to gain ideas.
A) Asia
B) South America
C) India
D) Europe
12. Most settlement houses were staffed by __________.
A) industrial laborers during off-hours
B) union organizers
C) foreign-born socialists
D) middle-class women
13. How did settlement workers differ from earlier reformers?
A) They believed widespread poverty was a major social ill.
B) They viewed the “evils” of poverty as the product of social environment.
C) They believed the primary cause of poverty was moral weakness.
D) They campaigned for laws to protect women and children.
14. Reformers who focused on ending child labor faced resistance from big business and __________.
A) the American Federation of Labor
B) parents of the children
C) believers in the Social Gospel movement
D) clergy
15. Between 1900 and 1920, protective legislation for __________ workers was virtually nonexistent.
A) young male
B) young female
C) adult male
D) adult female
16. Which of the following would be most likely to agree with the political views of Eugene Debs?
A) a member of the Social Gospel movement
B) a member of the Women’s Trade Union League
C) a member of the Woman’s Board of Home Missions
D) a member of the National Child Labor Committee
17. In general, American reforms that addressed awful working and living conditions were __________.
A) far less effective than social reforms passed in western Europe
B) successful at ending urban poverty before 1920
C) responsible for making the abolition of child labor the first victory of labor unions
D) opposed by Eugene Debs as conforming to capitalism
18. Jacob Riis was a key activist in the move to make progressive reforms __________.
A) in the Protestant Church
B) that would provide national health insurance
C) in public education
D) designed to enhance the profits of big corporations
19. What year did prohibition go into effect?
A) 1916
B) 1919
C) 1926
D) 1933
20. Which of the following forms of entertainment did some progressives want to prohibit?
A) radio shows
B) live theater
C) movie theaters
D) automobile racing
21. Many progressive reformers supported prohibition legislation because __________.
A) prohibition laws had succeeded at reducing alcoholism in western Europe
B) they believed alcohol was a cause of poverty and many other social problems
C) they wished to break monopolies controlled by liquor manufacturers
D) it was a major aspect of the Socialist Party’s platform
22. Which of the following was generally ignored by progressive reformers?
A) racial inequality
B) vice districts
C) the plight of rural Americans
D) public education
23. Suffragists won their first victories in the __________.
A) Northeast
B) Midwest
C) South
D) West
24. Changes in the strategy of female suffragists in the early 1900s included __________.
A) nominating middle class women for national political office
B) not allowing men to join women’s rights organizations
C) adopting activist tactics such as rallies and political lobbying
D) focusing on achieving local voting rights, not national voting rights
25. Which of the following tactics increased public support for women’s suffrage?
A) appealing to the view that women possessed special moral instincts
B) advancing the view that women possessed the same intellectual capabilities as men
C) exempting African American women from the proposed voting rights expansion
D) writing scathing letters to the editor of major newspapers
26. Which of the following reforms gave special interest groups increased power in electoral politics?
A) eliminating the poll tax
B) direct primaries
C) adoption of the Nineteenth Amendment
D) strict voter registration laws
27. The __________ Amendment extended the right to vote to women.
A) Twenty-First
B) Twentieth
C) Nineteenth
D) Fifteenth
28. Reformers who called for use of the Australian ballot secured __________.
A) the guarantee of biracial tickets in the North
B) the right of voters to have privacy in the voting process
C) an end to illegal campaign contributions
D) an end to the use of literacy tests as a requirement for voting
29. Use of the initiative allowed reformers to __________.
A) become directly involved in labor negotiations
B) propose legislation directly to the electorate
C) impeach legislators who were unresponsive to change
D) run third-party candidates and receive federal funds
30. The Seventeenth Amendment __________.
A) made the distribution and use of alcohol illegal
B) provided for the direct popular election of U.S. senators
C) limited presidential terms
D) gave immigrants the right to vote
31. The initiative and referendum were designed to thwart the power of __________ in state government.
A) party bosses
B) governors
C) judges
D) legislators
32. Theodore Roosevelt modified the executive branch by __________.
A) reinstating the spoils system
B) shrinking the size and number of federal agencies
C) institutionalizing administrative procedures
D) shifting power from the executive branch to the legislative branch
33. A major difference between Theodore Roosevelt and the presidents of the Gilded Era was
__________.
A) Roosevelt was much more aggressive in his use of presidential power.
B) Roosevelt did not feel that labor-management relations were a vital issue.
C) Roosevelt distanced himself from the growing influence of the press.
D) Roosevelt was a Republican and they were Democrats.
