Deck 18: The Progressive Era, 1900-1916

Question 1

Asian and Mexican immigrants in the early twentieth century:

A) clustered in the South as agricultural workers.
B) clustered in the West as agricultural workers.
C) were much more welcome than European immigrants.
D) were prohibited from entering the United States.

Answer 1

clustered in the West as agricultural workers.

Question 2

How did mass consumption in the Progressive era result in new consumer freedoms?

A) Farmers in the heartland had more time and money to attend nickelodeon shows.
B) Department stores provided city residents with access to electric washing machines and vacuum cleaners.
C) Mass-produced radios were able to advertise the availability of new factory products.
D) A and B only

Answer 2

A and B only

Question 3

The writer whose work encouraged the passage of the Meat Inspection Act was:

A) Henry George.
B) Theodore Dreiser.
C) Upton Sinclair.
D) Ida Tarbell.

Answer 3

Upton Sinclair.

Question 4

Which of the following statements about mass consumption in the early twentieth century is NOT true?

A) Southerners fully participated in the mass-consumption society.
B) The promise of mass consumption became the foundation for a new understanding of freedom.
C) Urban dwellers purchased goods in department stores and chain stores.
D) Rural people purchased goods through mail-order catalogs.

Question 5

Why was "the city" the focus of Progressive politics?

A) The mostly urban immigrant populations wielded significant political clout there.
B) Populists had largely solved the problems that had plagued rural Americans.
C) The overwhelming majority of Americans lived in cities.
D) Urban populations experienced the most dramatic growth and the most significant changes.

Question 6

The Progressive movement drew its strength from:

A) big business.
B) farmers.
C) middle-class reformers.
D) military leaders.

Question 7

The Bitter Cry of Children (1906)
John Spargo
Work in the coal breakers is exceedingly hard and dangerous. Crouched over the chutes, the boys sit hour after hour, picking out the pieces of slate and other refuse from the coal as it rushes past to the washers. From the cramped position they have to assume, most of them become more or less deformed and bent-backed like old men. When a boy has been working for some time and begins to get round-shouldered, his fellows say that "He's got his boy to carry round wherever he goes."
The coal is hard, and accidents to the hands, such as cut, broken, or crushed fingers, are common among the boys. Sometimes there is a worse accident: a terrified shriek is heard, and a boy is mangled and torn in the machinery, or disappears in the chute to be picked out later smothered and dead. Clouds of dust fill the breakers and are inhaled by the boys, laying the foundations for asthma and miners' consumption. . . .
Boys twelve years of age may be legally employed in the mines of West Virginia, by day or by night, and for as many hours as the employers care to make them toil or their bodies will stand the strain.
Writers such as Spargo who exposed were known as

A) patriots.
B) muckrakers.
C) interlopers.
D) illuminators.

Question 8

Newspaper and magazine writers who exposed the ills of industrial and urban life, fueling the Progressive movement, were known as:

A) yellow journalists.
B) trustees.
C) social reformers.
D) muckrakers.

Question 9

Artists captured the transformation of urban landscapes in the Progressive era through all of the following EXCEPT:

A) photographs of theaters.
B) paintings of crowded bars.
C) photographs of electric lights and skyscrapers.
D) the Hudson River school.

Question 10

Birds of passage were:

A) immigrants who planned on returning to their homeland.
B) single women who worked until they got married.
C) strikebreakers who were sent in by factory owners.
D) stowaways on passenger ships, attempting to immigrate to America.

Question 11

The Bitter Cry of Children (1906)
John Spargo
Work in the coal breakers is exceedingly hard and dangerous. Crouched over the chutes, the boys sit hour after hour, picking out the pieces of slate and other refuse from the coal as it rushes past to the washers. From the cramped position they have to assume, most of them become more or less deformed and bent-backed like old men. When a boy has been working for some time and begins to get round-shouldered, his fellows say that “He’s got his boy to carry round wherever he goes.”
The coal is hard, and accidents to the hands, such as cut, broken, or crushed fingers, are common among the boys. Sometimes there is a worse accident: a terrified shriek is heard, and a boy is mangled and torn in the machinery, or disappears in the chute to be picked out later smothered and dead. Clouds of dust fill the breakers and are inhaled by the boys, laying the foundations for asthma and miners' consumption. . . .
Boys twelve years of age may be legally employed in the mines of West Virginia, by day or by night, and for as many hours as the employers care to make them toil or their bodies will stand the strain.
What type of reform came about as the result of accounts like Spargo's?

