New Inventions (ME) Jill Mingus

            New technology has increased production, transportation and communication since the 1870s. New technology has provided more industries which have brought more money and jobs. New inventions have created more jobs because in order to produce more of those inventions it was required to produce more jobs. The first gas vehicle is a good example because it was produced on a huge production line, which provided a ton of manufacturing jobs for the people. The refrigerator, made in the early 1870’s, established by Gustavus Swift is another good example of the expansion of more jobs. Swift had to hire engineers to produce many refrigerators to keep food cold and also reduce the risk of food contamination and poisoning. A lot of new inventions were created from the early 1870s’ through 1970s’.

 Some of the notable inventions at the turn of the century were as follows. In 1872 Elijah McCoy invented the automatic lubricator for steam engines. In  1873 Christopher Sholes developed the typewriter. In 1876 Alexander Graham came out with the telephone. In 1877 the phonograph was created by Thomas Edison. In 1882 Lewis Latimer made the carbon threads in the light bulbs, allowing the light bulbs to last longer. In 1886 the dishwasher was made by Josephine Cochrane, The first camera was made in 1888 by George Eastman. Charles and Frank Duryea created the first gasoline-powered vehicle. In 1903 the Wright Brother made the first successful powered flight.      

Natural Resources (C) Cameron Pratt

Natural resources are a major part in the United States’ success. In the 1850s and 1860s the United States had large amounts of timber, coal, iron, and copper. They could obtain these resources easily and didn’t have to pay large amounts of money to have them imported. Most of these resources were located in the West. Around the late 1850s the need for petroleum was increasing, so the need for oil rigs was also increasing. The first oil well was made in 1859 by Edwin Drake in Titusville, Pennsylvania. By 1900 oil wells were drilled from Pennsylvania to Texas. While oil production rose, it led to economic expansion. The natural resources helped accelerate the industrialization of the United States.

Transcontinental Railroad (ME) Christian Campbell

           In 1862, two companies were provided for the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Pacific Railway Act. The government offered each company land along their right-of-way and both companies raced for land and money.

            Union Pacific

            Grenville Dodge, a former union general, and an engineer, began pushing the Union Pacific westward from Omaha, Nebraska, in 1865. Mountain blizzards, desert heat, and, sometimes, angry Native Americans were the trials the laborers had to face. Workers of the Union Pacific were civil war veterans, newly recruited Irish immigrants, miners and farmers, cooks, adventurers, and ex-convicts. All in all, there were 10,000 workers in the Union Pacific. Camp life held gambling, hard drinking, and fighting which made it rough and dangerous.

Central Pacific

Central Pacific Railroad was thought up by Theodore Judah. C.P.R. hired 10,000 workers from China and paid them a dollar a day to make up for California’s labor shortage. Their equipment—rails, cars, locomotives, and machinery—was shipped from eastern United States.

Last Spike

The railroad was completed May 10, 1869. Workers finished the railroad in four years. After the last spike was hammered in by Leland Stanford, telegraph operators sent news across the nation.

The Rise of Big Business (ME) Eric Herber

           At the conclusion of the Civil War in 1865 the economy was in a slump and the country was in need of big businesses to increase the economy. Before the civil war, most of the manufacturing businesses were ran and owned by few people. These small enterprises were ran with high operating costs because they paid high wages, they had high costs for manufacturing plants because they had no stock investors to provide funds for the factories, and they had high costs for raw materials because these small companies had no investors. This is one of the main reasons why, after the Civil War, the expansion of big businesses was so abundant.

The creation of corporations and stock were the key points to success of big business. Corporations provided exactly what companies needed in the late 1800s to become successful. The corporations were owned by many people but it was treated by law as if only one person owned the company; this allowed for the creation of stock and stockholders.  A stockholder is basically a person that gives money to a company in order to own a part of the company. The money given by the stockholders created a much broader financial backbone for the corporations. This investment money allowed the big business to hire a larger workforce, purchase more raw materials, and distribute more products. Some of the main advantages of big business in the late 1800s were the ability to produce more goods cheaply and efficiently, the ability of the companies to continue operating in poor economic times, and the ability of big businesses to exchange discounts from the railroads in order to lessen distribution costs. The success of corporations in difficult economic times led to the closing of many small corporations, this was the only downfall to the rise of big business. The creation of corporations in the late 1800s laid a strong foundation for America which can be seen even in today’s society.

