ch 8 age of agrarian discontent
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter Eight
Age of Agrarian Discontent
1870 – Texas had only 583 miles of railroad tracksHigh freight rates and slow land service prevented
the growth of commerce in TexasEconomic growth depended on a large rail network
Land Grant Law of 1876Texas Constitution of 1876 defined railroads as
public carriersLand Grant Law authorized 16 sections of land for
every mile of rail trackResults
Forty railroads received 32 million acres for roughly 3000 miles of track
Railroads and Economic Development
Railroad speculators promised instant prosperity to communities that subsidized routes through their townMany ghost towns result from over speculation
Money for rail expansionEastern investorsForeign investorsPublic aid from communities/towns that could
afford itResults
Some areas of the state were overbuiltOther areas lacked any rail facilities
Railroads and Economic Development
Old Perry (Falls County)Otto (Falls County)Osage (Colorado County)Anson (Jones County)
Named after Anson Jones
Ghost Towns Resulting from Railroad Speculation
Otto, Texas
Osage, Texas Perry, Texas (Falls Co.)
Anson, Texas
Jones County Courthouse
Transportation company issuesMost did not prosper from the sale of granted landLand was awarded in alternating sections
Most wanted to buy land in contiguous sections
However, the Texas Pacific Land Trust (est. 1888) is still the state’s largest landownerAmassed the holdings of the Texas and Pacific
RailroadResults of rail expansion in Texas
1872- Texas ranked 28th in the U.S. for rail mileage1904 – Texas led the nation in rail mileage (10,000)Population growth corresponded with the growth of
the rail network
Railroads and Economic Development
Major LinesMissouri, Kansas, and Texas (Katy)Texas and Pacific Railroad (T&P)Southern PacificGreat Northern
Rail influence on other industriesLumbar
Need for ties, bridges, stations, etc.Cotton Gins
Railroads and Economic Development
Patterns of tradeThe rail network broke up old patterns of tradeFarmers and businessmen were forced to deal with
markets far removed from their regionTrade agents were impersonal and impartial to local
concernsCriticisms of the rail industry
Shipper discriminationSecret agreements between monopolistic linesPrice discrimination
The Texas Traffic Association (1885) attempted to regulate rates
Atty. Gen. James Hogg won a court order to dissolve the association
Numerous successors would attempt to regulate rates for the next 40 years
Railroads and Economic Development
1876- Texas had 61 million acres of public landTwo categories for land
Permanent School FundRoughly 42 million acres
Unappropriated Public DomainCould be sold for numerous purposes; retire public debt,
railroad allocation, economic development
Fifty-Cent LawPermitted the sale of all unappropriated public domain
for 50 cents an acre; no quantity limitationsTexas sold less than 2 million acres during the law’s
tenureHowever, it depressed the cost of land drastically
Public Land
Fifty-Cent LawRailroads and land-holders were forced into recievershipLand speculators bought land at deflated valuesCritics argued that Gov. Oran Roberts sold Texas to
corporations and syndicatesRevision
Public domain land reclassifiedAgricultural, timber, or pastoral values
No more land could be sold to railroadsTexas legislature creates the State Land Board
Oversee the reclassification of public domainEnsure settlers received priority over speculators
General Land Office administered public land after the State Land Board was abolished in 1887
Public Land
Overall, land legislation’s success was debatable
Public opinion ran against the state’s early choices
Too many believed that farmers and small businesses fell victim to the state’s overzealous sale of land to railroads and corporations
Public Land
Railroads led to the expansion of barbed wire and windmills in Texas
Cattlemen began fencing their surface water sites, pastures, ranches, and sometimes public domain in around 1883
Disputes began to occur over fencing and “fence-cutting wars” beganOccurred in more than ½ of the counties in the state
1884 Fencing Law It was a felony for fence cuttingEvery three miles of fence required a gateProhibited the enclosure of public land
Fence-Cutting Wars
Secret organizations were formed against fencing in generalSaw it as a threat to republicanism (land use and
democracy)Developed into a class consciousness that worked its
way into PopulismWere very popular in the Cross Timbers regionAlso responsible for fence cutting in the area
Law enforcement and public opinion against fence cutting quelled the wars by 1890One Texas Ranger placed dynamite at a fencing
location and rigged it to explode if the fence was cut
Fence-Cutting Wars
East Texas yellow pine grew on roughly 20 million acresThe mild climate and cheap labor made it an ideal
location for a lumber industry in TexasMost farmers considered pine trees a nuisance
Overcutting in the MidwestWhite pine forests in the Upper Midwest led to
depletion in the mid 1880sMost consumers did not prefer the yellow pine of
Texas, but short supply quickly ended that preferenceTexas’ lumber industry grew from a cottage