A) guaranteed pensions
B) universal public education
C) child labor laws
D) expanded voting rights

Question 12

Progressive-era immigration was part of a larger process of worldwide migration set in motion by all of the following forces EXCEPT:

A) the annexation of the Philippines.
B) industrial expansion.
C) the decline of traditional agriculture.
D) widespread poverty in rural southern and eastern Europe and parts of Asia.

Question 13

The Bitter Cry of Children (1906)
John Spargo
Work in the coal breakers is exceedingly hard and dangerous. Crouched over the chutes, the boys sit hour after hour, picking out the pieces of slate and other refuse from the coal as it rushes past to the washers. From the cramped position they have to assume, most of them become more or less deformed and bent-backed like old men. When a boy has been working for some time and begins to get round-shouldered, his fellows say that "He's got his boy to carry round wherever he goes."
The coal is hard, and accidents to the hands, such as cut, broken, or crushed fingers, are common among the boys. Sometimes there is a worse accident: a terrified shriek is heard, and a boy is mangled and torn in the machinery, or disappears in the chute to be picked out later smothered and dead. Clouds of dust fill the breakers and are inhaled by the boys, laying the foundations for asthma and miners' consumption. . . .
Boys twelve years of age may be legally employed in the mines of West Virginia, by day or by night, and for as many hours as the employers care to make them toil or their bodies will stand the strain.
Why did Spargo use such vivid images and graphic language to describe coal manufacturing?

A) to expose dangerous practices in coal mines
B) to entertain his audience
C) to defend the treatment of coal workers
D) to sell more books

Question 14

Most new immigrants who arrived during the early years of the twentieth century:

A) lived in close-knit communities.
B) planned to remain in the United States temporarily.
C) generally earned lower wages in America than in their former homelands.
D) dominated skilled and supervisory jobs.

Question 15

During the Progressive era:

A) new immigration from southern and eastern Europe reached its peak.
B) overall immigration declined dramatically.
C) Boston was the main point of entry for European immigrants.
D) the vast majority of immigrants came from Ireland.

Question 16

In the first decade of the twentieth century, American farm communities:

A) did not experience the economic growth seen in cities.
B) had not yet recovered from the effects of falling prices in the previous century.
C) entered a "golden age" because of rising urban demand for farm goods.
D) did not benefit from the new mass-consumer society.

Question 17

The word "Progressivism" came into common use around 1910:

A) as a way of describing a loosely defined political movement.
B) as an anti-business term.
C) denoting a group that appealed only to women.
D) as another term for socialism.

Question 18

Why did millions of American farm families migrate westward from 1900 to 1910?

A) The demand for skilled labor declined in twenty-one of the nation's largest cities.
B) Irrigation technology was successfully implemented in the American Southwest.
C) The availability of free land meant more opportunities for commercial farming in the West.
D) B and C

Question 19

The Triangle Shirtwaist fire:

A) was the worst fire in U.S. history.
B) brought in its wake much-needed safety legislation.
C) destroyed the business, but there were no casualties.
D) occurred during the Uprising of the 20,000.

Question 20

Labor agents:

A) negotiated on behalf of immigrants for fair labor contracts.
B) recruited Chinese, Mexican, and Italian immigrants to work in Angel Island's fruit and vegetable fields.
C) provided American employers with workers who signed long-term labor contracts.
D) were seen as champions of free labor.

Question 21

The battle for free speech among workers in the early twentieth century:

A) was led by the American Federation of Labor.
B) was led by the Industrial Workers of the World.
C) was not an issue of concern to most workers.
D) was insignificant because the courts consistently supported workers' rights to assemble, organize, and spread their views.

