Imperialism: The Origins Of a Global Power

1. Why did American plantation owners and U.S. Marines topple Hawaii’s queen in 1893? Why was Hawaii considered to be a valuable prize? What was President Grover Cleveland’s reaction? Do you agree or disagree with his quote on page 1?

For many years before 1893, Hawaii had been involved in U.S. business affairs. The islands were considered a highly valuable prize - they were the perfect refueling point for ships crossing the Pacific Ocean to Asia, not to mention the fact that the islands were chock full of natural resources. Many U.S. businessmen had invested in these tropical crops, and for the, an American annexation of Hawaii would have been immensely profitable. In 1893, their urging to place Hawaii under U.S. control pushed through, and with the help of the Marines, Hawaii's monarchy was toppled. President Grover Cleveland did not agree with these actions, though - he withdrew the treaty that would have granted the US control of Hawaii. He thought that the US had treated the Hawaiian queen unfairly, and that this would reflect poorly on the US.

I agree with his quote. Yes, it was not America's right to annex Hawaii, and yes, it was a stain on the nation's morals. If powerful countries abuse their might to gain as much land as possible, how can the world possibly function? It is not appropriate for a country that preaches justice for all to storm into an innocent land and re-haul everything that the native people have ever known. The US made a mistake with Hawaii, and it needed to be fixed.

2. Identify five important changes that transformed American in the nineteenth century. How did these five changes affect Americans?

1) Immigration: As more and more immigrants poured into the country in the late nineteenth century, America's demographic began to change. No longer was America made up of northwestern European descended citizens - as conditions grew more crowded and oppressive in Europe, immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe began to flood the country as well. This not only raised America's population significantly, it boosted America's ethnic diversity by far.

2) Urban growth: With the growth of its population, America began to develop larger and larger cities. With these cities arrived significant problems: disease, overcrowding, poverty, rising crime rates, etc. As city living became more popular, agriculture lost its appeal. American became a city-centralized nation.

3) Manufacturing: By the time the late 1800s had rolled around, manufacturing was far more popular than farming. These factories often drew immigrant workers, who were willing to work for close to nothing. The iron and steel industries boomed, and technological advances happened every day. A "new kind of immigrant" cropped up - these Southern and Eastern Europeans worried many Americans.

4) Trade: With manufacturing came many exportable goods. America was making a fair amount of money from exports to Europe. The kinds of things the US exported changed, too - advances in transportation boosted the transportation of agricultural goods, and the US soon became just as heavy a name in the trading industry as most European countries were.

5) Growing economic power: The US began to look to buy overseas markets to receive American goods. This worried many European nations, and caused them to raise their tariffs. This meant that America began to export its goods to less powerful countries, such as those in Latin America and Asia.

3. How did the economic depression that began in 1893 deepen the divisions in American society? Which groups suffered the most during the depression?

The economic depression of 1893 only served to deepen the divisions already made in American society. It affected factory workers and immigrants, as well as poor farmers, most heavily. This made these lower class workers realize that they did not have a strong foothold in the world of American business. It was the big business men and factory owners who held all the power - if the workers struck, they lost their jobs; if they did not strike, they were barely earning a living as it was. The depression also split America into two groups - those who were in favor of cheap money (farmers in debt who supported a boost in the money supply) and those who favored tight money (stated that an increase of the money supply would cause awful inflation).

4. What were the values many Americans attached to the frontier? Why did many Americans fear that the closing of the frontier would harm America’s national character?

America had always viewed the frontier as a beautiful, plentiful, empty expanse of land. To explore the frontier was to be brave, strong, charismatic, American. White Americans thought of themselves as brave, pragmatic, ingenious, egalitarian, patriotic, individual and resourceful. All of these values were displayed in exploring the frontier, or so they thought. The frontier was also seen as a place of economic opportunity. Many Americans, especially old generation White Americans, feared that closing the frontier would mean an end to true American values. How could the country continue to grow in such a charismatic way if it could not expand into the open frontier?

