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Changes in American Life
There were more people coming to America during this time period. Also, there was more educational freedom in this time period. Women and blacks could go to school. There was more wealth. There were more job opportunities. Finally, there was more leisure time. people attended more sporting events, concerts, and amusement parks. -
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Progressivism
Progressives wanted to make life better through reform. Their main goals were to end corruption, to give people more say in government, and use government to improve quality of life. Businesses were cruel and unfair to workers, and they lied about their dealings. This is why people became muckrakers. They were journalists who exposed society's ills. Progressives tried to cure problems in cities by making settlement houses which provided food, clothing, child care, and recreation. -
Theodore Roosevelt
President McKinley was assassinated and at the time, Roosevelt was Vice President. Roosevelt became President. He was liked by most people. He wanted to improve the government. He wanted to make working conditions safer. He passed the Pure Food and Drug Act which regulated additives in food and the use of narcotics. He started the national park and forest services. When his term was over, he didn't run again, so he handpicked the Republican candidate - William Taft. -
William Taft
He did not push progressive reforms. People only saw Taft's failures. He gave the Interstate Commerce Commission more control of the railroads. He backed reforms in the post office. The 16th and 17th amendments were ratified during his term: 16th - the income tax for government activities and the 17th - the direct election of senators by the people. -
Woodrow Wilson
In 1912, the Republican party split because of disagreement. This made Roosevelt run again in his own party. This gave the Democrats an opportunity which they took, so Woodrow Wilson became our 28th President. He made the Underwood Tariff of 1913 that lowered taxes from 40% to <30%. He also started the Federal Reserve System. -
The Start of World War 1
The first world war started when Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated. First, Russia and Austria-Hungary were at war, then Germany declared war on Russia. This formed the Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey; and the Allied Powers: Britain, France, Russia, Italy, and the U.S. -
The United States' Involvement
The Americans were loaning money and trading goods to countries participating in the war. Germany was trying to stop America from trading with the Allies, so they sink 3 American ships. That makes the U.S. decide to join the first world war, even though we were not ready. We had no army, so we had to train men. We had to also build ships. People donated money to help the war effort. People also conserved food and gas. -
The End of World War 1
Germany's line had just been broken. They signed an armistice saying that they would stop fighting. 8 million were killed in this war, and 20 million were wounded. In 1919, Germany signed the Treaty of Versailles at the Paris Peace Conference. It said that Germany was responsible for all the damages of the war. Woodrow Wilson had ideas to rebuild Europe, and the most important was a League of Nations. This was supposed to help keep peace. But the U.S. Senate didn't pass it.