Question 22

Industrial freedom in the Progressive era meant:

A) a rise in union activism.
B) a loss of personal autonomy for skilled workers working under scientific management.
C) a push by corporations for greater worker input in locating factories and distributing profits.
D) A and B

Question 23

Working women experienced new freedoms in the Progressive era because:

A) young immigrant factory workers gained independence from the traditional control of their fathers.
B) employment opened up to married white women.
C) wages rose significantly for domestics, factory workers, and office employees.
D) A and B only

Question 24

The Ludlow Massacre was a tragic confrontation between:

A) Plains Indians and the U.S. army.
B) North Carolina textile workers and the police.
C) the IWW and the Massachusetts police.
D) Colorado mine workers and militia.

Question 25

Feminism:

A) represented only the struggle for women's suffrage.
B) was concerned only with economic issues.
C) sought to attack the traditional roles of sexual behavior for women.
D) sought to maintain the traditional roles of sexual behavior for women.

Question 26

Which statement about the American Federation of Labor in the early twentieth century is FALSE?

A) The AFL represented skilled workers only.
B) AFL membership tripled between 1900 and 1904.
C) The AFL forged closer ties with corporate leaders to stabilize employee relations.
D) The AFL proposed an overthrow of the capitalist system.

Question 27

Charlotte Perkins Gilman claimed that the road to woman's freedom lay through:

A) higher education.
B) holding political office.
C) the workplace.
D) access to birth control.

Question 28

Why did the Socialist Party gain significant political influence during the Progressive era?

A) Popular politicians, such as Theodore Roosevelt, spoke about socialism's merits.
B) Jewish and other immigrant laborers across the country supported its fight against economic exploitation of workers.
C) Party leaders promised working-class Irish voters that the party would not supplant machine politics.
D) Socialist Party candidates promised to run exclusively for state and local offices.

Question 29

During the Progressive era:

A) growing numbers of native-born white women worked as domestics.
B) most African-American women worked in factories.
C) most eastern European immigrant women worked as telephone operators.
D) growing numbers of native-born white women worked in offices.

Question 30

Why did Samuel Gompers seek to forge closer ties with forward-looking corporate leaders?

A) He wanted to establish employer-financed health care.
B) He wanted to work his way into circles of political influence.
C) He wanted to stabilize employer-employee relations.
D) He hoped to win their support for the nationalization of large industries.

Question 31

Why did workers experience the introduction of scientific management as a loss of freedom?

A) Scientific management typically lowered wages.
B) Workers had to work longer hours under scientific management.
C) Safety conditions worsened when companies introduced scientific management.
D) Skilled workers under scientific management had to obey very detailed instructions.

Question 32

The Industrial Workers of the World:

A) represented skilled workers only.
B) was led by Eugene Debs.
C) organized only women workers.
D) advocated a workers' revolution.

Question 33

How did nickelodeons reflect a mass-consumption society in the Progressive era?

A) Amusement parks and dance halls had lost considerable popularity by this time.
B) Nickelodeons offered elite theatergoers a highbrow alternative to vaudeville shows.
C) Nickelodeons offered a popular and less expensive leisure activity for urban residents.
D) Nickelodeon shows quickly became widely available, thus providing entertainment to small-town residents.

Question 34

Which statement about the textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts, in 1912 is FALSE?

A) The strike demonstrated that workers sought the opportunity to enjoy the finer things in life.
B) The strike was in response to a reduction in weekly wages.
C) The strikers asked the American Federation of Labor for assistance.
D) Children of the striking workers publicly marched up New York's Fifth Avenue.

Question 35

The "living wage" and the "American standard of living" were an outgrowth of what?

A) A mature consumer economy.
B) The powerful influence of labor unions.
C) An increasingly diverse society.
D) The power of monopolistic corporations.

Question 36

By 1912, the Socialist Party:

A) appealed only to immigrants.
B) appealed only to industrial workers.
C) had elected scores of local officials.
D) was concentrated in New York City.