 

Andrew Carnegie and Steel (KI) Nena Bossaller

            

Andrew Carnegie’s remarkable life started in Scotland. He was the son of a poor hand weaver so he hoped to improve his life and moved to the United States in 1848. He started out working as a bobbin boy in a textile factory and earned $1.20 per week. Two years later he became a messenger in a telegraph office, and then worked as secretary to Thomas Scott, a superintendent. He later got the job as the President of the Pennsylvania Railroad. When Scott, who was impressed by Carnegie’s energy, was promoted, Andrew became the new superintendent. He knew how to invest his money and by his early 30’s he earned $50,000 per year, which was a tremendous amount compared to his first own earnings. Then he decided to quit his job to focus on his own business investments. He traveled to Europe and met Sir Henry Bessemer, who had a new process for making high quality steel that was cheap and efficient. Carnegie liked his idea and opened a steel company in Pittsburgh in 1875, using Sir Henry Bessemer’s process. By using the vertical integration for his company, which means that he owns all the different businesses that he needed for his business, he had success. When he got required in 1901 he sold his business for $400 Million to John Pierpont Morgan, a banker.

Rockefeller and Standard Oil (KI) Jill Mingus

           John D. Rockefeller almost accomplished the horizontal integration. Horizontal integration is the combining of firms around one business into a bigger corporation. Rockefeller was extremely successful in the oil business, and what made him successful was athe use of oil refineries. While many entrepreneurs drilled for oil, hoping to become rich, Rockefeller built refineries instead. In 1870, Rockefeller Company Standard Oil was founded by Rockefeller and some associates. He would buy out his competitors; he controlled about 90 percent of the oil refineries in the United States by the 1880s.

Europeans Flood into America (ME) Cameron Pratt

             Between 1865 and 1914 the Civil War had ended and World War 1 had begun. 25 million Europeans immigrated to the United States in that time period. By 1890 more than half of the immigrants were from Eastern and Southern Europe. They immigrated because they were looking for better jobs and trying to escape poverty and social classes in Europe and some of the immigrants moved to escape military service. European states had made immigration easy; the immigrants were allowed to take all their savings and belongings with them. Moving to the United States gave the Europeans a chance to move up in a social class, rather than staying at the bottom they could work to move up the social ladder.
             Most of the immigrants were dropped off at Ellis Island, an island off the coast of the New York harbor, where they had to go through inspection. They were checked for heart problems, hernias, scalp problems, and mental disabilities. Those who did not pass the tests were normally shipped back to Europe. In the states, the immigrants often lived in neighborhoods together and re-created their culture. How well they adjusted depended on how quickly they could learn English and adapt to the American culture.

Prejudice Against Catholics (C) Christian Campbell

            Nativism (hostility towards immigrants) increased in the late 1800s which led to anti-immigrant organizations. An anti-Catholic organization, named The American Protective Association, vowed not to hire or vote for Catholics. The organization was founded by Henry Bowers in 1887.

            Among the immigrants it seemed to be the Irish that suffered most from the anti-Catholic feelings. Many Irish immigrants were illiterate and only found jobs such as miners, dockhands, factory workers, and ditch-diggers. Irish women worked as cooks, servants, and millworkers. British culture in America, which was the dominant protestant, considered Irish poverty a result of laziness, ignorance and superstition, and ultimately had no use for the Catholic Irish.

            In 1882, due to the prejudice against immigrants, a law that banned convicts, paupers, and the mentally disabled from immigrating to the U.S. while taxing each newcomer 50 cents was enacted.

Separation by Class (ME) Eric Herber

            In the 1890s, large and growing cities were very distinctively separated into different social classes. The different types of classes were the upper class, the middle class, and the working class. All of these social classes lived differently from each other and were separated by boundaries that can even be seen in today’s society.

Upper Class

            The upper class tended to live very well compared to the rest of the classes in the late nineteenth century. They often could purchase houses that would be compared to castles or mansions with several rooms and luxuries. Since the living quarters were so large, the need for servants continuously increased at that time. Some of the upper class citizens hired many servants such as cooks, butlers, maids, coachmen, nannies, and chauffeurs to tend to all of the chores around the house. At the turn of the century, the upper class lived a very easy and luxurious life.

