The Age of Theodore Roosevelt

Part IThe Age of Theodore RooseveltAlaskaUS was expansionist1866: Secretary of State Seward bought Alaska from Russia for $7.2 millionCalled Sewards Folly b/c people were upset at the purchaseHuge, icy, useless areaGold discovered 50 miles east of Alaska borderPeople less hostileHawaii1875 commercial treaty b/w US and HawaiiUS businessmen controlled sugar and pineapple industryQueen LiliuokalaniCame to throne in 1891New constitution giving her absolute powerSanford Dole persuaded US ambassador that US were in danger from the queenMarines ordered inOccupied the governmentUS ambassador Stevens ordered Hawaii a US protectorateDole became president of the New RepublicHawaii annexed to US on July 7, 1898Statehood in 1959CubaRevolution in 1868No decisive winner after 10 yearsTen Years War ended by the Peace of ZanjonCuba weak economically after the warUS got involved in the sugar industry thereRevolution againJose MariKilled, but the cause continuedUS Gets InvolvedYellow JournalismExaggerated newspaper stories to sell copiesWilliam Randolph Hearsts JournalJoseph Pulitzers WorldMade people more sympathetic to rebel causeMcKinley did not want to get involved in CubaFelt he would have no choice if public wanted itTwo Big EventsDeLome LetterPublished by the JournalLetter was stolen from the spanish ambassadorCalled McKinley weak and a bidder for the admiration of the crowdUS Battleship Maine was blown upWhile harbored in Havana260 Americans deadCause of explosion never foundPossibly by revolutionaries trying to get US involved in warRemember the MaineUS declared war APR 21, 1898Spanish-American WarSpanish Cuba was weak, America was on the riseLed to one sided warBattle of Manila Bay1st battle of warSpain lost 381 men, 10 shipsUS did not lose a single manTheodore Roosevelt led the Rough RidersCalvary regimentWon battle of San Juan HillUS Destroyed Spanish fleetSpain: 474 killed and woundedUS: 1 killed, 1 woundedTreaty signed DEC 10Independence to CubaPhilippine, Puerto Rico, and Guam given to USCuban ConstitutionUS military occupied CubaDr. Leonard Wood appointed military governorConstitutional Convention in 1900 to return rule to CubansInitial draft based upon US Constitution, but made no mention of continuing relationship with USPlatt Amendment drawn up by USCuba would never enter any treaty with an foreign power impairing Cuban independenceUS authorized to intervene to maintain Cuban independence and orderCuba agreed to see or lease US lands for naval baseWith this amendment added, US withdrew troopsCuba still in shadow of USPart IIElection of 1900Republican nominee: McKinleyIn favor of businessDemocratic nominee: William Jennings BryanSaid that capitalism hurt the little menAdvocated free coinage of silverMaterial solution to non-material problemMcKinley won by a million votesMcKinley assassinated by an anarchistTheodore Roosevelt in as President

Teddy Roosevelt as PresidentHero of Spanish-American warTrust buster broke up monopoliesFought big businessHepburn ActGave Interstate Commerce Commission control over railroadsCreated national parks and monumentsMuckrakersJournalists who tried to expose scandals in big businessUpton Sinclair wrote The JungleMeant to advocate socialismStory of as immigrant working in the meat packing industryMade people see horrors of meat packing industrySales dropped offDid not convert people towards socialismGovernment responsePure Food and Drug ActMeat Inspection ActMovement towards big governmentBusiness had less power, government had moreProgressive Movement1890s-1920sClaimed to have progressive (modern) ideas of governmentBelieved that it was governments job to solve social issuesWanted the people to have more participation in governmentDirect primary: voting for candidates rather than them being selected by party leadersReferendum: People could approve/disapprove lawsRecall: People could remove elected officialsInitiative: People could initiate legislationDirect election of senatorsConstitution said that Senators were to be elected by the state congresses17th Amendment said that people voted for their state SenatorsEducation ReformState gained control over educationCould impact what was taught as long as it was funding the schoolSchooling made mandatoryEducation tended towards pragmatism: teaching an idea was right if it worksPart IIIThe Supreme CourtEarly in American history, Supreme Court rarely heard landmark decisionsMarbury v. Madison, Dred Scott v. SanfordRoosevelt appointed Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. to Supreme CourtServed for 30 yearsLength of tenure meant that he impacted the judicial system greatlyBelieved the Constitution needed to be interpreted in accordance with the times, more so than as it was originally intendedMeant that the Constitution would be read according to the views of whoever was on the courtImpacted the consistency of the Court, as it might be more likely to contradict itselfCourt members chosen for life, with essentially unchecked powerBiggest check is that they can only hear cases brought before themRoosevelts Foreign Policy: PanamaRoosevelts motto: Speak softly and carry a big stickAggressive, imperialisticUS wanted a canal in Central America To make coast to coast transportation easierUS wanted to put canal through Panama Panama a province of ColombiaTried to make a deal with ColombiaFell apart: US offered $10 mil, Colombia wanted $25 milRebellion in PanamaPanamanian revolution aided by New Panama Canal CompanyUS had often come to aid of Colombian governmentPlaced warships in harbor to prevent Colombian troops from landing and putting the revolt downUS Recognized the Republic of Panama as a new countryHay-Bunau Varilla TreatyUS given a ten mile strip for a canal Panama given US guarantee of independence, $10 mil, and $250K per year