5. Why did some Americans suggest greater involvement overseas?

Over the years, America had grown to be just as powerful as many European nations. With the general unrest in the country about losing American values, many US citizens felt that being more aggressive overseas would give America the air of toughness and bravery that the lack of a frontier to expand into had depleted. Other Americans simply saw the lands overseas as areas of economic growth. EIther way, it was clear that Americans had hunger to move up and out and make their presence known in the world that could not be stopped.

6. What policy did expansionists say would ensure the economic success of the United States? What did imperialists say?

Expansionists thought that, in order for the US to succeed economically, it would have to build an empire across the ocean. Some wanted to simply open American ports in other countries, but others pushed for the US to legitimately create an empire. The latter, called imperialists, insisted that it was America's mission to expand throughout the world, bringing American values to every savage or inferior nation.

7. How did the theories of social Darwinism and scientific racism lend support to the cause of American imperialism? How were these pseudo-scientific theories used to justify racist policies and imperialism? Are they still used today?

Imperialists used social Darwinism and scientific racism to back up their urging for the US to take over other countries. In the eyes of the Imperialists, some nations were simply more advanced and intelligent than others - as social Darwinism would say, some countries were higher up on the evolution chain than others. Scientific racism helped to support these claims but using supposedly medical and scientific means to determine that certain races were inferior to others. Of course, the Imperialists pointed out that the US came out on top in these theories, so what was the problem in taking over poorer, stupider countries? There was nothing wrong with it; on the contrary, Imperialists thought, the US would have been doing these countries a favor. Although these false scientific practices no longer hold real merit, there are unfortunate amounts of people in our modern world who still believe that some races and countries are vastly superior to others, for no apparent reason.

8. What did many Protestant churches say was America’s role in the world?

Many Protestant churches insisted that America's role in the world was to help save the people of "downtrodden" nations. They sent missionaries all over in order to apparently save the souls of "savages" in other countries. Some religious leaders even believed that god favored Americans, and that imperialism was god's plan for the human race. Some people even believed that if the Protestants and the US could spread their influence all over the world, world peace would be achieved.

9. Why did the United States become involved in several Latin American nations in the nineteenth century? Summarize why the United States became involved in Samoa, Hawaii, and other Latin American nations.

In the nineteenth century, the US became involved in several Latin American countries. There was big push to "stabilize" troublesome countries in order to make the world a safer place for American commerce. For example, in 1878, the US signed a treaty that promised to aid Samoa in exchange for free access to Samoan harbors. After the US agreed to this, Britain and Germany tried to take over parts of Samoa. The US held true to its promise and helped defend Samoa. The US did the same sort of thing in many other nations, specifically Hawaii. It offered protection or aid in return for easier trading access; in many cases, the US ended up annexing the very countries that it had originally offered aid to.

10. Why was the United States concerned about British involvement in Venezuela? What concept did U.S. Secretary of State Richard Olney invoke in response?

The US was concerned about British involvement in Venezuela because it was afraid that Britain would begin to colonize Latin America in the same way that it had colonized Africa. This would completely cut off American access to South America. Olney invoked the Monroe Doctrine in response - this caused much tension between Britain and America, but eventually things were resolved, although without the involvement of any Venezuelans.

Spanish-American War (1898)

Causes: How did each of the following help to cause the outbreak of the Spanish-American War?