Middle Class

            The middle class had a fairly easy life when it came to living in the nineteenth century. Many of the middle class families could afford their own homes without the woman having to work. Usually the man of the house would pay all of the bills while the wife and the children enjoyed living in a home by themselves. In fact, some middle class families were wealthy enough to afford one servant and could even buy simple luxuries of that time period. Many of the middle class families tended to move out of cities into suburbs in order to escape the pollution and crime of the city life. The middle class may not have had it as well off as the upper class, but they still lived a comfortable life in the 1890s.

Working Class

            The working class of the late nineteenth century did not have an easy life in big cities. The working class often needed the whole family to work in order to maintain a simple life, unlike the upper and middle class. The working class did not have servants or luxuries. The man, woman, and sometimes even the children of the house had to work long hours to support the family. The woman and children often worked in clothing factories where they worked long hours for very little pay. This social class did not live in homes that they owned, but instead lived in multi-family apartments called tenements. They lived in these dark, dirty apartments with three or four other families at some times. The living conditions in the tenements were so bad that many of the working class would be sick or could even die from diseases found in the apartments. When it came to living at the turn of the century, nobody had it worse off than the working class.

             

Machine Politics (C) Cameron Pratt

               A political machine is a group designed to keep and gain power. The cities were rapidly growing and needed jobs, food, housing, and other necessities. Political machines and party bosses helped provide for these necessities. The party bosses that controlled the political machines were also in charge of the city’s finances, this was a problem at times. Party bosses grew rich as the result of getting money through dishonesty.
             George Plunkitt, New York’s most powerful party boss, defended himself with the “honest graft.” This basically means 'I see my opportunity and I take it.'  A lot of the party bosses used the city for resources, took bribes, and gave contracts to their friends. A lot of people didn’t like the political machines, and other people defended them by saying that they were providing necessary services and kept the city running.

Popular Culture (C) Jill Mingus

           Popular culture is like the high of society; like places and events that almost everyone takes part in and enjoys. Most people in the late 1800s couldn’t go do things they enjoyed because they had to spend their money on food and important necessities for everyday living and needs. Industrialization improved and urban Americans spilt their lives into different sections, people began to go out of the house and spend their money on entertainment.

            An example of an entertainment spot would be the saloon, found in the cities. Saloons were a place where most men would hang out after work, allow horses to drink, sometimes get free food, and just get out of the house and have a good time. Amusement parks and sporting events were fun for the kids and adults. When work became slow, they would look for physical activity to do just to pass time. Vaudeville and Ragtime, a French theater, was filled with animal acts, acrobats and dancers. Some shows would last all day and night. Ragtime music echoed the theater. Popular culture is a time when people are able to get out of the house and spend money. 

The Rise of Populism (ME) Nena Bossellar

               When a depression hit in 1890 ,Farmers from the Western states used their chance to find a third party, the peoples party, also known as populists. Quickly they nominated candidates to run for congress and the state legislature. Most Southern leaders of the alliance did not like the idea of a third party and they did not want the populists to undermine the Democrats’ control of the South. They hoped that if they were to produce a list of demands and promise to vote for candidates who support those demands, that that would force the Democrats to adopt the alliance program.

               

              Another plan to make the southern Democrats support the alliance was the sub-treasury plan. Their idea was to set up warehouses called sub-treasuries, to hold farmers’ crops off the market to force prices up. The alliance also wanted free coinage of silver, end to protective tariffs and national banks, tighter regulation of the railroads and direct election of senators by voters. 40 Democrats who supported the alliance program were elected to Congress, so the sub-treasury plans seemed to work at first. All excited about their success in electing so many pro-alliance Democrats to congress, they got frustrated two years later. The Populists were very successful in the West, they reformed groups in Cincinnati and the fact that Southern farmers were breaking with Democrats to join the Populists also contributed to their frustration. In 1982, James B. Weaver was nominated to run for president for the Populists, but Grover Cleveland from the Democrats won the election.

American Expansion into the Pacific (ME) Christian Campbell

           In the 1800s, Americans started to look over seas for new markets and naturally tended to go towards the Pacific.

Perry opens Japan

            United States believed they would benefit from the trade with Japan, however, Japan’s rulers believed that too much contact with the West would change their culture and they only allowed the Chinese and the Dutch to trade with them. In 1852, President Millard Fillmore ordered commodore Matthew C. Perry to take a naval expedition to negotiate a trade treaty with Japan after receiving several petitions from Congress.

