MAKING OF A SUPERPOWER EXAM
REVIEW QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE
ANSWERS
Compromise of 1877 - Election Results - ANSWER-On Election Day that November,
the Democrats appeared to come out on top, winning the swing states of
Connecticut, Indiana, New York and New Jersey. By midnight, Tilden had had 184 of
the 185 electoral votes he needed to win, and was leading the popular vote by
250'000. The Republicans refused to accept defeat, however, and accused
Democratic supporters of intimidating and bribing African-American voters to prevent
them from voting in three southern states - Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina.
As of 1876, these were the only remaining states in the South with Republican
governments.
Compromise of 1877 - Congress Steps In - ANSWER-During the commissions
deliberations, Hayes' Republican allies met in secret with moderate southern
Democrats in hopes of convincing them not to block the official counting of votes
through filibuster and effectively all Hayes election. In February, at a meeting help in
Washington's Wormley Hotel, the Democrats agreed to accept a Hayes victory, and
to respect the civil and political rights of African-Americans, on the condition that
Republicans withdraw all federal troops from South, thus consolidating Democratic
control in the region. Hayes would have to agree to name a leading southerner to his
cabinet and to support federal aid for the Texas and Pacific Railroad, a planned
transcontinental line via a southern route.
Compromise of 1877 - The End of Reconstruction - ANSWER-The Southern
Democrats promise about protecting civil and political rights for blacks wasn't kept,
and the end of federal interference in southern affairs led to widespread
disenfranchisement of black voters. From then on laws were passed separating
blacks on public transport, education, restaurants, etc. - Jim Crow Laws
President Hayes - ANSWER-Rutherford B Hayes was a lawyer from Cincinnati in
Ohio. In 1861 he volunteered to serve as an officer in the Union Army and was
wounded five times during the Civil War. He was elected to Congress in 1865 and
served three terms as Governor of Ohio. Hayes was the republican candidate for the
presidency in the disputed election of 1876, after which he agreed to the
compromise of 1877. He kept his promise to be a one-term president and had some
success in restoring the prestige of the office.
President Arthur - ANSWER-Chester Arthur, the 21st U.S. President, took office after
the death of President James Garfield. As president form 1881-1885, Arthur
advocated for civil service reform. A Vermont native, he became active in Republican
politics in the 1850s as a New York City lawyer. In 1871, an era of political machines
and patronage, Arthur was named to the powerful position of customs collector for
the Port of New York. Ha later was removed from the job by President Rutherford
Hayes in an attempt to reform the spoils system. Elected to the vice presidency in
1880, Arthur rose above partisanship and in 1883 signed the Pendleton Act, which
, required government jobs to be disrupted based on merit. Suffering from poor health,
he did not run for reelection in 1884
President Cleveland - ANSWER-Rose to the top through Democratic politics in New
York, first as Mayor of Buffalo and then as Governor of New York State. He won the
presidential election of 1884 on an anti-corruption campaign, but then lost the 1888
election to Benjamin Harrison. Cleveland won back the presidency by defeating
Harrison in 1892 but was undermined by the Panic of 1893 and the rise of populism.
Political Corruption - Pork-Barrel politics - ANSWER-A term used to illustrate the way
politicians passed laws to dole out federal funds to reward favoured people or
regions that had backed them. Both the main parties, especially at state and local
level, were shot through with patronage and pork-barrel politics.
Political Corruption - The Tweed Ring - ANSWER-Boss Tweed had his associates
appointed to key city and country posts, thus establishing a network of corruption
that became known as the "Tweed Ring". In 1860, Tweed opened a law office,
despite not being a lawyer, and began receiving large payments from corporations
for his "legal services" (which were in fact extortions hidden under the guise of the
law). He was reaping vast sums of illegal cash by this time, and he brought up acres
of Manhattan real estate. He began wearing a large diamond attached to the front of
his shirt, an object that received endless lampooning from his detractors (whose
numbers were growing quickly). In 1868, Tweed became grand sachem of Tammany
Hall and was also elected to the New York Senate, and in 1870 he and his cronies
took control of the city treasury when they passed a new city charter that named
them as the board of audit. In full force now, the Tweed ring began to financially
drain the city of New York though fake leases, false vouchers, extravagantly padded
bills and various other schemes set up and controlled by the ring.
Radical Reconstruction - Accomplishments - ANSWER-Primary accomplishments
involved freeing the slaves and granting them the basic rights of citizenship. This
was primarily accomplished though passage of the 13th, 14th and 15th
amendments, as well as supporting legislation. The Radical Republicans also
oversaw the military control of the Southern States. The Republicans actually made
a great deal of progress in terms of providing rights for minorities and supressing
white backlash. The problem was that the gains were not lasting. There was a
retrenchment after reconstruction ended and the political will to continue protection
of minority rights disappeared.
Radical Reconstruction - Failures - ANSWER-Radical Reconstruction failed to
change the basic race relations in the US (because there was no way it could), which
would have been necessary for real progress in that area. It failed to elevate freed
slaves into anything like educational or economic equality. And it failed to enforce
those progressive reconstruction policies that did pass.
Gilded Age - ANSWER-A label for the growth of America in the later nineteenth
century.
