Often referred to as the 'Gilded Age', the period spanning from 1870 to 1900 encompassed both extravagant wealth and dire poverty in America. Due to this disparity, political agitators and reformists armed with socialist and anarchist manifestos flourished and the distinction between urban life and rural life grew increasingly sharper, creating an entirely new set of living conditions and social customs. Technological advancements such as the automobile, camera, and factory-made furniture facilitated the rise of a new middle class. The Panic of 1893 caused an economic downturn and a major shift in electoral politics in the 1896 presidential race, leading to the nomination and victory of Republican William McKinley, whose policies would usher in a new century.

 

This book is part of a book series called Handbooks To Life in America .

This book is aimed at children in secondary school.

There are 272 pages in this book. This book was published 2009 by Facts On File Inc .

General editor Rodney P. Carlisle earned his B. A. in history from Harvard and both his M. A. and Ph. D in history from the University of California in Berkeley. He is a former chair of the history department at Rutgers University in Camden where he taught for more than 30 years specializing in 20th-century history. Carlisle is now professor emeritus there. He has written and edited many articles and more than 10 books on history, including The Thirties in Facts On File's Day by Day series