34. When mine owners refused to meet with coal workers at the White House, Roosevelt __________.
A) decided that the executive branch no longer had a role in labor disputes
B) used his influence to mediate social conflict for the public good
C) appealed to the Supreme Court to intervene on behalf of management
D) stated that John Mitchell’s unreasonable nature had kept mine owners away
35. Regarding how humans should deal with the natural world, Theodore Roosevelt can best be classified
a(n) __________.
A) environmentalist
B) preservationist
C) conservationist
D) deep ecologist
36. How did Theodore Roosevelt establish a regulatory role for government?
A) by appointing pro-regulation justices to the Supreme Court
B) by bringing multiple anti-trust suits against business combinations
C) by pressuring Congress to pass laws authorizing the president to regulate business
D) by forcing federal agencies to more actively regulate labor conditions
37. Which of the following was a major focus of Theodore Roosevelt’s presidency?
A) promoting a constitutional amendment to establish an income tax
B) using federal subsidies to rescue the failing Standard Oil Company
C) suing “bad trusts” that he believed were guilty of misconduct
D) repealing consumer protection laws
38. During the presidency of William Howard Taft, __________.
A) the Republican Party split into two factions
B) Robert La Follette emerged as an opponent of reform
C) conservative Republicans pushed for lower tariffs
D) Richard Ballinger was fired as secretary of the interior
39. Supporters of Theodore Roosevelt formed the __________ Party and nominated the former president
to run against President Taft.
A) Progressive
B) Populist
C) Green
D) Nationalist
40. William Howard Taft’s support for the Sixteenth Amendment opened a period when __________.
A) the federal government expanded its activities and responsibilities
B) the Republican Party unified under a broad reform agenda
C) conservatives, such as Nelson Aldrich, rallied behind his aggressive social reforms
D) labor unions declined to a role of insignificance
41. Which of the following was the Socialist Party candidate for president in 1912?
A) Eugene Debs
B) Woodrow Wilson
C) William Howard Taft
D) William Jennings Bryan
42. Jane Addams supported the __________ Party in the 1912 election.
A) Republican
B) Democratic
C) Progressive
D) Socialist
43. What was the goal of Woodrow Wilson’s New Freedom program?
A) increased government support for labor
B) a rejection of Roosevelt’s “regulated monopoly” system
C) reduced influence of big business in government
D) increased social welfare legislation
44. The first income tax enacted after the ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment had a top tax rate of
__________ percent.
A) 7
B) 29
C) 42
D) 49
45. Which statement best describes Woodrow Wilson’s style as president?
A) He built upon Roosevelt’s model of strong executive authority.
B) He kept his distance from issues, letting his cabinet take political leadership.
C) His reluctance to sponsor legislation hurt his effectiveness as president.
D) His support for radical reforms pleased socialists and advocates of women’s suffrage.
46. Which of the following improved access to credit for many Americans?
A) Underwood-Simmons Tariff Act
B) Adamson Act
C) Federal Reserve Act
D) Currency Act
47. Woodrow Wilson sought to reform banking primarily through the __________.
A) Keating-Owen Act
B) Smith-Lever Tariff Act
C) Federal Reserve Act
D) Federal Trade Commission
48. Which of the following would be most likely to support the Underwood-Simmons Tariff Act?
A) a wealthy northern industrialist and member of the Republican Party
B) a poor southern sharecropper and member of the Progressive Party
C) a middle-class merchant and member of the Democratic Party
D) a middle-class factory owner with no party affiliation
49. The __________ Act was designed to decrease child labor.
A) Keating-Owen
B) Smith-Lever
C) Harrison
D) Hepburn
50. Conservatives opposed Wilson’s nomination of Louis Brandeis to the Supreme Court __________.
A) after Brandeis made it clear that he had never voted for Republicans
B) due to Brandeis’s lack of legal experience
C) because Brandeis was Jewish and had issued pro-labor opinions
D) as a result of Brandeis’s close friendship with Eugene Debs
Essay Questions
51. In what ways did social reform and social control often intermingle in the Progressive Era? Which
impulse was more prevalent in the period from 1905 to 1918?
52. How did the role of women change during the Progressive Era? What effect did this have on the
advancement of progressivism?
53. Some historians feel that Theodore Roosevelt was the “first modern president” of the twentieth
century. What evidence supports this claim? In what ways do you believe this is true or untrue?
54. Compare and contrast the ideas of reform expressed by two of the three following presidents:
Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson.
55. Many historians believe that the election of 1912 revealed a desire by voters for a continuance of
moderate reforms. What evidence supports this thesis? Did voters get what they wanted?
