PopulismA response to the effects of industrialization on rural America

Question for thought:How do the Populists' political demands illustrate the major economic and social problems facing American society in the 1890s?

Origins of PopulismGranger Movement and Farmers Alliances arise to deal with negative of effects of industrialization on farms.Share-croppingRailroad ratesMerchants

Crop Lien SystemFarmers borrow on credit for seeds, equipment, essentials - interest as high as 18%Pledge part of their crop as security for the loan and to pay back loanMoney farmer received from crop had to cover the loan, the interest, expenses, and sometimes the next years crop.Sometimes the cost of the loan was 100% of the crop raised and sold

RailroadsCharged higher rates to farmers in the middle of the line than those going from end to end.

The Gold Standardbacks up currency

Populists opposed the rising gap between rich and poor that developed during late nineteenth century America. Talent and hard work alone could not explain the differences. Thus, Populists suspected that the rich had gotten ahead through illegitimate special privileges.

The Granger MovementBegun in 1867 in MinnesotaFarmers are independent, but need an organization to represent themAs individuals they were at the mercy of merchants and the railroadsOrganized they could apply political and economic pressure

A Farmers Alliance Lending Library

The Peoples Party, 1892Grew out of Granger movement and Farmers Alliances

Omaha Platform, 18921. Economic: increase in circulating currency (unlimited coinage of silver), graduated income tax, loan programs2. Transportation: govt ownership of RRs3. Political: Direct election of U.S. senators, secret ballot, initiative referendum and recall

Tom WatsonGovernor of Georgia. Self taught lawyer, had to leave school after two years because lacked funds. Took the lead in trying to mesh Farmers Alliance and Colored Farmers Alliance. You are kept apart so that you may be separately fleeced of your earnings.

Mary Elizabeth LeaseFarmers need to raise less corn and more hell

1892 Election

Results of 1892Jim Weaver, Populist candidate.22 electoral votes, more than 1 mil pop votes.Populists elected to Congress, 3 governors, lots of minor officials.Not do well in South; Democratic party holds strong (fears by whites of losing support for racial segregation by weakening the Dem party)

Depression of 1893Jay Goulds RR goes bankrupt.A run on gold reserves in US.Unemployment, strikes, protestsCoxeys army, unemployed RR workers, marches to D.C., wants govt jobs for the unemployed. Arrested for walking on the grass.

Election of 1896Populists join with DemocratsDem: William Jennings BryanRep: William McKinley

William Jennings Bryan, Cross of Gold SpeechWe are clad in the armor of a righteous cause. hardy pioneers versus financial magnates Burn down your cities and leave our farms and your cities will spring up again as if by magic, but destroy our farms and grass will grow in the streets of every city of the United States You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind on a cross of gold.

William McKinleyGold standardSupported by business and industrial Northeast

1896 election: into which box will the voter of 96 put his ballot?

Vote for Taft this time; you can vote for Bryan any time.

Later, opposition to imperialism

Involvement in the Scopes Trial, 1925Took the stand as a Bible expert (against teacher John Scopes).

Populism, Results:Reactionary nature of Populism leads to downfall.Populist proposals get adopted later.Populist ideals live on.Demands on U.S. govt to protect the people increase as time goes on.

End of PopulismBy 1896, prosperity returns.Spanish-American War encourages patriotismAlliances made by Populists fall apart.

The patriotism of the Spanish-American War of 1898 also played a role in destroying Populism. Criticism of the nation's leaders or institutions can be painted as evidence of disloyalty by opponents during wartime. Thus, reformers usually mute their criticism or are silenced during periods of international turmoil. Most Populists probably supported freeing Cuba from autocratic Spanish rule.

Two interpretations of Populism

1. Richard HofstadterPopulists were nativist and reactionary, pursuing their local agenda; resentful people left out of the benefits of modern society.1950s - consensus / conformity, nativism

2. Lawrence GoodwynPopulists represented the best of democracy in America, a progressive movement to limit the abuses of big govt and industry.1960s - civil rights, democracy

Significance: Late 19th century Populism is important because Populists became one of the most important 3rd parties in U.S. history - helped establish idea that govt is responsible to for its peopleMany Populist ideas become reality later onHistorians debate its meaning, and that of many other events in the past.populism is still a political method used today

Third Parties in U.S. History1. Always lose.2. Often draw support from the similar party, and cause them to lose.3. Raise important issues that are usually adopted later.