industry to one of the nation’s largest
The Lumber Industry in Texas
Fowlerton Lumber Yard, Fowlerton (La Salle County)
By 1900, Texas produced more than 1 billion board feet of lumber in 637 establishments
John H. Kirby organized the Kirby Lumber Firm First multi-million dollar firm in Texas Acquired timberlands at less than $2 an acre
Company Towns Lumber entrepreneurs built company towns with churches,
schools, housing, and stores Camden, Texas
Over 75 of the workforce was unskilled labor that earned $1.50 to $2 a day until the early 1920s
Companies frequently paid in merchandise checks redeemable only at the company store Prices were almost always inflated
Essentially, workers who lived in company towns were at the mercy of lumber mill owners for almost all aspects of their lives
The Lumber Industry in Texas
Texas and IndustrializationNational per capita value of manufactures was
$171 (1900)Texas’ value was $39.99Texas was far from being a profitable industrial
stateCottonseed Mills
4,514 cotton gins in the state (1 was in Osage)Produced roughly 34 percent of the nation’s
total cotton cropFlour Milling
Other Industries in Texas
OilBecomes the mineral that makes Texas rich during the
early 20th centuryCoal
Industry worth over $5 million in 1900Most profitable mineral before the oil explosion
SaltSecond to CoalVan Zandt County had the Grand Saline plant
IronSome iron ores discovered in East TexasCherokee County produced 50,000 tons of pig iron
annually
Minerals in Texas
Cotton Processing, Galveston, Texas
Dallas was the leading industrial center Flour and grist milling, printing, publishing
Houston (2nd) Railcar construction, cottonseed processing
San Antonio (3rd) Distilling of malt liquors
Fort Worth (4th) Meat-packing, flour and grist milling
Galveston (5th) Once the leading city in Texas, now exporting cotton
Waco, Sherman, and Beaumont represented other significant cities
Agricultural wealth’s concentration in major cities irritated farmers Cities became rich at the farmer’s expense This sentiment paves the way for political movements such as
Populism
Manufacturing in Texas
Working Conditions12 hour work days, 6 days a week$12 per month for unskilled laborUp to $100 for skilled laborWorks accepted terms of employment or found
other jobs; no negotiationTexan Views of Organized Labor
Strikes led to violence, thus, threatened stability and order
Organized labor akin to radicalism, thus, un-American
Organized labor was primarily a foreign influence
Unions in Texas
Why Unions Fail in TexasMajority of the workforce was unskilled
Little reason to demand better wages when you could easily be replaced
State government endorsed anti-unionismPart of the New South creedNeed to attract industry to the region
Had to guarantee an inexpensive and stable labor forceUnions only complicated the matter
Industries came in and were allowed to bust unionsBlacklistingHiring of strike-breakersGovernment force used to break strikes
Unions in Texas
Knights of Labor“reform unionism” (very political in nature)Claimed 30,000 Texan members in 1885Led numerous strikes, but public support went
against them when violence resultedGovernment power used to break strikes and
the union declined in TexasAmerican Federation of Labor (AFL)
“business unionism” (apolitical)Numerous branches of the AFL form in Texas,
but overall, they do not do well
Unions in Texas
New South mentalityDiversification of crops would lead to self-sufficient farms
Wheat, corn, oats, and cottonScientific farming and crop rotation would preserve the
family farm and prevent sharecroppingPolitical Influence
Democrats blamed Republicans and Reconstruction for the Panic of 1873 and the subsequent agricultural instability
If Democrats were allowed, they would restore economic stability to Texas
Problem with these ideasTechnology led to overproduction
It was now too easy to get crops to marketEveryone wanted a stake in cash crops like cottonPrices suffer as a result
Agricultural Issues
Tenant farming and sharecropping increase despite the grand rhetoric of agricultural advisors and the Democratic party
Sharecropping and CottonThe only way for sharecropping to fail
miserably was for cotton prices to increaseAs most speculated it would
However, cotton prices did not increase at the rate needed to keep sharecroppers out of chronic indebtedness
These issues lead to the rise of Populist sentiment during the mid-1890s
Agricultural Issues
ProblemsOvercrowding and inadequate correctional facilities
Result of population growth and lawlessness in West TexasSelf-sufficiency
Prison labor force to essentially run the prison
Gov. Oran Roberts believed pardoning and self-reliance in the prison system would help
Convict LeasingPrivate individuals could lease convicts from the prison
system to work whatever economic necessity the renter desired
The system is overhauled numerous times with little success
It became a bigger issue around 1920
Prison Reform
Convicts working at a quarry, Marble Falls, 1880
Law of 1884Completed reorganized the public school systemMandated a partial return to a centralized system
State superintendants, record keeping, teacher certification, etc.
