US Unit 5, Lesson 1

Farmers, the Wild West & Populism

I. The Wild Wild West

A. Native Americans & Expansion1. Expansion stood in the way of the Native Americans2. Remember the Trail of Tears (Andrew Jackson)3. By the 1840s only scattered groups of Native Americans

lived in the east4. Most lived west of the Mississippi river on land that no

one wanted.

5. Three things happened to change this situationCalifornia Gold RushTranscontinental railroadEasterners discovered the rich farmland of the Great Plains

B. Indian Wars

1. From the 1850s-1890s a series of Indian wars raged in the West

2. Gradually the Indians were forced onto smaller and smaller areas of land known as reservations.

3. The Indians tried to resist but lost because their weapons were primitive, they were outnumbered by white settlers, and they were disunified.

4. The defeat of the Sioux Indians at Wounded Knee, South Dakota in 1890 is usually considered the end of the Indian wars.

C. Changing Government Policies

1. Indians were given reservation land that rarely could produce adequate crops or support enough game for the people living on it.

2. 1887 Dawes Act: proposed to break up tribes and give land directly to the Indian families (Goal: Americanize them)

3. By 1900 government policies had reduced the size of the Indian population and made them the poorest Americans

D. The Economy of the West

1) New technologies helped settlers who moved onto Indian lands exploit the wealth of the West. railroadmechanical reapers/farm toolsplowwindmillsbarbed wire

2) Riches of the West took many forms.farms (grain)gold, silver, copper, oilranches (cattle) lead, zinc

Theme:

“Explain the reasons for agrarian discontent and evaluate the validity of the farmers’ complaints during the 1890s.”

II. Farmers’ Complaints:

A. By 1890, American farmers were raising enough to feed the nation AND still export wheat and other crops.

B. Crop prices: The price of wheat and corn and cotton had boomed right after the Civil War but after the Panic of 1873 prices went down. Why?

1. blizzards, droughts, infestations 2. competition from foreign producers

B. High fees of big business: Farm equipment was often sold cheaper overseas

C. High fees of banks: Farmers had to borrow money to purchase equipment and supplies. Banks charged high interest rates.

D. High fees of railroads1. Railroads bribed state legislatures 2. Farmers paid more to ship crops short distances than over long hauls3. Railroads charged high prices for warehouses and

storage facilities.

III. Farmer Organizations

A. The Grange or “Patrons of Husbandry” was formed in 1867. (husbandry=farming)

1. Many farmers facing the hardships and isolation of rural life joined the Grange.

2. The Grange’s grandest gripe was the abuses of the railroad industry.a. The Grange began to press for political changes to limit

the power of the railroads. b. Pressure from the Grange and other groups led to the

state laws regulating railroads that were upheld in the Supreme Court Case of Munn v. Illinois, and the federal law creating the Interstate Commerce Commission.

B. The Farmers’ Alliance1. 1889: Several regional organizations formed the

National Farmers’ Alliance and Industrial Union—3 million white members

2. The Grange had pushed for legislation but the Farmers’ Alliance ran for offices.

C. Birth of Populist Party 1892- Representatives from the Farmers’ Alliance, Knights of Labor and National Colored Farmers’ Alliance met in St. Louis and adopted a platform for the new People’s Party.

Theme:

Analyze the reasons for the emergence of the Populist movement in the late 19th century.

IV. Populist Party

A. Farmers realized that their best hope of winning more reforms was the formation of a new political party.

B. Support: The Populists had grass roots support-- common people (farmers)

C. Goals: Read A Populist Prescription for Social Reform People’s Party Platform of 1892

1. When was the Populist party first organized? 1892

2. Who was their first presidential nominee? James Weaver

3. What types of people were part of the Populist party? Farmers, workers

4. Name at least five “social ills” that the Populist party sought to address?

corruption in politicsdemoralized peoplebriberynewspapers silencedpeople in debtlabor impoverishedno unionsimmigrants take cheap jobsrich steal money from workers2 classes: tramps and millionaires

5. How was paper money funded? What did the Populists want?Gold; free coinage of silver

6. What did the Populists accuse the other two political parties of?Power strugglesThey ignored the people.They helped big business.

7. What did the Populists claim their purpose was?To form a more perfect Union and ensure justice

8. What was the Populist view about the Civil War?It was over. All the passion and resentment should end and the country should work together. No more “waving the bloody shirt.”

9. Did the Populist party want the powers of government extended? yes

10. Does this represent a loose or strict view of the Constitution? Loose

11. Who do the Populist say the wealth of the United States belongs to? People “He who creates it.”

12. What do the Populists want the role of government to be in regards to the railroad? Government should own the railroad.

13. What do the Populists want in regards to the coinage of currency?Free and unlimited coinage of silver

14. What type of tax do the Populists believe is fair? Graduated income tax

15. What type of election reforms do the Populists advocate?Secret ballot; fair count

16. What is the Populist position regarding immigration? Restrict immigration to help American workers.

17. How do the Populists want to limit the terms of federal officeholders?1 term for president and vice-presidentDirect election of senators

Video clip: Populist Party 3 minutes

V. Election of 1892

A. Candidates: Populist James Weaver, Democrat and former president Grover Cleveland, incumbent (sitting) President Republican Benjamin Harrison.