1. American business owners
American business owners had ahd an interest in Cuba for a long time. They offered to buy Cuba from Spain - Spain responded to this with a violent and resounding "no". Even after this, Americans tended to lend sympathy to the Cubans during their revolutions against Spain. After Cuban slaves had been freed, America invested large amounts of money in Cuban sugar cane fields.
2. José Martí
A Cuban journalist and poet who had been exiled to New York, Marti helped to launch a campaign against the Spanish in 1895. He used guerrilla tactics and destroyed a lot of property, focusing particularly on American owned property. He hoped that this would drag America into the war, helping to gain freedom for Cuba.
3. Valeriano Weyler
A general sent by Spain to crush the revolution, Weyler's solution was to force Cuba's rural population into concentration camps. Food was scarce and disease ran rampant, but in Weyler's eyes, at least now the civilians would not be helping the rebels. News of this soon got out, and it caused a strong negative reaction, especially in the U.S.
4. Yellow journalism
Newspaper tycoons such as Hearst and Pulitzer published exaggerated accounts of the way things were playing out in Cuba, especially of the atrocities that Weyler was committing. These scintillating stories generated even more sympathy from Americans, and served to drum up even more war fever than before.
5. De Lôme letter
Things seemed to be going well in President McKinley's negotiations with Spain, up until 1898 when the New York Journal published a letter from the Spanish minister to the U.S. The letter, which had been leaked, insulted president McKinley, calling him weak. Although the minister resigned and Spain apologized, the damage had been done - Americans were outraged at this insult to their President.
6. U.S.S. Maine
On February 15, 1898, the U.S.S. Maine exploded in the Havana harbor. More than 260 men were killed. It had originally been sent there to bring home U.S. citizens in risk of danger. Although no clear cut cause of the explosion has been uncovered, American newspapers blamed it on Spain, and the public listened, becoming even more angry than ever before.

Effects: What happened to each of the following territories as a result of the Spanish-American War?

7. Cuba
Cuba was granted its freedom via the Treaty of Paris.
8. Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory.
9. Guam
Like Puerto Rico and the Phillipines, Guam was annexed by America.
10. Philippine Islands
The citizens of the Phillipines were also fighting for their freedom. After the U.S. victory against Spain in the Phillipines, 11,000 U.S. troops joined Fillipino rebels in protesting for their freedom. The Phillipines were annexed to the U.S., although this launched great debate over whether this was the right thing to do or not.

U.S. Imperialism Begins

1. Name at least five factors that fueled American Imperialism.

Five factors that fueled American Imperialism were a desire for military strength, a thirst for new markets, a feeling of cultural superiority, ... (there were only three factors listed in the textbook?)

2. Choose two of the above five factors and describe them in your own words.

Thirst for new markets: As factories grew larger and larger, more and more natural resources were required. Also, technology had become so advanced in the US that food production far exceeded the consumption of it in America - foreign trade seemed to be the perfect way for the US to export its excess goods and gain what it needed.

Cultural superiority: Americans saw it was their duty to spread Christianity and civilized behavior to the "lower people" - the foreigners. Social Darwinism only contributed to this view - Americans thought that they had to make themselves a strong presence in the world in order to survive, and imposing their views on others seemed to be a good way to get their opinions out into the open.

3. What was known as “Seward’s Folly” and why?

The purchase of Alaska in 1867 was referred to as Seward's Folly. This was because the general public thought that the US Secretary of State, William Seward, was absolutely crazy for investing in such a cold, barren, icy land as Alaska.

4. What plantation-based product accounted for three-quarters ofHawaii’s wealth in the mid-19^th century and who controlled this product?

In the mid-19th century, sugar cane accounted for 3/4 of Hawaii's wealth. Unfortunately and unfairly, though, caucasian plantation owners controlled this product - the workers got little of the massive profit earned from it.

6. Using as much detail as possible, outline the sequence of events that led to America gaining possession of Hawaii? In other words, why was the United States interested in these Pacific islands?

For years, America had been using the Hawaiian islands as a pit stop on the way across the Pacific. White missionaries travelled to the islands to set up schools and churches, and their ancestors would eventually take over the plantation business. The US treated these plantation owners well, even importing their sugar without tax on it. However the McKinley Tariff of 1890 cancelled this deal, and the plantation owners grew upset. They called for the US to take over Hawaii, so that they would not have to pay a tax for importing their goods from what was , at that time, a foreign country. In 1887, the US had built a major naval base in Hawaii. It was clear that America had interest in Hawaii, but until later, it could not make a move.

