Economic, Social, and Political Problems in the Post-Civil War era

The United States has had tension with Asian immigrants since the first wave of migration in the 1840’s, and in 1882 the United States declared a Chinese Exclusion which was to keep all Chinese from migrating into the United States. For the Chinese already in the U.S this created worry and tension. With the Chinese people no longer being welcome the freedom for the Chinese inside which was already not much was even more condensed. The little equality that they had was taken away and they were excluded, and looked down upon everywhere they went. They had trouble living and socially because of the prejudice they were facing. An example of the Chinese struggle before the exclusion act would be the Chinese Lynching that took place in 1871. In Los Angeles a mob captured men and in this case a 12 year old boy and hung them all at a Spanish hacienda because of the citizens strong discrimination against

The economies of the North and South were vastly different leading up to the Civil War. Money was equivalent to power in both regions. For the North, the economy was based on industry as they were more modern and self-aware. They realized that industrialization was progress and it could help rid the country of slave labor as it was wrong. The North’s population had a class system but citizens could move within the system, provided they made the money that would allow them to move up in class. The class system was not as rigid as it was in the South. By comparison, the South wanted to hold on to its economic policy. In doing so, the practice of slavery kept the social order firmly in place. The economic factors, social issues and a growing

Although the American Civil War mainly occurred because of slavery, the fact is that slavery had a lot to do with economic and social issues.

After the civil war, businesses began to become big, they grew significantly in size, number and mostly in influence. Different corporations and businesses grew so much that they had a big effect and so much power and control in America. the businesses began to influence the people of america, the politics and the economy in america. As these companies and businesses grew, some became really powerful which was a good and bad thing. In post-Civil War United States, big businesses and corporations grew with both positive and negative impacts on politics, the economy and the responses of Americans.

As the rich became richer and the poor became poorer, it was realized by the laborers of the railroad that their nation's economic growth and prosperity was not being equally shared among the people. Coupled with years of wage cuts (35% over 3 years), and workforce reductions, that then required remaining workers to work 15-18 hour days, the workers fought back.

The Pullman Strike of 1894 was the first national strike in American history and it came about during a period of unrest with labor unions and controversy regarding the role of government in business.5 The strike officially started when employees organized and went to their supervisors to ask for a lowered rent and were refused.5 The strike had many different causes. For example, workers wanted higher wages and fewer working hours, but the companies would not give it to them; and the workers wanted better, more affordable living quarters, but the companies would not offer that to them either. These different causes created an interesting and controversial end to the Pullman strike. Because of this, questions were raised about the strike

As the United States began to establish itself as a country, more and more problems began to surface within the nation. A perfect example of this would be the American Civil War, which significantly affected society. This brought about many changes within America such as women’s rights movements and decisions regarding African American freedom. Also many of the problems are country had previously left unresolved were soon to be resolved too. The social changes of the American Civil War and Reconstruction Era greatly affected the years that followed it as well.

The Great Railroad strike occurred in 1877 and started in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The original incident was when major railroad companies announced that there would be another wage cut of ten percent, after workers’ wages were already slashed during the financial panic of 1873. This economic downfall caused hundreds of laborers to leave their jobs and go on strike. The word spread to cities across the country that railroad workers were striking causing a domino effect of strikes within other railroad companies as well as other professions. The initial strike led to violence causing the loss of

The United States post-Civil War era from 1875 to 1900 experienced massive economic and industrial growth, especially in the North. The rise of new machines, industries (railroad, oil, steel), and buildings contributed to a major upsurge in the prosperity of the American nation. In 1860, no American city had a population over one million; by 1890, three cities had passed the million mark. New York City became the second largest city in the world after London in 1900. The substantial growth of the U.S economically can be contributed to a group of wealthy capitalists that ran businesses/industries and stimulated economic growth. However, historians have argued over whether these capitalists were “robber barons” that were corrupt and took advantage of the American people or “captains of industry” that helped the U.S grow at unparalleled speeds. Wealthy capitalists such as Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller were indeed “captains of industry” who enlarged American industry and businesses, used their wealth to better their communities, and elevated the United States to new heights as one of the leading industrial powers of the entire world.

The events that comes to mind when most of people talk about the U.S history are the Civil War and the Reconstruction. The Civil War was the turning point in the U.S history, while the Reconstruction brought order out of chaos of the Civil War. After all these, the U.S grows rapidly and becomes a superpower today. From my perspective, the most important cause of the Civil War is the conflict between the northern capitalism economy and the sourthern plantation economy. And the Reconstruction did spread freedom and brought more oppotunities, but it still remain a varirty of problems.

Since the Civil War brought extensive economic change to the United States, civilians in the North and South faced many economic challenges. "In the North the arms, metalworkings, boot making, and shipbuilding industries boomed, but the scarcity of cotton caused widespread layoffs and closures in the textile industry" (Keene, 391). Even though workers' salaries rose by forty percent, prices increased even faster, resulting in inflation that averaged fifteen percent. Despite the North's economic hardships, the problems the South faced were far worse. "The Southern economy was hit hard by the cessation of trade with the North and Europe due to the Union blockade" (Keene, 391). Southern industry and agriculture were limited by persistent

The United States was challenged with many issues after the Civil War like crop lien work contracts, segregation, and unresolved problems with the seceded states. This period was called Reconstruction.

After the Civil War, the United States went through a period of rapid industrialization which affected the nation dramatically. Industrial growth, the spread of railroads, the rise of big businesses, and the appearance of labor unions during these decades created a modern industrial economy, and American workers and farmers faced new challenges in adapting to these changes.

corporations. The abuse of economic power by railroads proposed another problem for Roosevelt. However, in 1903,

The Homestead Movement was ultimately was ineffective because no inconsequential change occurred due to the violence of this movement. In 1892, Eugene V. Debs formed the American Railway Union, which resulted in one of the largest strikes in American history: the Pullman Strike (Ushistory.org). When workers repudiated to capitulate the pay cut in their checks, the Pullman Car Company fired 500 employees. Debs and members of the American Railway Union boycotted trains that used Pullman cars. On July 4, mobs started to tip over rail cars using fireworks since the federal troops sent in by President Grover Cleveland to handle the situation (Ladd). “This burning and rioting came to a zenith on July 6, when fires caused by some 6,000 rioters destroyed 700 railcars and caused $340,000 of damages in the South Chicago Panhandle yard” (Hofstader). Ultimately, the violence used in the Pullman Movement proved ineffective in attaining social change because the worker’s pay was not rehabilitated. The Labor Force Movements were more effective, however, in attaining social change compared to the Homestead and Pullman violent Strikes. The Labor Movements brought a halt to child labor, and gave health benefits, and aid to retired or injured workers. One of the hallmarks of the Labor Movement, are the strikes formed in which many workers