            On July 8, 1853, four American warships that were under Perry’s command entered Edo Bay (Today known as Tokyo Bay). Impressed with American technology and firepower, the Japanese couldn’t resist and agreed to sign the Treaty of Kanagawa. Thanks to the trade treaty, there was peace between the U.S. and Japan, and any U.S. ships were allowed to buy supplies in Japanese ports.

            Japan decided to change their society and adopted Western technology and launched their own Industrial Revolution because of the trade treaty. By the 1890s, the Japanese had a powerful navy and begun building an empire in Asia.

Building a Modern Navy (C) Nena Bossellar

             The desire for a larger and more modern navy formed when the United States got assertive in foreign affairs. The imperialism and Anglo-Saxons got supported as well as their request in defending their interests overseas. Captain Alfred Mahan published the book called, “The Influence of Sea Power.” The book was about the argument that the U.S. did not build up its navy and acquire bases overseas. The European nations would shut them out of foreign markets. Mahan pointed out that in the past, the British and Dutch people had built large fleets of merchant ships to trade with the world. So what he was saying was that the U.S. would need a large navy to protect their merchant ships and defend their right to trade with other countries. His book soon became a best seller and with that, he helped to build public support for the navy. Business leaders wanted new markets overseas and two powerful senators pushed for Captain Alfred’s interests. These ideas convinced congress to authorize the construction of a large modern navy.

Annexing Hawaii (C) Eric Herber

          During the 1800s, the American trade was increasing between Asia. In result, American ships began looking for ports where they could resupply and refuel if they had to. Hawaii was known to be a good rest stop between Asia and the U.S. By the early 1820s missionaries from the East coast began to settle in Hawaii once they found that sugarcane grew well on the islands, and by the mid-1800s, businessmen had made many plantations there. Everything looked smooth for the plantations until a massive recession struck in 1872, dampening the economy. At that point, the United States signed a treaty exempting Hawaiian sugar from tariffs. The treaty led to an up rise of the economy and a boom in the sugar industry. Then in 1890, Congress passed a new tariff that gave grants to U.S. sugar producers, making the price of Hawaiian sugar much higher than American sugar. Since the Hawaiians couldn’t sell much sugar, the only way to increase sales, and the economy, was to become part of the United States.

            One year later, Queen Liliuokalani stepped down from the Hawaiian throne. Unhappy with the American influences on her home land, the Queen tried implementing a new constitution that would return her back to the throne. In response to the proposal of adding a new constitution, a group of planters attempted to overpower the Queen, and with the help of marines from the USS Boston, the Queen did not implement the new constitution and stepped down from power. The new leaders of Hawaii asked the United States to annex their land, but President Cleveland strongly opposed imperialism and refused to annex Hawaii. Hearing this, the new leaders waited until President Cleveland left office and eventually were annexed in 1898.     

The Coming of War (ME) Cameron Pratt

           The war was started in 1895 when Cuba tried to gain its independence from Spain. In 1890, the only remaining colonies of Spain were Cuba and Puerto Rico. Cuba had revolted against Spanish Rule now and again for many years, trying to gain there independence from Spain.
           Many Americans looked at Spain as tyrants. In 1898, following the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor, the United States issued a declaration of war on Spain. Allying with Cuba the United States started their attack on Spain. The war only lasted 3 months and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. Spain lost control of their oversea empires, such as Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines Islands, Guam, and other islands.

 

Building Support for Imperialism (ME) Jill Mingus

            After the Civil war, most Americans didn’t want to expand their territory. They focused on fixing up the south and advancing the nations industries. Around the early 1880s other nations are trying to influence the United States to become a world power.

             Imperialism by definition is the economic and political control of a strong nation over weaker ones. Europeans expanded their power overseas. No one country has all the resources needed by the government, each country has to have goods shipped in. There’s a need for a new market but most countries have tariffs against one another to protect industries, which helped reduce trade from industrialization countries. With the tariff, the development opportunities in Western Europe had slowed.  Europe began looking overseas in places to invest in their capital. 

           Americans had to be convinced to expand overseas. Many supported Social Darwinism which argued that nations competed with each other, and only the strongest would survive. They argued English speaking nations had superior characteristics, ideas, and a better system of government. It took a lot of persuasion to expand overseas.