King Kalakaua had been bullied into granting voting rights only to the wealthiest, and therefore white, citizens, but upon his death, the balance shifted. His sister took over, and set up a system that was much more balanced towards native Hawaiians. When she suggested that whether or not one owned property should not be used to allow someone to vote, several groups banded together to overthrow her. They succeeded, and set up a new government. This government was led by Sanford B. Dole. President Cleveland did not approve of these actions, and ordered that the queen be granted back her power, but the groups would not listen. In order to keep the peace, the president officially acknowledged the Republic of Hawaii. However, he refused to anex Hawaii unless it was voted forwards by the Hawaiian population. President McKinley, who succeeded President Cleveland, fully supported annexation, and in 1898, the Congress declared Hawaii a US territory - the Hawaiians never got their chance to vote. By 1959, Hawaii was an official state.

Child Labor Reform Photographs

Objective Assessment
As you view each photograph take note about what you see. (note people, background, objects) Pretend you were describing the image to someone who could not see it. Try to avoid making judgments.

Where are these children? List any clues relating to their surroundings.
Describe any tools or objects you see.
Describe their clothing. What do their clothes reveal about their work?

Subjective Assessment
What questions do you have about each of these photographs?
Based on your observations, list three things you might infer about the lives of these children. (Be sure to consider Hine's notes about the photographs when considering this.


Photograph A: In photograph A, we see a small child, very thin and in shabby clothes. Her hair is coming undone and her dress looks far too large for her thin frame. She is leaning with one hand on a grimy windowsill, the other hand resting on a loom or other type of cloth making machine. These machines stretch out far into the distance behind the girl. The lighting in the room is poor, although she is standing near a window. This photo brings up a few questions: how long has this girl been working on that day? How old is she? Where are the other workers? Hine's caption answers some of these questions; the girl "does not remember how old she is" , although she knows she is not old enough to work. She has been working at the mill for a year, sometimes working nights, running 4 sides of the machines. From this photo, we can infer that the girl is unhealthy, seeing as her clothes seem to envelope her incredibly thin body; she is overworked - the light seems to be fading, and yet she is still at the factory; she is far too young to be working with such large machines - the machine is at least twice her height!

Photograph B: There are 5 girls here; their clothes are in disarray, wrinkled, too large, and covered with lint; their hair styles look too old for them, as if they are trying to look more grown up than they really are; the girl in the middle is slumped over, as if something is wrong with her back; all but one of their faces are exhausted looking; they are standing in front of a large brick building. In Hines' caption, we learn that these are adolescent workers in Georgia. This raises a few questions: just how old are these girls? What kind of company do they work in? Is the girl in the middle simply exhausted, or has she been injured? We can infer that the girls work in a fairly dirty factory, seeing as they are covered in dust and lint; the work is not easy in any way, since they are all slumping over and leaning on each other; they are not small children, but they are still too young to work: they all look far older than their years, but we can tell that they are still teenagers.

Photograph C: We see a small girl in the middle of a long row of machines; her dress looks like simply a sack tied with string about the waist; she looks no older than 4 or 5; there is cotton strewn about the floor; the machines are so much taller than she is. Hines notes that the supervisor says she just "happened in", although Hines observed her steadily working. Hines also says that the factories in general were filled with children who just "happened in". We can infer that the child is working under the table, since the supervisor tried to cover for her; she is not earning enough wages to even buy proper clothing, which means that the rest of her family is very poor as well - we can infer from this that she is working out of necessity, to try and put food on her families table.

Photograph D: There is a small, sadfaced boy sitting on the base of streetlamp; he is holding newspapers to sell; there are adults walking buy not even looking at him; his face looks dirty, but at least he has a proper coat and boots. Hines says this boy was working on a Saturday afternoon. We can infer that he had no control over his hours and was forced to work at least a 6 day, if not a 7 day week - most children should have been out playing on a saturday afternoon, not working. We can also infer that this was the norm, since the adults walking by show no concern for him. His expression and posture suggest that he has been out there all day, and is in fact out there for hours every day that he works.

Photograph E: We see rows and rows of boys breaking coal; the air is thick with dust; their faces and clothes are covered with it; there is a supervisor who does not look much older than the rest of them, holding a long, sharp looking object, presumably to hurry them along. Hines notes that this supervisor often kicked the boys into obedience, and that the dust was thick enough to obscure the air. We can infer that these boys were desperate for money, since this job is not only hard but also dangerous; they most likely have to put up with violence from their supervisors without a word, for fear of losing their job; they are probably all getting sicker and sicker with every day, since the windows are closed and the only place for the coal dust to go is into their lungs.