Question 37

The term "Fordism":

A) describes an economic system based on mass production and mass consumption.
B) was used by labor unions, who hailed Ford's innovative approach.
C) describes an economic system based on limited production of high-end goods.
D) refers to Henry Ford's effort to organize workers into a union.

Question 38

What brought about a new wave of sympathy for the plight of women in the garment industry in Lawrence, Massachusetts?

A) The appearance of malnourished children who had been evacuated from Lawrence shocked the public.
B) The police of Lawrence had severely beaten striking women.
C) The AFL had negotiated a sham contract for Lawrence's garment factories.
D) The police had forced the children of Lawrence to leave town.

Question 39

Which of the following was NOT an expression of personal freedom in the Progressive era?

A) The lifestyle of the inhabitants of Greenwich Village.
B) Sex outside of marriage for young women.
C) Avoiding popular magazine articles about intimate topics.
D) Familiarity with Sigmund Freud's writings on sexuality.

Question 40

In the early twentieth century, the Socialist Party advocated for all of the following EXCEPT:

A) free college education.
B) legislation to improve the condition of laborers.
C) public ownership of railroads.
D) national health insurance.

Question 41

Which of the following contradictions plagued Progressive reformers' ideas on the political process?

A) Progressive reformers rejected party labels but were themselves highly partisan politicians.
B) Progressive reformers took every opportunity to disclose scandals in muckraking magazines, but they also called for a restriction of free speech.
C) Progressive reformers recorded the votes of nativists but promised more liberal reforms on immigration.
D) Progressive reformers worked both to expand the electorate and to shrink its size through other measures.

Question 42

Which of the following statements about Jane Addams and Hull House is NOT true?

A) Hull House and other settlement houses provided careers for the "new woman."
B) Addams believed that immigrant women primarily needed union protection.
C) Hull House was modeled on a settlement house in London.
D) Addams established employment bureaus and health clinics.

Question 43

Which of the following statements about the Oregon System is FALSE?

A) It instituted the direct primary for electing candidates to political office.
B) It was developed by Oregon lawyer William U'Ren.
C) It resulted in the failure to pass woman suffrage legislation in Oregon.
D) It instituted the initiative and referendum, which enabled voters to propose and vote on laws.

Question 44

In Muller v. Oregon, the Supreme Court:

A) refused to limit work hours for male bakers.
B) argued that women were too weak to work long hours.
C) outlawed child labor for children younger than age sixteen.
D) gave labor the right to strike.

Question 45

The Sixteenth Amendment:

A) called for the direct election of senators.
B) authorized Congress to implement a graduated income tax.
C) granted women the right to vote.
D) prohibited the use and sale of alcohol.

Question 46

Which of the following statements about urban Progressives is NOT true?

A) They worked to reform the structure of government.
B) They sought to establish public control of gasworks and waterworks.
C) They raised taxes to increase spending on schools and parks.
D) They worked with political machines.

Question 47

Why did businesses support the Pure Food and Drug Act?

A) They understood that they were liable if they harmed the health of consumers by selling spoiled products.
B) They wanted to protect their workers from spoiled foods.
C) They saw their own market share dwindle as superior European foods grew more popular.
D) They understood that greater public confidence in the quality of the products helped their sales.

Question 48

President Theodore Roosevelt:

A) believed that the president should side with employers during labor disputes.
B) believed that the president should be an honest broker in labor disputes.
C) opposed direct federal regulation of the economy.
D) opposed the creation of national parks.

Question 49

To create national parks like Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Glacier, the federal government:

A) removed animals from the land.
B) set aside lands that had never been inhabited by humans.
C) removed Indians who hunted and fished on these lands.
D) dismantled the Northern Pacific Railroad.

Question 50

John Muir did all of the following EXCEPT:

A) lament the intrusions of civilization on the natural environment.
B) call forests "God's first temples."
C) attract very few followers with his message about the spirituality of nature.

Question 51

The Progressive era's birth-control movement was characterized by:

A) public lectures on sexual freedom and contraception by activists such as Emma Goldman.
B) little beyond reassuring women that they had the right to refuse their husband's sexual advances.
C) the distribution of birth-control devices by Margaret Sanger.
D) A and C.