Roosevelt CorollaryDominican Republic was going to default on its debt in 1904US had agreement to manage its debt paymentsDominican Republic paid back its debts to US before paying back everyone elseEuropean countries threatened armed interventionRoosevelt pronounced Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe DoctrineMonroe Doctrine had stated that colonization attempts by European countries would be seen as aggression against the USRoosevelt Corollary stated that US had right not just to defend Latin America from European powers, but to activity intervene on its own in their affairs where it felt it was needed

A Firm Foreign PolicyJon PerdicarisYoung American who was kidnapped by Moroccan bandit RaisuliRoosevelt tried diplomatic channels to have him releasedRoosevelt then ordered in entire Mediterranean squadronPerdicaris released aliveShows how using force sets up simply threatening to use forceRoosevelt also settled the end of the Russo-Japanese WarPeace conference between the two sides in New HampshireUS truly a major world power at this pointTaftTaft was Roosevelts hand picked successor for PresidentEasily beat William Jennings Bryan for President in 1908Roosevelt went off to hunt big game in AfricaStated he would never run for president againTaft as President16th Amendment: Federal Income Tax

Election of 1912Roosevelt wanted to return to run for PresidentCould wait a couple elections until Taft was finishedWaiting makes winning elections incredibly difficultOtherwise he could run against Taft, his friend, in his own partyHe chose this optionTaft chosen by Republicans as the CandidateRoosevelt started his own partyProgressive Party (i.e. Bull Moose Party)Similar to Republican Party, so some Republicans switched overDemocrats nominated Woodrow Wilson as their candidate42nd ballotTaft and Roosevelt split Republican voteWilson was then able to win electionFirst Democrat to win since Cleveland

Part IVStatue of LibertyGift from France to USDedicated by President Cleveland on OCT 28, 1886Meant to symbolize American libertyFirst sight many immigrants sawNot all encountered American liberty immediately

St. Francesca CabriniMany immigrants came to US200,000 Italians a yearCabrini wanted to be a missionary to ChinaPope Leo XIII told her to go to Italian immigrants in USShe was an Italian, although she later became an AmericanArrived in NY with a letter from the bishopNo money, no house prepared, and she did not know EnglishOpened an orphanage, school, catechism classes, hospitalVisited immigrants, setting up schools for the poor Italian immigrants, and boarding schools for rich Italian immigrants to teach them how to avoid materialismWent to Nicaragua at the invite of a wealthy ladyTo open a school, returned to US once accomplishedFirst American citizen to be declared a Saint

Marianne CopeSecond Provincial Mother Superior of the Sisters of St. Francis of SyracuseSisters were called on by Hawaiian government to care for leprosy victimsEstablished general hospital on MauiContinued Fr. Damiens work on MolokaiIsland of the lepersTold the nuns they would not contract leprosy since they were doing Gods workNone of them got leprosyWorked among the lepers for 30 years

Rose Hawthorne LathropeDaughter of Nathaniel HawthorneFriend died of cancerShe was shocked by the treatment of cancer patientsBegan volunteer work at New York Cancer HospitalSold her savings and jewelry to purchase a home for the cancerous poorLater became a Dominican nunEstablished a house for cancer patientsHawthorne Dominicans

St. Katharine DrexelWealthy PhiladelphianWent to Pope Leo XIII To tell him how poorly the native Americans were treatedAsked for his helpHe asked her why she didnt become a missionary to help themShe put her life fortune into helping them$20 million dollarsFounded the Sisters of the Blessed SacramentPurpose: help African Americans and Native AmericansBuilt schools, such as Xavier University for African Americans

Maryknoll MissionariesFr. Thomas PriceGrew up in low-Catholic state of NCThought that the Church would grow if it would reach out and send missionaries to other countriesFounded Maryknoll missionariesWent to ChinaSome martyredDriven out of China, but laid the seed for later conversions