Photograph F: There are many boys standing and working with a variety of pipes and machines; their clothing is torn and tattered, and their faces are covered either in bruises or dirt; the ground is covered in some kind of refuse, perhaps sand used in the glassmaking process; they are standing on every available surface in order to work with the machines. Hines says that the photo was taken at 9 p.m. in a glass making factory. We can infer that these boys had to deal with constant dangers on the job - glass making requires great amounts of heat, and burns were probably commonplace; their clothes are in such poor states that we can assume they are paid very little (one boy has massive holes in his shirt); their hours are not regulated at all - these are children, working until 9 o'clock at night!

Photograph G: We see people of all ages gathered around a tub-like structure, shucking oysters; there is everyone from a full grown woman to little boys and girls to a small baby who looks barely old enough to walk; there are a few bare bulbs dangling from the ceiling; dirt covers the floor; the windows are all closed; one girl stands perched on a rickety board over a channel in the floor. Hines says that everyone in this factory but the smalleset babies worked from 3:30 a.m. until 5p.m.; the mother in the photograph describes her young child as being "a great help to her". We can infer that the children were coerced into working by their own parents, in order to get the family a few more dollars or cents; the children were expected to work just as long as the adults, since the children are working right alongside their parents - they would probably not be allowed to leave early; the conditions of the factory were unsanitary - the windows are shut, the floor is dirty, and the children are being made to deal with raw shellfish for hours on end. The smell alone was probably sickening, let alone the risk of cutting yourself on the shells and getting an infection.

Photograph H: We see a group of children gathered around the factory doors, waiting to start their shift; it is dark outside; there looks to be snow on the ground; they are wrapped in layers of clothing, since their coats and shoes look thin; although some of them look to be teenagers, most look around 8 or 10. Hines writes that these children were starting the night shift at 6 p.m. and were expected to work until 6 a.m.; some of the girls were working instead of their father, who claimed to be too sick to work but was really just lazy; they had been working in the mills for years. We can infer that apart from their awful lives in the factory, some of these children had abusive home lives as well - imagine taking care of your own parent as a young child! We can also infer that these children were forced to work in any conditions, since there is snow on the ground here, and we can bet that the factory was not heated; we can infer that the children had to rely on themselves and each other to get to work and work efficiently - they would receive no help from adults. there is not a single adult shown here who looks like they walked their child to the factory, or made sure they had warm clothing ready, or something to eat for dinner.

Progressivism Under Taft & Wilson's New Freedom

Read Chapter 17-4 (Progressivism Under Taft) and Chapter 17-5 (Wilson's New Freedom)

1. How did William Howard Taft get selected to run for president?

William Taft was actually handpicked to run by Theodore Roosevelt, who at the time had just announced that he was not going to run for reelection. Taft was Roosevelt's Secretary of War. Taft and the Republican party received an easy victory.
2. How did Teddy Roosevelt come to oppose Taft for the presidency in 1912?

During Taft's presidency, the Republican party split in two. The more traditional Republicans stuck by Taft when it came to the election of 1912, whereas the more progressive Republicans fled to Roosevelt, feeling that Taft was anti-Progressive and anti-conservation.
3. What events helped Woodrow Wilson win the election in 1912?

After the split in the Republican party, the Democrats were finally able to get a foothold in the government system. As the rift between Roosevelt and Taft turned more and more caustic, the public began to look for a stable candidate. As Wilson began to voice his anti-big business policies, he quickly began to gain support from the electoral college, if not from the public.

4. What legislation did Wilson use to attack trusts and monopolies?

Wilson used two main legislations to attack trust and monopolies. There was the Clayton Antitrust Act in

1914, which banned companies from creating trusts that could turn into monopolies. It also protected labor

unions from being affected by antitrust laws, and protected strikers from being persecuted. There was also

the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, which created the FTC - Federal Trade Commission. The FTC

was in charge of enforcing many of the laws of the Clayton Antitrust Act, and checked up on big businesses

to make sure that they were not performing any illegal activity.

