Assignment #08

ACIE American History - Cambridge International Examinations

Mr. Anthony Perno and Mr. Victor Wisniski – American Senior High School – 2009/2010 School Year

Syllabus Excerpt: III The Impact of Economic Expansion, 1865-1917

. . . The impact of railroad expansion. Steel, oil and finance. Trusts and monopolies, attempts at regulation. . . . Agrarian revolt and populism. . . . trade unions and increasing industrial conflict. . . .

· Reading Assignment: America, Past and Present, Chapter #20, Political Realignments in the 1890s, pages 573-598

· Assignment: Using the above reading assignment, the student will prepare to answer the following essay questions. (One question will be chosen randomly the day of the exam.) The essay should encompass all pertinent syllabus topics.

· Essay Questions:

1. Why was it so difficult for governments to regulate big business effectively in the period 1865 to 1890?

2. How successful were attempts to deal with the problems of farmers in the late nineteenth century?

3. How far is it justified to speak of an ‘agrarian revolt’ among American farmers in the period 1867–1896?

4. Account for the rise and fall of the People’s Party (Populists).