Gilded Age - Industry - ANSWER-New technologies improved industrial amd
agricultural productivity. There were the "titans of industry" like John D. Rockefeller,
REVIEW QUESTIONS WITH COMPLETE
ANSWERS
Compromise of 1877 - Election Results - ANSWER-On Election Day that November,
the Democrats appeared to come out on top, winning the swing states of
Connecticut, Indiana, New York and New Jersey. By midnight, Tilden had had 184 of
the 185 electoral votes he needed to win, and was leading the popular vote by
250'000. The Republicans refused to accept defeat, however, and accused
Democratic supporters of intimidating and bribing African-American voters to prevent
them from voting in three southern states - Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina.
As of 1876, these were the only remaining states in the South with Republican
governments.
Compromise of 1877 - Congress Steps In - ANSWER-During the commissions
deliberations, Hayes' Republican allies met in secret with moderate southern
Democrats in hopes of convincing them not to block the official counting of votes
through filibuster and effectively all Hayes election. In February, at a meeting help in
Washington's Wormley Hotel, the Democrats agreed to accept a Hayes victory, and
to respect the civil and political rights of African-Americans, on the condition that
Republicans withdraw all federal troops from South, thus consolidating Democratic
control in the region. Hayes would have to agree to name a leading southerner to his
cabinet and to support federal aid for the Texas and Pacific Railroad, a planned
transcontinental line via a southern route.
Compromise of 1877 - The End of Reconstruction - ANSWER-The Southern
Democrats promise about protecting civil and political rights for blacks wasn't kept,
and the end of federal interference in southern affairs led to widespread
disenfranchisement of black voters. From then on laws were passed separating
blacks on public transport, education, restaurants, etc. - Jim Crow Laws
President Hayes - ANSWER-Rutherford B Hayes was a lawyer from Cincinnati in
Ohio. In 1861 he volunteered to serve as an officer in the Union Army and was
wounded five times during the Civil War. He was elected to Congress in 1865 and
served three terms as Governor of Ohio. Hayes was the republican candidate for the
presidency in the disputed election of 1876, after which he agreed to the
compromise of 1877. He kept his promise to be a one-term president and had some
success in restoring the prestige of the office.
President Arthur - ANSWER-Chester Arthur, the 21st U.S. President, took office after
the death of President James Garfield. As president form 1881-1885, Arthur
advocated for civil service reform. A Vermont native, he became active in Republican
politics in the 1850s as a New York City lawyer. In 1871, an era of political machines
and patronage, Arthur was named to the powerful position of customs collector for
the Port of New York. Ha later was removed from the job by President Rutherford
Hayes in an attempt to reform the spoils system. Elected to the vice presidency in
1880, Arthur rose above partisanship and in 1883 signed the Pendleton Act, which
, required government jobs to be disrupted based on merit. Suffering from poor health,
he did not run for reelection in 1884
President Cleveland - ANSWER-Rose to the top through Democratic politics in New
York, first as Mayor of Buffalo and then as Governor of New York State. He won the
presidential election of 1884 on an anti-corruption campaign, but then lost the 1888
election to Benjamin Harrison. Cleveland won back the presidency by defeating
Harrison in 1892 but was undermined by the Panic of 1893 and the rise of populism.
Political Corruption - Pork-Barrel politics - ANSWER-A term used to illustrate the way
politicians passed laws to dole out federal funds to reward favoured people or
regions that had backed them. Both the main parties, especially at state and local
level, were shot through with patronage and pork-barrel politics.
Political Corruption - The Tweed Ring - ANSWER-Boss Tweed had his associates
appointed to key city and country posts, thus establishing a network of corruption
that became known as the "Tweed Ring". In 1860, Tweed opened a law office,
despite not being a lawyer, and began receiving large payments from corporations
for his "legal services" (which were in fact extortions hidden under the guise of the
law). He was reaping vast sums of illegal cash by this time, and he brought up acres
of Manhattan real estate. He began wearing a large diamond attached to the front of
his shirt, an object that received endless lampooning from his detractors (whose
numbers were growing quickly). In 1868, Tweed became grand sachem of Tammany
Hall and was also elected to the New York Senate, and in 1870 he and his cronies
took control of the city treasury when they passed a new city charter that named
them as the board of audit. In full force now, the Tweed ring began to financially
drain the city of New York though fake leases, false vouchers, extravagantly padded
bills and various other schemes set up and controlled by the ring.
Radical Reconstruction - Accomplishments - ANSWER-Primary accomplishments
involved freeing the slaves and granting them the basic rights of citizenship. This
was primarily accomplished though passage of the 13th, 14th and 15th
amendments, as well as supporting legislation. The Radical Republicans also
oversaw the military control of the Southern States. The Republicans actually made
a great deal of progress in terms of providing rights for minorities and supressing
white backlash. The problem was that the gains were not lasting. There was a
retrenchment after reconstruction ended and the political will to continue protection
of minority rights disappeared.
Radical Reconstruction - Failures - ANSWER-Radical Reconstruction failed to
change the basic race relations in the US (because there was no way it could), which
would have been necessary for real progress in that area. It failed to elevate freed
slaves into anything like educational or economic equality. And it failed to enforce
those progressive reconstruction policies that did pass.
Gilded Age - ANSWER-A label for the growth of America in the later nineteenth
century.
Gilded Age - Industry - ANSWER-New technologies improved industrial amd
agricultural productivity. There were the "titans of industry" like John D. Rockefeller,