5. What was the Nineteenth Amendment?

The Nineteenth Amendment, passed in 1919, granted women the right to vote.
6. How did America's entry into World War I affect the reform movement?

As America entered World War I, so much attention was being paid to the European front that national reform fell to the wayside. There were more pertinent issues to deal with; Wilson, the man who had been keeping the Progressive movement alive, was so occupied with the war in his second term that after World War I, the Progressive movement was nearly forgotten altogether - with no one pushing it, it simply could not survive.

TR's Square Deal

1. How did Roosevelt create the modern presidency?

As the youngest man ever to become President at the time, Roosevelt was certainly a new kind of president. He put himself into the public eye, letting tales of his athletic exploits reach and impress the public. He used the esteem that the population gave him to push new, forward thinking ideas, such as his policy that the government should step in whenever a state could not solve a problem on its own. Roosevelt saw the presidency as an opportunity to shape and influence the media, and he certainly made us of this opportunity.

2. How did Roosevelt's intervention in a coal strike set a precedent for federal arbitration?

Roosevelt's tactic of mediating a discussion between both sides of the coal strike was so successful that it quickly became

the standard for strike breaking. After Roosevelt's success here, any strike that interfered with the welfare of the public was to be

dealt with by the federal government.
3. What did Roosevelt do to the trusts and railroads?

Roosevelt took a passionate approach to reforming the trusts and railroads. Roosevelt strongly disliked any trust that he felt would hurt the public interest. In order to break up these trusts, he began filing suit after suit against them, in ordinance with the Sherman Anti-Act. Although not all of these suits were successful, Roosevelt managed to make a very clear statement.

Roosevelt took a similar approach to the railroad business, passing acts that made the railroad enterprise a more fair business for both the big leaders and the everyday workers. The Elkins Act of 1903 made it impossible for certain shippers or receivers to earn money simply by using specific railroads, and prevented railroad companies from raising their rates without alerting the public. the Hepburn Act of 1906 prohibiting the granting of free railroad passes. All of Roosevelt's efforts helped the federal government gain more control of the railroad business.
4. What legislation passed during Roosevelt's presidency protected citizens?

There were many legislations passed during Roosevelt's presidency that protected citizens - the Meat Inspection Act, which regulated conditions in meat packing plants and mandated government inspection of meat, and the Pure Food and Drug Act, which stopped the sale of any contaminated food or medicine and required all products to be truthfully labeled, were the two major public health legislations of the period.
5. What did Roosevelt do to protect the environment?

To protect the environment, Roosevelt started a huge conservation movement. He set up many national parks and wildlife reserves, and millions of acres of land for government water-power sites and geological exploration. The Newlands Reclamation Act of 1902 gave money from land sales in the West to funding for large-scale irrigation projects.

Urbanization

1. What is Urbanization?

Urbanization refers to the massive growth of cities during the late 19th century, due to the huge amounts of country workers and immigrants who fled to the cities in hopes of finding work.

2. For what reasons did a number of Americans move from the country to the cities?

American poured into the cities from the country for a variety of reasons. Cities offered cheap living arrangements and a multitude of business opportunities. Also, as more and more technology was being used on country farms, more and more workers were put out of their jobs. These workers flocked to the cities in hopes of finding a job.

3. What were the housing problems that many poor city dwellers faced?

Housing conditions for the poor in cities were absolutely terrible. If they were lucky, one family could live in a single-family house, packed in tightly next door to another family. As the rate of immigrants raised, and the overall city population increased, it became increasingly common for two or even three families to share what had once been single-family homes. These buildings, called tenements, were quickly packed to the gills with people. Sanitation in them was awful, and disease and stench spread quickly. Air shaft and window regulations helped a little bit, but these were often simply used as another way to dispose of garbage. In order to fend off the smell, many families would board their windows shut. Although the tenements had been built to offer help to the poor, they ended up being a horrific place for anyone to live.