Local districts were allowed to tax themselves (with the county’s help) to support common schoolsBeginning of “independent school districts”
Regular attendance mandatedAges eight to sixteen
Success of the law was somewhat limitedScattered settlement patternsEducation in the city was better than in rural areas
Common Education
Texas A&MFirst public college in Texas opened in 1876Located near BryanIt was originally designed to be a part of the
University of Texas systemThe Morrill Act required that the all male
school provide military trainingLawrence “Sul” Ross, former Confederate hero
and Waco local became president in 1891Blacks could not attend Texas A&M per state
law
Higher Education
University of TexasChartered in 1839, but did not begin classes
until 1883Austin was picked for the main campusGalveston was selected for the medical schoolFormer Texas Gov. Oran Roberts served as the
first dean of the law schoolUniversity was financed through general
revenues and the permanent fund (from the sale/lease of UT’s 2 million acres of land)
Higher Education
Prairie View Normal InstituteOpened in 1879Provided an agricultural education for black
studentsAlso became a college to train teachers
Sam Houston State Normal SchoolOpened in 1879 in HuntsvilleBecame the institutional model for other
normal schools throughout the stateLater becomes Sam Houston State University
Higher Education
Democrats became the de facto party of choice after ReconstructionWelded to the “Lost Cause” mentalityThe party almost became a homage to the Confederate
dead and their causeWhites Voting against the Democratic party meant
dishonoring the party of their fathersThis mentality lingers well into the 1940sMajor achievements from 1876-1886
Building the new state capitolOverall, Democrats strove to maintain the status quo
and did little to help the poor and dispossessedProhibition becomes a key issue during the 1880s, yet
they do nothing
Conservative Democratic Control
Norris Wright Cuney (Galveston) becomes head of the Republican party in Texas due to his influence with black votersStrength of the party was in East
Texas and the Gulf CoastWhite Republicans formed “lily-
white factions” in protest of blacks controlling the partyThey wanted to become more
influential with the national Republican party
They decline due to their refusal to merge with any other third parties
Republicans in the 1880s
First third-party to challenge Democratic control of TexasOrganized in response to deflation of the national money
supplyU.S. gov’t took the country off the gold standard during the
Civil WarGov’t issued “greenback” paper money that was not backed
by gold during the warGreenbacks caused inflation, but allowed for economic
expansionThe problem with greenbacks
Financiers and Wall Street brokers wanted to redeem their greenbacks for gold
In response, the U.S. gov’t goes back to the gold standard in 1875 (Specie Resumption Act)
The Greenback Party
The problem with greenbacksAs a result, the amount of money in circulation
declinesInterest rates increaseFarmers are hit especially hard
They are already fighting a recession (1873)
Greenback party’s goalReverse the policies that were leading farmers to
financial ruinEspecially the Specie Resumption Act
Railroad regulation, better school system, elimination of convict leasing, reduction of useless offices in state gov’t
The Greenback Party
Constituency Radical farmers Courted white Republicans from lily-
white factions Talk of fusion with these factions
produced nothing Had most of their strength in East
Texas, the Cross Timbers, and other poor, farming counties
Decline Peaked during 1882-1883 as George
“Wash” Jones runs for Texas Governor
However, they remain a distant third with voters
Their party declines, but their issues get raised again with the Populist party
The Greenback Party
Governor James “Jim” S. Hogg
Attorney General (1887-1891) and Governor of Texas (1891-1895)
Ushered in a new era of Progressive DemocratsHad not fought in the Civil WarLess bound by tradition than conservative Democrats Identified with the common man and sympathized with
their issuesProgressive agenda
Use state powers to regulate railroads and trustsRailroad Commission (1891) – appointive body that could set
rates and faresPrevent foreign ownership of Texas public land
Farmers and agriculturalists loved his stance towards big business
James S. Hogg: Progressive Democrat
“Hogg laws”1 – establishing the Railroad Commission
Supreme Court upheld the commission after 7 railroads sued
2 – railroad stock and bond lawAllowed the Railroad Commission to regulate railroad
