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From The Reconstruction Era Through 1929 American Changed

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From the Reconstruction Era through 1929 American changed drastically, economically, socially, and politically. The development of America’s society, economics, and politics is what defined America as a country. Of the three major ways that America developed from the Reconstruction era through 1929, the greatest catalyst for change was the economic developments because the rise and fall of the economy influenced both social and political developments. The development of America’s economy from the Reconstruction Era through 1929 greatly affected the lifestyle of Americans on both the governmental and civilian level. The Civil War greatly affected the economy of America, care of wounded soldiers cost over of 1/5 of their annual budget (pg. …show more content…

561) Rockefeller, the owner of Standard Oil, tried to bypass those laws by organizing the Standard Oil Trust, giving him the legal power to manage other companies’ money (pg. 561). Large businesses such as Standard Oil could gain influence in politics through means such as bribery therefore, bringing corrupt influences into the government. The developments on American’s society greatly fluctuated as women and African Americans fought for equal rights. Black men and women have fought for rights in America since the beginning of slavery throughout the country. Once the Civil War ended parts of the government stepped in to help. The Freedmen’s Bureau was one of the first federal organizations which held out a hand. “It was the first federal experiment in providing assistance directly to the people rather than to states.” (Shi and Tindall, pg. 515) The Freedmen’s Bureau set schools for African Americans throughout former confederate states. Soon after the birth of the Freedmen’s Bureau, black men gained the right to vote through the Fifteenth Amendment. Even through the federal assistance African Americans still were not close to equality. The African Methodist Episcopal was the first institution which former slaves could control, the black ministers were seen as social and political leaders as well as preachers (pg. 523) The first real sign of freedom

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