And other third parties of the late 1800s

What was Populism?

• A movement to increase farmers’ political power and work for legislation in their interest.– B/c of new technology, farmers were

producing more crops, but not getting high prices

– Tariffs (on manufactured goods) made it difficult for farmers to buy products and sell products outside of the US

Money Problems

• To help during the Civil War, the US treasury issued greenbacks (millions of dollars worth)– Could not be exchanged for gold or silver

coinage

• Increase in money caused inflation (decline in the value of money) & prices of goods increased

• After CW, 3 types of money in the US (greenbacks, gold & silver coins, and national bank notes)

• To control inflation, govt. stopped printing greenbacks and stopped making silver into coins.– Deflation started, increase in the value of

money and prices began to fall.

Deflation & Farmers

• Farmers, which borrowed $$ for supplies, were in trouble.– Money was in short

supply and interest rates rose

– Farming prices began to fall

• Farmers were making less money, but still had to pay the same loan payments.

The Grange Movement

• Founded in 1867 by Oliver H. Kelley– Farmers were so isolated from each other,

needed to come together to for social and educational issues

• Grangers wanted:– Regulation on RR and warehouse rates– Create cooperatives-marketing organizations

that worked for the benefit of the members

Granger Laws

• Railroads were forced to charge less for shorter hauls– RR responded by ending service in some areas– Wabush v. Illinois states have no authority to

regulate railroad rates for interstate commerce

• Granger co-ops failed b/c they were too small & Eastern businesses refused to do business with them (saw co-ops as unions)

Effects of the Grange Movement

• Allowed women– Suffrage for women

• Children became involved– Future Farmers of

America

The Farmers’ Alliance

• Leader was Charles W. Macune, began in TX

• Very popular in the Midwest (including SD)

• Organize large cooperatives-exchanges– Force up farm prices– Give loans to farmers at low interest rates

• The decline– Loans were overextended, some never repaid

People’s Party

• Formed because many members wanted to push for political reforms

• aka as the Populist Party

• Nominated candidates for state legislature and Congress

• Subtreasury Plan– Government would set

up warehouses– Provide low-interest

loans to farmers– Macune wanted

farmers to be able to hold onto their crops and force up the prices

Populism becomes popular

• Adopt the subtreasury plan• Free coinage of silver• End to protective tariffs & national banks• Regulate railroads• Direct election of senators

– Who elected senators??

• Populist party took control of KS & NE state legislatures and held power in MN & SD

SD Populist Governor• Andrew E. Lee (Vermillion)

– Jan. 1, 1897-Jan. 8 1901

• Issues as governor– eliminate inefficiency and

mismanagement in state govt.

– organize and return of the state militia that served in the Philippines during the Spanish-American War

Sherman Silver Purchase Act

• Increased the amount of silver the government was required to purchase every month.

• Treasury would buy the silver with notes that could be redeemed for either silver or gold.

• That plan backfired, as people turned in their silver Treasury notes for gold dollars, which depleted the government's gold reserves

A Populist President?

• James B. Weaver– Elected at the

Populist/People’s Party convention in Omaha in 1892

• Platform– Denounced the govt.

lack to coin silver– Increase the money

supply– Federal ownership of

RR– Graduated income tax– Make the government

more responsible to the people

When votes were counted, the Democrats stayed strong in the North & South

Candidates: Democrat-Grover ClevelandRepublican-Benjamin HarrisonPopulist (Peoples’)-WeaverProhibition-John Bidwell

Cleveland won with 46% of popular vote

Panic of 1893

• Worst economic crisis– Philadelphia and Reading RR went bankrupt– Too many people were trying to redeem notes

for gold– Banks began to fail– Businesses failed also

• 4.6 million workers were unemployed (18% of workforce)

• Pres. Cleveland believed that gold should be used as the basis for currency

• Congress called to a special session, Sherman Silver Act was repealed

– Goldbugs & Silverites & Bimetallists

1896 Election• William Jennings

Bryan was nominated as the Democrat candidate– Attacked the gold

standard– Supporter of the ‘plain

people of the country’

• Bryan traveled the country

• William McKinley (R)– Raised $$ & had

supporters campaign

Populism’s Legacy

• McKinley won 1896 & 1900 • Graduated income tax, regulation of RR & flexible

monetary system (like Progressives of early 20th cent.)

Dorothy is Baum's Miss Everyman. She is one of us, levelheaded and human, and she has a real problem. Dorothy represents America—honest, kindhearted and plucky.

Oz. is the abbreviation for both gold and silver OR author’s filing cabinet

KS-Baum only briefly visited KS, he lived in Aberdeen, SD. KS was a strong Populist state

Scarecrow represents Midwestern farmers

Tin Man represents industrial workers. He was rusted, many workers had lost their jobs

Represents William Jennings Bryan, who made the first of three unsuccessful bids for the presidency

Farmers who joined the Populist movement embraced the idea of "free silver" as a way of easing the money supply and giving them greater access to credit.

Represents the gold standard, Populists regarded the gold standard as unfair. Dorothy, not knowing the power of her slippers, take trek down the YBR-which had many pitfalls, like the gold standard

The Emerald City, represents Washington DC. In the book, the Emerald City is not a lustrous green, but a dull gray. It appears to people to be emerald because all people have to put on emerald colored glasses when they enter the city

The wicked witches are from the east and west, while the good witches are from the north and south. The good witches are from those parts of the country where the Populists had the greatest influence

The Wizard is the President-Populist did not trust politicians. The Wizard, in the book, appear differently to each character

Wicked Witch of the West represents the difficult physical environment in which farmers on the Great Plains were trying to make their living.

Plains Indians Remember the mid-western view of farming, and having to deal with the Indians; they were not bad people but could be swayed by good and evil.

Wicked Witch of the East-Bankers who have nothing for farmers

Munchkins---Little people of society; middle class and below