stock3 – law forcing land corporations to sell off holdings
in 15 years4 – Alien Land Law
Forbid further land grants to foreign corporationsAttempted to put land back in the hands of Texans
5 – Restriction on the amount of bond debt that county and municipalities could legally undertake
James S. Hogg: Progressive Democrat
Agrarian GroupsPatrons of Husbandry “The Grange”
Secret, fraternal organization comprised mostly of family farmersOffered educational and social benefits to its membership; later
focused on economic issues affecting farmersWhile the organization was apolitical, it encouraged members to
take political actionCatered primarily to higher middle-class farmers
Texas Farmers’ AllianceTakes the place of the Grange in the mid 1880sGrass-roots organization originating from the Cross Timbers
regionBased on voluntary associationsNever denied that it was a political organizationBy 1886, it claimed 100,000 members, making it a viable potential
for a third partyAs depression set in the early 1890s, members readily joined the
Populist party
Populism “The People’s Party”
The Subtreasury PlanNational legislation that would have allowed farmers
to store staple crops in gov’t storageFarmers could receive loans against the market value of
cropsGov’t notes could be used as currency
Conservative Democrats saw this as an excess of federal gov’t control
The plan was also a direct attack on national banksHowever, this plan fell in line with Greenback ideology
Democrats and members of the Texas Farmers’ Alliance split primarily over this issue
The Subtreasury Plan becomes a symbol for the Populist Party
Populism “The People’s Party”
Populist ConceptsCrusade of rural Americans attempting to raise
awareness of economic failure for the rural class
Believed they were being true to Jacksonian idealsPromoting the “common man”Fit well with Texas republicanismDenounced monopolistic corporations and banksEssentially a reaction to the Gilded Age
Was Populism a liberal or conservative movement?
Populism “The People’s Party”
ConservatismJeffersonian and Jacksonian ideals of democracyDenouncing large banks, railroads, and
corporationsConservative Protestantism used in stump
speeches and organization of camp-style meetingsChanging hymns to fit their political cause
LiberalismBig business grew so fast that the common man
could not fight back by himselfThe federal government was needed to help
Create creditInflate the currencyStave off abuses of big business on the common man
Populism “The People’s Party”
A bi-racial partyFor Populism to succeed in Texas, the party
had to appeal to both whites and blacksJohn B. Rayner was the most prominent black
Texan to support PopulismDemocrats were forced to appeal to black
voters to keep control of the stateThey often used violence and intimidation to
keep blacks from voting for the Populist partyBy 1894, the Texas Farmers’ Alliance had
recruited close to 200,000 members
Populism “The People’s Party”
William Jennings Bryan
The Campaign of 1896Very bitter election on the state level
Democrats readily used violence to intimidate Populist voters
Also charged racial betrayal and attempting to reinstate Reconstruction against the Populists
National levelWilliam Jennings Bryan is selected to run for president
Did not endorse the Subtreasury PlanMore focused on free silver and low tariffs
Populists and Democrats fuse to endorse himTexan Populists did not care for the fusionBryan loses to William McKinley
The Populist movement quickly loses momentum with Bryan’s failed campaign
Populism “The People’s Party”
Populists are temporarily alienated from politics after the Campaign of 1896
Many Populists return to the Democratic party as “reform Democrats” at the turn of the century
Populists on the state level that refused to join the Democratic party later join the Socialist movement
This unique fusion of Populist and reform agendas pave the way for the Progressive era of the early 20th century
Legacy of the Populist Party
White Populists sided with black Populists under an alliance of convenience for the party
After the Campaign of 1896, racial discrimination in Texas politics become more entrenched
Democrats resolve to remove black voters from local and county electionsPopulists had the most success on these levels
Terrell Election LawsThe Democratic party institutes a white primaryBlacks could still vote in the general election though
Meaningless in a one-party state
Poll TaxesAnother means to disenfranchise blacks and poor whitesDemocrats believed this would end future third-party
challenges
The Dark Side of Populism