2.16+Reforms


 * Farmers || City Life || Reformers ||
 * Farming becomes more productive due to new farming methods like crop rotation, fertilizers, and pesticides

The steel plow and tractor make farming more efficient

Railroads make transportation of goods faster and safer

Mail-order brings the city to the farmer

Better production leads to falling food prices

Farmers are forced to buy new equipment and transportation costs with loans that they will not be able to repay due to inflation

Form a political party called the Farmer's Alliance to push political agenda || Immigrants migrate to cities in the North to find jobs in factories

Earlier from West Europe and later from East Europe

Industry brought wealth and new jobs to cities

Overcrowding and poverty were common

Tenements were built to house the poor with very few accommodations

Middle Class people move out to suburbs

Factory workers were paid as little as possible and no money was spent to keep workers safe

Workdays = 10-12hrs

Labor Unions were created to help protect workers

Crime, pollution, and disease are everywhere

Discrimination takes place with new immigrants || The Populist Movement grew as a way to help the common worker climb out of poverty and to have a voice through government

Called for 8hr workday, higher wages, better working conditions, graduated income tax, laws protecting unions

Progressivism was a movement that wanted government to solve social, economic, and political problems to allow individuals improve themselves

Established community centers to help provide services to teach life skills to the poor like reading and English (Hull House-Chicago)

Corruption was on the local and national level and was dealt with through laws allowing for initiatives and referendums

The Sherman Antitrust Act allowed the government to break up companies that have to much control over a business

Muckrakers reported on the bad conditions within the food industry that led to the creation of the FDA ||