Question 52

After 1900, the campaign for women's suffrage:

A) maintained an increasingly elitist approach.
B) included both middle- and working-class women.
C) stagnated.
D) was most successful in the Northeast.

Question 53

Why did Carlos Montezuma call for the abolition of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1916?

A) The bureau used heavy-handed tactics in collecting taxes.
B) The bureau was under the influence of a rival tribal leader.
C) The bureau had failed to secure Indian self-determination.
D) The bureau failed to offer Native Americans equal employment opportunities.

Question 54

Which of the following statements about the idea of "economic citizenship" in the Progressive era is FALSE?

A) It argued that the right to universal economic assistance derived from citizenship itself.
B) It called for local authorities to dispense charity to the poor.
C) It ushered in a wave of state workmen's compensation laws by 1913.
D) It acted as a first wedge to opening broader support for social insurance programs of the future.

Question 55

The Progressive governor of Wisconsin, Robert M. La Follette, instituted all of the following reforms EXCEPT:

A) promising lower taxes and less government interference.
B) taxing corporate wealth.
C) regulating railroads and utilities.
D) using nonpartisan university faculty.

Question 56

Female activists of the Progressive era included:

A) Florence Kelley, who mobilized women as consumers to act as a force for social change.
B) Julia Lathrop, the first woman to head a federal agency (the Children's Bureau).
C) Florence Nightingale, who established the Visiting Nurses Corps.
D) A and B

Question 57

What Progressive-era issue became a crossroads where the paths of labor radicals, cultural modernists, and feminists intersected?

A) Birth control.
B) The initiative and referendum.
C) Women's suffrage.
D) Unionism.

Question 58

Why did Progressive reformers think they had much to learn from the Old World?

A) British legislators were far more advanced in their thoughts on racial diversity.
B) The French had built a strong reputation in the field of rehabilitative prison programs.
C) The Italians had introduced a series of laws securing equal rights for women.
D) Germans had pioneered several measures of social legislation.

Question 59

Electoral reform during the Progressive era:

A) expanded the electorate significantly.
B) had little impact, especially in the cities.
C) enfranchised African-Americans.
D) actually limited many Americans' right to vote.

Question 60

Why did the woman suffrage movement increasingly focus its attention on a national amendment to the Constitution?

A) State campaigns were difficult and often unsuccessful.
B) Women were not going to be satisfied with local voting rights only, and they wanted a say in presidential elections.
C) Because suffrage organizations were predominantly national in scale, organizing state-level campaigns proved impossible.
D) Men were more likely to consent to women's right to vote if it was universal across the nation, not just in their state.

Question 61

Why were many Americans drawn to the Socialist Party in the election of 1912?

A) Its presidential candidate was a southerner, Eugene Debs, who could appeal to both blacks and whites.
B) A very large minority of Americans were willing to abolish the capitalist system altogether.
C) Americans looked with jealousy at the equality and prosperity that reigned in social democracies like Britain and Germany.
D) The party's proposal to nationalize railroads and banks, and to provide unemployment relief, expressed popular Progressive thought.

Question 62

Why did the Wilson administration impose a graduated income tax in 1913?

A) Correctly predicting the coming of World War I, Wilson hoped to bolster the federal budget for defense.
B) Having imposed a ban on liquor sales, Wilson had to find a way to compensate for the lost excise tax.
C) Wilson was trying to fulfill his campaign promise of "soaking the rich."
D) The substantial reduction of duties on imports required Wilson to make up for lost revenue.

Question 63

What characteristic of Woodrow Wilson appeared to Theodore Roosevelt's supporters to be a relic of the past?

A) In his speeches, Wilson spoke about "waving the bloody shirt" and invoked the divisions of the Civil War.
B) Wilson frequently reminded Americans of the noble goals of the Populist movement of the 1890s.
C) Wilson spoke too much about the mistakes he thought Republicans had made in the past, such as the annexation of the Philippines.
D) Wilson was committed to programs that aided small-business owners and that seemed to deny the inevitability of economic concentration.