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More About This Title American Politics in the Gilded Age 1868-1900
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Often Gilded-Age politics has been described as devoid of content or accomplishment, a mere spectacle to divert voters from thinking about the real issues of the day. But by focusing too closely on dramatic scandals and on the foibles of prominent politicians, many historians have tended to obscure other aspects of late nineteenth-century politics that proved to be of great and long-term significance.
With the latest scholarship in mind, Professor Cherny provides a deft and highly readable analysis that is certain to help readers better understand the characteristics and important products of Gilded-Age politics. Topics covered include: voting behavior; the relation between the popular will and the formation of public policy; the cause and effect of the deadlock in national politics that lasted from the mid-1870s to the 1890s; the sources of political innovation at state and local levels; and the notable changes wrought during the 1890s that ushered in important new forms of American politics.
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Robert W. Cherny is professor of history at San Francisco State University, where he has been a member of the history faculty since 1971. In 1995—96, he served as president of the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. He was the Distinguished Fullbright Lecturer at Moscow State University in 1996 and held a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities in 1992—93. He received his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 1972 and his B.A. from the University of Nebraska in 1965. His books include A Righteous Cause: The Life of William Jennings Bryan (1985, 1994), Populism, Progressivism, and the Transformation of Nebraska Politics, 1885—1915 (1981), and, with William Issel, San Francisco, 1865—1932: Politics, Power, and Urban Development (1986). His essays include “William Jennings Bryan and the Historians,” Nebraska History (1996), “the Democratic Party in the Era of William Jennings Bryan” in Democrats and the American Idea: A BicentennialAppraisal (1992), and “Willa Cather and the Populists,” Great Plains Quarterly (1983). He is also co-author of Making America: A History of the United States (1995).
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Foreword V
Acknowledgments IX
INTRODUCTION 1
CHAPTER ONE: The Domain and Power of Party 5
Parties, Elections, and Patronage 6
Parties, the State, and Public Policy 16
The Major Parties: The Republicans and The Democrats 22
On the Periphery of Party Politics: Mugwumps, Suffragists, Prohibitionists, Grangers, Greenbackers , and Laborites 31
CHAPTER TWO: The Deadlock of National Politics, 1868—1890 46
Grant: The Emergence of Deadlock, 1868—1876 50
Hayes: The Confirmation of Deadlock, 1876—1880 60
Garfield and Arthur: The Deadlock Continue, 1880—1884 67
Cleveland: The Deadlock Lengthens, 1884—1888 74
Breaking the Deadlock? Harrison and the Fifty-first Congress, 1888—1890 85
CHAPTER THREE: Political Upheaval, 189—1900 94
The Emergence of Populism, 1890—1892 97
The Dividend Democrats Fail to Govern, 1893—1896 110
Republican Resurgence and Democratic Downfall: The Battle of the Standards, 1896 118
Conclusion: An End and Many Beginnings 127
Illustrations and Maps follow page 84
Appendix: Tables 139
Table 1.1: Farm Production and Crop Prices, 1865—1900 139
Table 2.1: Popular and Electoral Vote for President, 1868—1904 141
Table 2.2 Electoral Votes by Selected Regions and States 142
Table 2.3 Party Strength in Congress, 1868—1904 143
Table 2.4 Federal Income and Expenses, Including Customs Receipts 144
Bibliographical Essay 146
Index 159
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"Robert Cherny has written a crisp, well-informed, and incisive treatment of Gilded Age politics that will provide a new generation of students with a lucid introduction to key issues of the emerging industrial society of the late 19th century. Balanced and judicious, Cherny's narrative should stimulate many classroom discussions about the meaning of the era that culminated with the victory of William McKinley and the Republicans."
–Lewis L. Gould, The University of Texas at Austin
