Developments During the Gilded Age

Thomas Edison's Patent Application for an incandescent light bulb in 1880.

Electricity

The effects of technological advances made after Reconstruction forever changed how people lived. The most famous inventor of the period is Thomas Edison. He invented the light bulb, the phonograph, motion pictures, a system for distributing electrical power, and many other technologies powered by electricity. Edison also established the concept of industrial research and founded a research laboratory staffed by engineers and technicians in New Jersey.

Edison's technological achievements were used by other inventors as evidenced by the development of long-distance electricity transmission that enabled Edison's electric light to illuminate buildings, streets, and neighborhoods across the United States. Electricity soon replaced steam as the source of power for factories. It replaced horses as the means to power streetcars. Of greatest impact, perhaps, was electricity's replacing humans as the source of power for household appliances. Edison's inventions eliminated much manual labor that had been associated with everyday household activities and improved Americans' quality of life.

98 WILLIAM JENMNGS BRYAN’S “CROSS OF GOLD” SPEECH

at the 1896 Democratic National Convention. Bryan, arguing for a plank in the party platform calling for the free coinage of silver, ended with the sentence “You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.” “You” were the Gold Democrats, the supporters of the incumbent President, Grover Cleveland, who opposed the unlimited coinage of silver. The speech made a national figure of the thirty-six-year-old Bryan and led to his nomination for the Presidency by the convention.

Politics

Politics was both competitive and partisan in the Gilded Age. Generally, the Presidents in this era are not remembered for lasting achievements, although there were some. You will read more about the political aspects of the age in the readings document for this module. There is a document about Gilded Age Presidents called "The Presidency in Eclipse" that outlines the presidencies of the Gilded Age. Also, view the two following presentations on Gilded Age Politics and Populism and the Election of 1896.

RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.