6.11 - Reform in the Gilded Age

The Social Gospel Movement

• Protestant clergy in the 1880s and 1890s espoused the Social Gospel, emphasizing the application of Christian principles to social problems.

• They advocated for improving housing, raising wages, and supporting public health measures to help the urban poor.

• Walter Rauschenbusch, a leading figure, linked Christianity with the Progressive reform movement and encouraged middle-class Protestants to address urban issues.

• The movement contrasted with traditional Christian beliefs, which focused on individual salvation to improve society.

Social Workers

• Civic-minded volunteers, like Jane Addams of Hull House in Chicago, laid the foundation for the profession of social work.

• These workers were often political activists, advocating for child-labor laws, housing reform, and women’s rights.

• Notable figures like Frances Perkins and Harry Hopkins later held leadership roles in President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal.

Families in Urban Society

• Urban life strained family structures, isolating parents and children from extended family and village support.

• Divorce rates increased, partly due to expanded grounds for divorce such as cruelty and desertion.

• Urban living also led to smaller family sizes as children were no longer economic assets, resulting in a drop in birth rates.

Voting Rights for Women

• NAWSA and Early Gains

  • The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) was founded in 1890 by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony.

  • NAWSA aimed to secure the vote for women, achieving early success with Wyoming granting full suffrage in 1869.

  • By 1900, some states allowed women to vote in local elections, and most states permitted women to own and control property after marriage. However, they still did not have suffrage. 

Temperance Movement

• Temperance and Social Reform

  • The temperance movement targeted the excessive drinking of alcohol, a major cause of poverty among immigrant and working-class families.

  • The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), formed in 1874 and led by Frances E. Willard, advocated for total abstinence from alcohol and grew to 500,000 members by 1898.

  • The Anti-Saloon League, founded in 1893, successfully pushed 21 states to close down saloons and bars by 1916.

  • Activists like Carry A. Nation gained notoriety for her aggressive tactics, such as raiding saloons and smashing barrels of beer with a hatchet.