2007 DBQ – Because of the political, industrial, and economic challenges that the farmers were forced to face, American agriculture suffered during the late nineteenth century.…
By taking full advantage of the technological advances that occurred between 1865 and 1900, Americans began to inhabit what was believed to be the inhabitable West. This caused an agricultural revolution in these new territories, as production of many staple crops moved westward. Farmers that chose to make this move became aggravated by the government policy and economic conditions that ultimately seemed to inhibit their success.…
One of the most economically prosperous time periods in American history is the 1920’s, also known as the Roaring 20’s. This economic upturn occurred shortly after the conclusion of World War I and the short recession that followed the war. Some industries flourished during this time while farming became a cancer to the economy. To help the plight of the American farmer congress did as much as it could in passing legislative bills like the Emergency Tariff of 1921, the Fordney-McCumber Tariff of 1922, the Capper-Volstead Act of 1922, and the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1929.…
UNITED STATES HISTORY SECTION II Part A (Suggested writing time—45 minutes) Percent of Section II score—45 Directions: The following question requires you to construct a coherent essay that integrates your interpretation of Documents A-J and your knowledge of the period referred to in the question. High scores will be earned only by essays that both cite key pieces of evidence from the documents and draw on outside knowledge of the period. 1. Analyze the ways in which technology, government policy, and economic conditions changed American agriculture in the period 1865–1900. In your answer be sure to evaluate farmers’ responses to these changes.…
Ever wondered how farmers lived in the 19th century? The government passed laws that favored the wealthy.Technology was making vast strides but mainly in urban manufacturing. The technological advancements that were made available were sold to the farmers at ludicrous prices. Economically, the prices of agriculture was declining and as a result, farmers often lived in poor conditions. But, farmers not were represented in government, urban industry and big business overpowered farmers. So to what degree was the lives of farmers affected? Their situation is similar to the African Americans in the 20th century. Though events such as the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and Trail of Tears benefited the farmers…
The American farmer faced many problems from the protective tariffs which caused great overproduction of foods such as corn, wheat, and cotton (docs 3,5), speculation in farm products, over-greedy middlemen, and exorbitant transportation rates. The farmers in the west were also losing money to banks in the east. The banks were giving the farmers a high interest rate which they could not easily pay. (doc 2) The transportation rates put the farmers in debt greatly. To find new markets to sell their goods, farmers needed to ship their food else where and find new customers. To do this, farmers needed to transport their food, usually by train. When they would do this the railroad companies would charge much more for the farmer than the big businessman because the businessmen would give donations to the railroad companies while the small farmers would not. To make up for the low rates the railroads were charging the businessmen, the farmers were made to pay more to make up for the price cut. The farmers had many problems which needed to be fixed. This brought the creation of the Populist Party which would try and win the election of 1896 and help the farmers in their time of…
The period of 1865-1900 was classified as an era of Republicans, where laissez-fare governments favored big businesses. Technology was significantly evolving, focusing mainly on urban manufacturing. New technological advancements in farming were sold to the farmers at high prices and shipped at high freight rates. Also, the prices of cash crops dropped during this period, causing many farmers to live in poor conditions. In government, the power of urban industry and big businesses overcame that of the pro-farming politicians. Technology, government policy, and economic conditions effectively declined agriculture politically, industrially, and economically. Impediments such as industrial issues, poor representation in government, and waning agricultural prices that the farmers were forced to face, made agriculture suffer greatly during the late 19th century.…
Fostering industrial growth was one of the most important targets in the 1800s. In 1820, Henry Clay attempted to do so with his American System with protective tariffs, improvements, and a national bank. The most important and fastest way of this plan was the canal system. Canals such as the Erie Canal paid for construction tolls by connecting the Mississippi River to the Eastern seaboard. Robert Fulton got rid of the need of ground transportation with the invention of the steamboat. The steamboat proved how quick it could travel by traveling from Albany to New York City in 32 hours or so, making American waterways more effective. Industrial shipping began to increase over rivers and cities like St. Louis and Cincinnati grew in population. However, the most significant factor of transportation in the 1800’s was the invention of the railroad. It made land transportation faster, more effective, and less expensive. The North began to also industrialize. These improvements made the North and Midwest the centers of American industry.…
In the late nineteenth century, twenty years after the Homestead Act, farmers used their land in the western plains to produce both crops and profits. The farmers of this time struggled in the agricultural way of life by facing economic and political obstacles that were impossible to avoid, requiring them to do something about their complaints. Although the farmers had plausible arguments for most of their criticisms, their beliefs of the silver standard and overproduction sometimes could not be backed up. However, farmers continued to struggle between inevitable issues like the currency debate, constant debt and rising costs.…
In 1869 the railroads were completed, and was thought to be a stepping stone in American life. Although this was a historical event, the after-math of the railroads would affect the economy in a great way. Head officials and other non-producers were part of The Credit Mobilier scandal of 1872, which manipulated taxpayers and bullied them out of their fair share of land. Yes, some did get to keep their farms and stay on the land they thought was theirs, but in the end most ended up indebted to the government, which caused a downward spiral financially in the economy. Also after the railroads were built the need for steel and iron were not so much in demand and this caused many railroads and banks to go bankrupt.…
In the period of time following the end of the Civil War in 1865 to the turn of the century some 35 years later, American’s bore witness to the demise of an almost entirely rural and agricultural nation dominated by farmers to the rise of an urban and industrial society dictated by bankers, industrialists and city dwellers. This momentous transformation enabled the United States to mature into the wealthiest and most powerful it had ever been before. The progress was achieved, however, only with immense adversity for those in the American agricultural community. Farmers, faced numerous obstacles and…
Though US agriculture seemed strong, it did not share in the prosperity of the booming 1920s. U.S. farmers were overproducing food, and they had done so since The Great War. At that time, Herbert Hoover was the federal government's food administrator. He pushed for a large increase in American agricultural production since European agricultural production was weak and Hoover wanted Americans to supply them with food. The wheat production in the US was growing considerably by the end of the war, before the war U.S. farmers were making around 690,000 bushels of wheat per year and by the end they were making almost a million bushels. Farming was able to improve considerably with the emergence of machinery. During the 1920s, agriculture employed…
In farming nearly half of all Americans lived in rural areas, during this time farming was suffering. Farming incomes dropped and there were several reasons for this: Tariffs reduced trade with other countries, World War One meant Europe couldn’t afford American food exports. Canadian wheat producers were growing more grain leading farmers to over-produce in wheat to outsell each other but ended up with too much left over product that couldn’t sell, this made prices fall so they lost profit and went bankrupt. Over farming led to a dustbowl too as areas became deserted. All of this…
Farmers also joined the fight for their rights against the moneybags of the eastern states. During the period from 1860 to 1914 the United States went from being semi with a modest agrarian economy into a great country with a developed industry, from the country of the debtor…
During the Gilded Age, there was a large boom in industrialization. This affected upper class American in a more positive manner than it did for the farmers and workers on the bottom of America’s totem pole. Although the Industrialists became rich during the Gilded Age, the farmers felt the oncoming of the Panic of 1893 start while the upper class men were making money. The discontent that effected the farmers was widespread. Throughout the 1880s-1900s, farmers were distraught by the many hardships of their lives which led to the downfalls throughout the era. The farmers thought that their way of life was being threatened, which caused great discontent, and they had a valid reason to complain.…