Free Essays on Progressive Era

â€Å"We are in a period of clamor, of bewilderment, of an almost tremulous unrest. We are hastily revising all our social conceptions. We are hastily testing all our political ideas.† This comment by Walter Weyl reflects the mammoth social and political changes that emerged during the turn of the previous century. During the early years of the 20th century, American’s experienced social and political change that would come to influence American society, as we know it today. The major cause of these changes was the American people responding to the social and economic impacts of industrialism. Americans now wanted to reshape their nation by diminishing the powers of big business, improving conditions for the consumer, and reforming the political parties. After the death of President William McKinley in 1901, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was sworn into office. Not only did the nation now have a new president, but with reform in mind, a new political and social ideology was being born known as progressivism. Roosevelt’s presidency would be like none other before. The glaring social, political, and economic issues of the day would be the force that drove this American president. One of the most important contributions to the progressive movement was Roosevelt’s tough stance against the monopolies and trusts that were encroaching upon all of America’s strongest industries. Most notably was Roosevelt’s enforcement of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890, which had never been enforced by previous administrations. He launched his campaign by bringing suits against monopolies such as the United States Steel Company and the Northern Securities Company, citing that they were in violation of this legislation. Roosevelt’s triumph in these cases not only set precedent for future cases, but also strengthened the federal government’s regulatory power over private industry. Some of the important results of this newfound... Free Essays on Progressive Era Free Essays on Progressive Era â€Å"We are in a period of clamor, of bewilderment, of an almost tremulous unrest. We are hastily revising all our social conceptions. We are hastily testing all our political ideas.† This comment by Walter Weyl reflects the mammoth social and political changes that emerged during the turn of the previous century. During the early years of the 20th century, American’s experienced social and political change that would come to influence American society, as we know it today. The major cause of these changes was the American people responding to the social and economic impacts of industrialism. Americans now wanted to reshape their nation by diminishing the powers of big business, improving conditions for the consumer, and reforming the political parties. After the death of President William McKinley in 1901, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was sworn into office. Not only did the nation now have a new president, but with reform in mind, a new political and social ideology was being born known as progressivism. Roosevelt’s presidency would be like none other before. The glaring social, political, and economic issues of the day would be the force that drove this American president. One of the most important contributions to the progressive movement was Roosevelt’s tough stance against the monopolies and trusts that were encroaching upon all of America’s strongest industries. Most notably was Roosevelt’s enforcement of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890, which had never been enforced by previous administrations. He launched his campaign by bringing suits against monopolies such as the United States Steel Company and the Northern Securities Company, citing that they were in violation of this legislation. Roosevelt’s triumph in these cases not only set precedent for future cases, but also strengthened the federal government’s regulatory power over private industry. Some of the important results of this newfound... Free Essays on Progressive Era Housing in general, living accommodations available for the inhabitants of a community. Throughout the 19th century, with the advent of the Industrial Revolution, housing as a problem worsened as urban populations expanded. The crowding of cities and factory towns by workers led not only to severe housing shortages but also to the deterioration of existing housing and the growth of slums. The problem was aggravated by the erection of substandard housing for workers and by speculators seeking high profits. The housing question is the most fundamental of social problems relating to environment. The dictum of the late Cardinal Manning, "Domestic life creates a nation," is absolutely sound. The corollary is also true: the lack of domestic life will unmake a nation. The home is the character unit of society; and, where there is little or no opportunity for the free play of influences which make for health, happiness, and virtue, we must expect social degeneration and decay. Great cities are the danger points of modern civilization, and any community which leaves to a large part of its inhabitants inadequate facilities for the true development of domestic life must fight deteriorating forces at tremendous cost. The relation between humanity and its environment is very close. Strong-willed, intelligent people may create or modify environment. The weaker-willed, the careless, and the unreflecting are dominated by environment. Such is a fairly rough estimate of the relation. For all but the e xceptionally strong and virile, home environment determines the trend of life. Populous masses herded together, as they are over large areas of the tenement regions of New York City, with difficulty resist the influences by which they are surrounded. The relation between poverty and bad tenement housing was also recognized by many charitable organizations and they compared them to a contagious disease. Then, too, there is the great question of drunke...