Populism and The Wizard of Oz; An AllegoryL. Frank Baum

Some great examples of avatars that embody ideas comes from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. This fairy tale is an allegory of the silver movement at the end of the nineteenth century. Dorothys magical slippers were silver, not ruby, in the original story! After 1887 a series of droughts struck Kansas and as many as three out of four farms were mortgaged in some Kansas counties.

Thousands of settlers like Dorothys Aunt Em and Uncle Henry gave up and retraced their steps East; others trusted in the Farmers Alliance and pinned their hopes on the free coinage of silver. While gold as a standard of currency symbolized the idle rich of the industrial Northeast, silver stood for the common folk. Added to the currency in the form of silver dollars, it meant more money, higher crop prices, and a return of prosperity. Or so the supporters of silver coinage, lead by William Jennings Bryan, believed.

Each character and object in the story represents something in connection with the battle of the standards, even the storys title. "Oz" (ounces) referred to the fight over the ratio of silver to gold. Dorothy wears magical slippers and follows the yellow brick road, thus achieving a proper relationship between the precious metals, silver and gold. Like many of her countrymen, she does not at first recognize the power of the silver slippers, but a kiss from the Good Witch of the North (Northern voters) protects her on the road.

The farmerThe industrial workerDorothy meets the scarecrow (the farmer) who has been told he has no brain but actually possesses great common sense, the Tin Woodman (the industrial worker) who fears he has become heartless but discovers the spirit of love and cooperation,

Populists also contended that farmers and laborers common status as producers made them natural allies. Here, members of the Knights of Labor, Farmers Alliance, and other similar organizations rally together. This coalition worked well in the South and West where both groups largely came from the same ethnic group. The party appeared to make some headway in the heavily-ethnic Northeast and Midwest in the mid-1890s.

and the Cowardly Lion (reformers, particularly William Jennings Bryan) who turns out not to be very cowardly at all.

Dorothy disposes of the Wicked Witch of the West (the eastern money power and those favoring gold) and frees the Munchkins (the common people).

When the four companions reach the Emerald City (the national capital, green-back colored), they meet the "Great and Terrible" Wizard who tells them that, to gain his help, they must destroy the Wicked Witch of the West (mortgage companies, heartless nature, and other things opposing progress there). Courageously, they set forth. Dorothy dissolves the witch with a bucket of water (what else for drought-ridden farmers?,

but when they return to the Emerald City, they find that the Wizard (the money power) is only a charlatan, a manipulator, whose power rests on myth and illusion.

Dorothy unmasks the wizard, and with the help of Glinda, the Good Witch of the South (support for silver was strong in the South), uses the silver slippers to return home to Kansas.

Hilary McLellan, Avatars in Oz, http://www.tech-head.com/oz.htmOriginal source: Henry M. Littlefield, The Wizard of Oz: A Parable on Populism, published in the magazine American Quarterly in 1964, available on-line at http://www.amphigory.com/oz.htm

Pink Floyds Dark Side of the Moon and The Wizard of Oz001) The first indicator that the setup is correct, is the change from Speak to Me to Breathe, which syncs with the fade-in of the name of producer Mervyn LeRoy. Note: In the prologue the word "Time" (one of the songs on the CD) is written with a capital letter even though it isn't at the start of the sentence. Also you will find the word "Heart" capitalized in the middle of a sentence -- a sound particular to The Dark Side of the Moon. 002) "Leave, but don't leave me ..." Auntie Em appears to say "... Leave ..." to Dorothy, who then turns to leave, looking a bit down in the mouth. 003) Right after the words "... Look around ..." Dorothy looks around. 004) "... Smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry ..." The two farmhands holding the cart upright (Cowardly Lion and Tin Woodsman) are smiling and the farmhand below (Scarecrow) is crying. This one is not exactly on time with the "smiles you'll give" part, but because of the good timing with "tears you'll cry", it makes it worth the mention. 005) "... All you touch ..." Dorothy touches the farmhand (Cowardly Lion) holding a bucket on his arm.

Pink Floyds Echoes and 2001: A Space Odyssey Final Segment

Question for thought:How do the Populists' political demands illustrate the major economic and social problems facing American society in the 1890s?

SourcesStephen Vincent, History 125, Lecture #5, The Populist Revolt and New Demands for Govt Reform, 1890-1896, http://facstaff.uww.edu/vincents/H125/H125out5.htmFor a great web diagram of Populism, and other U.S. History topics, see: http://www.foothilltech.org/rgeib/am-ex/gildedage/inspiration/the-populists.jpgWorth Robert Miller, Southwest Missouri State University, Populist Cartoons. http://history.smsu.edu/wrmiller/Populism/2pcartoon/index.htm