APUSH Grisso/Pinter 2012- Labor and Econ.

1. Labor and Economy
Hannah Davis
Morgan Harrell
Aaron Koch

2. Thesis: Although the United States began as an
economic underdog, it grew to a world
superpower through a combination of the
shifts from an agricultural economy to an
industrial giant, from small isolated businesses
to big international corporations, and from
isolated regional labor organizations to
powerful national labor unions.

3. Mercantilism
 An economic system
to gain wealth by
controlling colonial
trade
 Navigation Acts-
passed by Parliament
1. goods could only be
traded with England 2.
All trade goods had to
be transported on
English ships 3. all trade
goods had to pass
through English ports to
be taxed

4. Indentured Servants
 1607 first Virginia
planters arrive with
indentured servants
 2/3 of the
Immigrants that
arrived the Colonies
were originally
indentured servants

5. Indentured Slaves
 Indentured servants
maintained some
rights unlike slavery
 Contract often
included land and
other necessities
 As demand for labor
increased land
owner’s turned to
slavery

6. Slavery
 1619 First Slaves arrive
in Virginia
 Massachusetts passed
the first slave laws in
1641 and Virginia
followed 20 years later
 In certain area’s the
slave population
made up 50-60% of
the overall population

7. Cotton Gin
 EliWhitney invented it
in 1793
 Lead to an increase of
cotton production
(“King Cotton”)

8. Louisiana Purchase
 The Haitian
Rebellion
 Louisiana Purchase
 Opened up New
Orleans Port,
helped Western
Farmers and
increased Labor in
the South 1803

9. Jefferson vs Hamilton
Limited Federal Government Strong Federal Government
National Bank Unconstitutional National Bank Constitutional
Farming Economy Merchant/Business Economy
National Government pays only National Government helps pay
National Debt State Debts
Supported by the elites
Supported by common people
(Merchants, industry, landowners,
(farmers, tradesmen)
investors, lawyers, clergy)

10. Jefferson vs Hamilton
Strict Construction Loose Construction
 Opposed National  Supported National
Bank Bank
 Constitution is  Constitution is
inflexible; the flexible; it sets
government can guidelines for
only do what is government power
literally stated  For Bank- gov’t
 Against Bank- not needed bank to
in Constitution regulate trade

11. War of 1812
 British
Blockade
forced Americans to
become more
independent
 Regions became
more
interdependent

12. American System
 A pre-Civil War set of
measures designed to
unify the nation and
strengthen its economy
with protective tariffs, a
national bank, and such
international
improvements as the
development of a
transportation system

13. American System I.D.
In 1815 under President Madison the American System was
put into place. The goal of the American System was to help
the US become economically independent. This happened
by the US establishing the New National Bank (BUS) was part
of this system since it was time for a new charter to be put in
place. Internal improvements such as roads and canals were
put into place which would bring the nation together.
Protective tariffs (tax on imported goods) were used to fund
internal improvements and help the economy. This system
was important because it allowed US citizens to make
progress and have pride in the country, it also eventually led
to the “Era of Good Feelings” since there was an increase in
economic growth.

14. Jackson Era
1828 Third increase of “Tariff of Abominations”
1832 Jackson vetoes Bank of the US’s Charter
1836 Specie Cicular- Jackson tried to stop inflation- required
people to pay government lands with specie= gold and
silver caused banks to run out of specie
1837 Panic of 1837

15. Antebellum Years
 Economy was
mostly exporting
goods
 Labor was
indentured servants
and slavery

16. Big Business
1860 – 1906 Rise of Big Business
1859 Oil Drilling technique created ( Cars 50 years later)
1862 Homestead Act
1867-70s Grange (Patrons of Husbandry) -- farmers against
railroads
(populist movement)
1869 Transcontinental Railroad
1870-1890s Bonanza Farms
1880 Bessemer process established
1887 Huge iron and coal deposits found in Minnesota
1893 Panic of 1893
1896 Debate over Gold Standard
1900 Carnegie Steel biggest company in America
1901 US Steel buys out Carnegie steel (Holding Companies
form)

17. Andrew Carnegie I.D.
Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish immigrant
who created one of the biggest businesses
during the turn of the 19th Century. He was
the first to use the strategies of vertical and
horizontal integration. Carnegie was
important because he was the first of the
big business leaders and was America’s first
“rags to riches” story.

18. Major Strikes
 1836- Mill Girl Strikes
 1870- Grange Wars
 1886- Haymarket Affair
 1893- Pullman Strike

19. Mill Girl Letter to Boston
Newspaper
S- Lowell Factory working conditions for the girls
O- Lowell, MA in November of 1844 (Boston Newspaper)
A This letter is directed to members in the MA community.
P- To inform the public of the tough treatment of the young
girls who work 16 hour days and within a 24 day time period
only make $14. 52 and they are punished if they don’t get
their work done. There wages keep getting cut and they work
harder every day.
S-The author is a worker at the factory who is losing hope in
her job because they have to pay for food and board while
wages are low and prices and work days continue to get
higher/longer. She is overworked. She is writing for all the
workers at the factory.

