The progressive era by nyobi miller

The working class

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:24:38 UTC

• Who: Factory workers, immigrants, women, and children.

• What: The group of people who worked long hours in dangerous, low-paying jobs during industrialization.

• Where: Mostly in rapidly growing cities across the U.S. (factories, mills, mines).

• When: Late 1800s through early 1900s.

• Why: Industrialization created demand for cheap labor, drawing millions into the workforce.

• How/Impact: Poor conditions sparked demands for reform → birth of stronger unions and labor rights movements.

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:35:09 UTC

Who: Middle-class Americans, advertisers, manufacturers.
What: A shift toward mass production, department stores, catalog shopping, and advertising.
Where: Urban areas and nationwide through catalogs like Sears & Roebuck.
When: Late 19th to early 20th century.
Why: Industrialization made goods cheaper and more available.
How/Impact: Workers demanded higher wages to enjoy new consumer goods → unions pushed for “living wages.”
https://youtu.be/u7xAMKP2pwI?si=50NBknlAON9xDkZJ

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:43:04 UTC

Who: Investors, banks, railroad companies, workers.
What: A major economic depression caused by over-investment in railroads and shaky banking.
Where: United States, but it spread globally.
When: 1873–1879.
Why: Railroads grew too fast; banks failed when loans couldn’t be repaid.
How/Impact: Massive unemployment → workers organized strikes and unions gained momentum.

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:46:31 UTC

Who: Frederick Winslow Taylor.
What: A system to improve efficiency by studying work tasks and standardizing them.
Where: Factories across the U.S.
When: Early 1900s.
Why: Businesses wanted higher productivity and profits.
How/Impact: Increased production but made work repetitive and dehumanizing → unions fought back against loss of worker control.

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:49:51 UTC

Who: Founded by Uriah Stephens; later led by Terence Powderly.
What: One of the first major labor unions.
Where: Nationwide in the U.S.
When: Founded in 1869.
Why: To unite all workers (skilled and unskilled) and push for an 8-hour day, better pay, and safer conditions.
How/Impact: At its peak, had 700,000 members. Declined after the Haymarket Riot (1886) but laid groundwork for future unions.

nyobimiller — 2025-09-11 03:52:01 UTC

Who: Founded by Samuel Gompers.
What: A federation of skilled workers’ unions.
Where: Across the U.S.
When: Founded in 1886.
Why: To focus on practical goals like wages, hours, and conditions rather than broad social reforms.
How/Impact: Became one of the most powerful unions in U.S. history; influenced future labor rights and policies.
https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/the-american-federation-of-labor-definition-goals-history.html