You have undertaken to cheat me. I won't sue you, for the law is too slow. I'll ruin you.

—Cornelius Vanderbilt

1.      In what ways did businessmen/robber barons increase their profits?

Businessmen and "That Creature" the Corporation

The Gilded Age - Industrial revolution in America  

Robber Barons (advanced reading skills needed)

The Industrial Age in America: Robber Barons and Captains of Industry

Robber Barons of the Gilded Age (lesson plan with useful handouts and resources)

Mrs. Ruland's United States History Internet Resources (teacher links-page with a ton of resources)

2.      What problems resulted due to the rising consolidation of power among a select few?

Robber Barons

Topic: Power, The Gilded and the Gritty: America, 1870-1912

Gilded Age – FREE Gilded Age Information | Encyclopedia.com: Find ...

The Republican Tradition From O

Gilded Age: Information from Answers.com

The Gilded Age - Steel kings and public utility tycoons

Understanding Economic Change in the Gilded Age (advanced reading skills needed

3.         How did Robber Barons/Captains of Industry justify their wealth?

4.         What were the negative effects of urbanization?  Consider the boss system as well as life in the slums.

5.         How effective were early labor unions in combating widespread misery?

6.         Compare the motivations and methods used by Jane Addams and William Randolph Hearst in fixing the problems of the Gilded Age?

7.         How did the South essentially recreate slavery conditions following the Civil War?

8.         How did W.E.B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington differ in how they believed African-Americans should attain equality?

9.         What were three positive and three negative effects of railroad expansion?

10.     What effect did Western Expansion have on Native Americans?

11.     What attempts were made during the Gilded Age to regulate industry and politics?

12.     Compare and contrast the goals of the Granges, the Farmers’ Alliance, and the Populists?

13.    What types of people supported “free silver”?  Why?

American Imperialism

1.      For what reasons did America pursue imperialistic policies in the last decade of the 19^th century?  Why not before?

2.      To what extent could Cubans, Filipinos, and Hawaiians find fault with America’s foreign policy?

3.      Why was the handling of the Philippines different from any other territory acquired by the United States?

What was the logic behind America’s Open Door Policy