20. WWI Labor Issues
 1919- First Red Scare
 1919- Year of Strikes
 Boston Police Strike
 Steel Mill Strike
 Coal Miners’ Strike
 IWW (International workers of the world-
accused of being communists)
 Labor Movement of Loft Appeal because
of connects of communism

21. Roaring 20s (Coolidge Era)
 Laissez- fair because
of WWI
 Standard of Living
increase but extreme
income gap

22. Crash
 Black Tuesday- stock market crash (panic)
 Suicide Rates triple in 1929
 S – Notice bottom right, “Billions lost” and
“Panic” in the title; these two phrases
perfectly reflect Black Tuesday.

23. Great Depression
 Hoovers Econ Policy- “Too little, Too late”
 Sad and Poor
 S-The Great Depression not only put the US
economy into a depression but people fell into
depression because there were not jobs
available. People had to move out of their
homes and into the street.

24. FDR and New Deal
 ABC soup
 Economy
 FDIC
 SEC- securities and exchange commission
 Labor
 Wagner Act
 NLRB
 Fair Standards Act
 Social Security Act of 1905

25. WWII and Coming out of
Great Depression
 1940-1945- Government takes over
economy
 OPA
 NWLB
 WPB

26. Post WWII Economy
 1946- Unemployment Rises (Normalizes)
 Inflation Skyrockets
 Because of fragility during the war, people
wanted to spend $
 Taft Hartley Act (Anti- Labor Act)

27. Taft- Hartley Act
The Taft-Hartley act was proposed by Senator Robert Taft
and Representative Fred Hartley in 1947 to amend the
Wagner Act of 1935 as well as nullifying parts of the Federal
Anti-Junction Act of 1932. The Taft- Hartley act was
originally vetoed by President Truman but was passed by
congress, the act was a labor demobilization effort by
congress, the Act further empowered the National Labor
Relations Board, limited the union’s ability to strike, allowed
the federal court to enforce collective bargaining,
permitted states to pass right to work laws, and banned
closed shop unions. The Taft-Hartley Act was significant not
just because it severely restricted unions but because the
Taft Hartley Act shifted the balance of power away from
unions and once again back to big business owners similar
to the start of the Gilded Age.

28. 50s
 Laissez- Fair
 Automania- American obsession with
cars, lots more cars and roads, pollution
rises
 Rise of the Suburbs

29. LBJ
 64-66-LBJ’s Great Society (led to decrease
poverty but increased national debt)
 Space Program- increased defense system
and focused on education

30. Nixon/Ford (1969-1974)
 Slagflation
(67-73)- high unemployment
combined with high inflation
 OPEC Embargo (73- 74)- sent inflation sky high
 74 trade resumes, prices quadruple
 Nixonopened up trades again with China
which led to US products being made in China
and 3rd world countries

31. Carter(77-81)/ Reagan
 Carter
Admin- second OPEC price spike-
incomplete embargo
 Inflation rose to double digits
 Reagan Admin.- Reaganomics- trickle- down
theory, taxes cuts, budget cuts, increase
defeciet spending

32. Discuss the economic and political reasons
for the establishment of unions after the Civil
War.
Although the economy was prosperous after
the Civil War, conflicting views between big
business owners and laborers caused the
formation of unions, such as the Knights of
Labor and the American Federation of
Labor, due to the decreasing wages, while
an increase in the cost of living, and a larger
profit margin of the businesses.

33. Outline
 1. Decrease in wages
 a. Mass production
 b. Poverty of Population (Jungle)
 c. Unskilled v. Skilled labor
 2. Increase in Cost of Living
 a. Pullman Strike
 I. Due to increase in rent
 II. Cost of food went up
 b. Population density increase ->Supply/demand
imbalance
 I. First arrived in the Jungle
 3. Larger profit margin
 a. Mass production -> Cheaper Product
 b. Business profit increase while worker wage decrease
unhappy labor

34. Cause and Effect
 Cause: British continued taxing goods that the
colonist bought and needed (helped the British
economy)
 Effect: The Revolutionary War
 Cause: Eli Whitney used interchangeable parts
in factory assembly lines
 Effect: Mass production and better American
economy because exports could be shipped
more frequently

35. Cause and Effect
 The Pullman strike was caused by a decrease in wages
while the price of housing was maintained at the same
rate. The Pullman Strike was important because it was one
of the first national strikes and affected about two thirds of
the United States. By the end of the strike many strikers were
without jobs and were living in worse conditions than
before and George Pullman, owner of the Pullman
Company, lost an estimated $5 million dollars.
 Slavery was caused by the need for a cheap labor force in
the new colonies and lasted until the Civil War and was
officially ended in 1865 when the 13th amendment
abolished slavery all throughout the nation. Slavery
affected the economy because it provided a cheap work
force which in turn lowered the prices of goods, but slavery
was one of the main causes in the Civil War.

36. Cause and Effect
 WWII is often credited with ending the Great Depression;
and it did bring unemployment to a record low. However,
WWII was also responsible for the slump of the 60s and 70s.
Due to war damages, European countries no longer had a
high demand for American goods. This led to the high
unemployment rates of the 60s and 70s.
 Cause Effect
 WWII End of Great Depression
 Poorer global economy
 Historians now blame Jackson’s Specie Circular for the
Panic of 1837; however, land speculation and bad banking
practices were the reason for the Specie Circular.
 Banking Policy- Underlying Cause
 Specie Circular- Perceived Cause
 Panic of 1837- Ultimate Effect
 Irresponsible speculation- underlying Cause