B. A severe economic depression took hold in the 1890s.

C. Jacob Coxey marched an army of unemployed people into Washington, D.C. to demand that the government do something

D. Strikes went on all over the nation. (Homestead 1892, Pullman 1894)

E. Cleveland Wins!

VI. Election of 1896:

William Jennings Bryan (Populist & Democratic candidate) vs. William McKinley (Republican)

A. Chief Populist Issue: “free silver”1. This free coinage of silver would produce “cheap

money.” 2. Currency inflated in value would make it easier for

farmers to pay off debts.3. Free coinage of silver would put more money in the

hands of farmers and consumers than the gold standard used by the United States at that time.

4. There was more silver to be found and mined out west than gold.

Who won the election?

William McKinley—for a number of reasons

1) Big Business wasn’t fond of the idea of free silver.

2) Many blacks still voted with the Republicans (anti Solid-South)

The Wizard of Oz as a Populist Allegory

A. The book, the Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum was first published in 1900. While it has enjoyed generations as a children’s tale about the colorful, magical land of Oz, it is actually an allegory (metaphor).

B. An allegory is defined as the expression of truths or generalizations about human existence by means of symbolic fictional figures and actions.

C. So what is the relationship between the Populist Movement and the Actions and Figures of the Wizard of Oz?

The story begins with Dorothy, a simple girl from Kansas. She lives on a farm with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry. She runs away from home in order to protect her dog from being taken. And, after being knocked out during a tornado, finds herself “over the rainbow”… a place where she fantasizes that everything in her life will be wonderful, and all her problems will disappear.

Who does Dorothy symbolize in our Populist story?

“Follow, follow, follow, follow,follow the yellow brick road.”

In the book Dorothy’s slippers are not ruby, but silver. The shoes represent the silver issue, and silver is the solution for Dorothy to get home. Hollywood used ruby since they couldn’t find any fancy silver shoes. The yellow brick road is also the gold standard. At the time, that was the only way to Oz.

Along the way to the Emerald City, Dorothy meets a Scarecrow, who has no brain. He wants to go with her so that the Wizard will give him one. At the end of the book, the Wizard is dethroned, and the Scarecrow rules Emerald City.

Who is the Scarecrow?

In the story, Baum tells us that the Wicked Witch has kept the Munchkin people “in bondage for many years, making them a slave for her night and day.” And, as we all know, the Wicked Witch spends most of the story going after Dorothy. Obviously, Baum is saying that the Witch is hurting Dorothy (common person).Who or what might the Wicked Witch symbolize in our populist story?

Next, Dorothy and the scarecrow meet the Tinman. Baum describes him as a one-time independent and hard working businessman. He had been put under a spell by the witch so that every time he swung his ax it chopped off a different part of his body. But, he works even harder than ever, and becomes like a machine, dehumanized, incapable of love (no heart). So, who is he in our story?

Next, the group meets a cowardly lion in the forest. At first, they are afraid of him and his loud roar. But they soon realize that he isn’t mean and powerful at all, but really a coward. He talks a good game, but really doesn’t get the job done in the long run. Who does the Lion represent?

Lets watch…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1PfVVFq97I tornado http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ati1qZjaeu8 follow the yellow

brick road http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nauLgZISozs if I only had a brain http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=louBM-Mix7s meet the tinman http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2itQkiQUOE coward http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SESI19h4wDo monkeys http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wC871hNBig4 emerald city

The Wizard represents the President. Like all good politicians, he can be all things to all people. He was a common man, but became President, and tried to hide who he was from the people. The throne room was like the White House, a good place to hide from the people.

Water

Dorothy managed to kill the Witch by throwing water on her. Baum placed a great deal of symbolism in this. The water is supposed to be a solution for the farmers, a way to take care of the drought. It also shows that he felt that bimetalism would solve the nation’s problems, and rid it of the Wicked Witch.

Winged Monkeys

Symbolized the Plains Indians “Once we were a free people, living happily in the great

forest, flying from tree to tree, eating nuts and fruit and doing just as we pleased without calling anybody master.”

The Good Witch (Glinda) symbolizes the power the South would have given the Populists had it united with the West in the election.

Munchkins

They represented immigrants—short little people who looked different from everyone else-

Dorothy represents the common person. Being from the midwest, and a farmer, she represents the interests of

most Populists at that time. She represents hope, humanity, and intelligence in each American citizen.

The scarecrow is the farmer. The farmer is viewed as ignorant, and “without a brain.” That is reversed later as Baum, a Populist, ends the story with the farmers ruling the city, and having great power.

The Wicked Witch represents the large industrial corporations and eastern finance companies that are hurting people in the west—i.e. railroads & banks.

The Tinman (Tin Woodsman) represents urban industrial workers, hurt mostly by the actions of the witch (corporations and eastern finance). He symbolizes the dehumanized eastern workforce, no longer craftsmen after the Industrial Revolution in America.

The lion is William Jennings Bryan, who won over so many with his powerful “Cross of Gold Speech.” But in the long run, he didn’t have the influence, power, or $$$ to win the Presidency or help the Populists.

Social Issues at the End of the 19th Century

• The defeat of the Populists symbolized the great changes that had swept the nation since the Civil War.

• The economy had changed from agrarian to industrial.• United States was a country of cities rather than farms and

villages.• The frontier was closing.• Native Americans were dying out.• New immigrants were coming in to diversify the culture.• Blacks were not getting rights and Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

made separate but equal legal.• Big business dominated government with much corruption.• Labor Unions were not supported by government.