The Debate over Annexation (C) Nena Bossellar

            A big conflict in the United States in 1898 was the debate over annexing the Philippines emphasized the economic and military benefits of taking the islands. The supporters of the annexation said that America had duty to help “less civilized people” and to rescue them to the savage, bloody rule of pillage and extortion. Their adversaries argued that the cost of an empire far outweighed the economic benefits it provided; they were also worried that competition from cheap Filipino labor would drive down American wages and William Jennings Bryan said as well that imperialism finds no warrant in the bible and that it violated American principles. Even though the annexation had a lot of adversaries, President MCKinley decided to annex the islands. His reasons were that they would have to take them because they couldn’t give them back to Spain, because it would be cowardly and dishonorable, they could not get them to France or Germany because it would be bad for business and discreditable and they also couldn’t leave them to themselves since they were “unfit for self-government”.  On December 10, 1898 the United States signed a treaty with Spain; it was called the Treaty of Paris. It included the independence from Cuba, but the United States got Puerto Rico and Guam and they agreed to pay Spain $20 million for the Philippines. This treaty got ratified in February 1899 after intense debates. The United States had become an imperial power.

World War I Begins (ME) Eric Herber

          Most people choose to believe that the assassination of the heir to Austria-Hungary, Archduke Ferdinand, was the event that started World War I. In reality, the tensions leading up to WWI started back in the 1870s. In 1870, Germany invaded France in order to unify the different German states into one nation, this created enemies between the two for many years to come. In order to protect themselves from France, Germany signed alliances with Italy and Austria-Hungary; this was known as the Triple Alliance. The creation of alliances is known to be one of the main reasons for the start of WWI. This new alliance alarmed the Russians because they feared that Germany’s goal was to expand eastward. In result, the Russians created an alliance with France and promised to assist each other if a war between the Triple Alliance happened to occur. As the years went on, the Germans began building a strong navy to intimidate the other nations. As a result of this naval buildup, Britain was forced to join into the alliances. In order to protect Europe from any one country getting too powerful, Britain decided to join sides with Russia and France, although Britain never signed an official alliance; this was known as the Triple Entente.

            At about the same time that alliances were being made, the Balkans of south-eastern Europe were looking for independence and a nation for all Balkans to reside. The Balkans all spoke a similar language and had the same culture, so they viewed themselves as one people. The first of the South Slavs to gain independence were the Serbs with the formation of Serbia. From then on, the Serbs believed that their goal was to unite all the South Slavs and become the nation for the Balkans to reside. It is no surprise that the Serbs were angered when Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia in 1908. This annexation showed the Serbs that Austria-Hungary had no intention of allowing the Slavic people to become independent.

            The act that sparked the First World War occurred in June 1914 at Sarajevo, Bosnia. Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife were visiting the capital when they were shot and killed by a member of the terrorist group called Black Hand. This attack sparked great controversy between Austria-Hungary and Serbia, which lead to the beginning of war.

            As Austria-Hungary prepared for war with Serbia, they knew that Russia was at Serbia’s side. In preparation for the war, Austria-Hungary asked Germany to support them if war was to begin. The Germans promised to be at their side as an agreement to the Triple Alliance. As a result of this alliance, the Russians and the Serbs counted on France to support them if war erupted. The French agreed to support them in combat. On July 28, 1914 Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, sparking the beginning of World War I. In response, Russia immediately mobilized their army and positioned on Germany’s border.

            In response to Russia’s activation of military, Germany decided to make a war plan. Their plan was a risky plan that did not end up being successful in this war. The German Army planned to march through neutral Belgium in order to reach France. Once they got to France, they planned on destroying the French within a couple of months. Then, after they were victorious in west, they were to head east in order to defeat the Russians. This was not a very well thought plan and the Germans didn’t anticipate the possibility of Britain joining the war, but that is exactly what happened. As soon as the Germans marched into Belgium, the British gathered their military and joined the war.

            Within a month, the war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia had expanded to the First World War. With Russia, Britain, and France being a part of the Triple Entente, they all joined the war in a short amount of time. And with the Triple Alliance being made of Germany, Italy, and Austria-Hungary, they too joined the war within a month. Later in the war, the United States of America joined the war when there were attacks on U.S. ships.    

                

The Americans Arrive (ME) Nena Bossellar

              Nearly two million American “doughboys” (that is the nickname of the American soldiers) came to help the alliance, especially to help the French because they helped the Americans during the Revolutionary War. With their arrival, they changed the morale of allied forces and demoralized German soldiers, who lost their hope in winning the war. The American soldiers were inexperienced, but fresh and eager to fight.
              On their way to Europe, they didn’t lose troopships and greatly reduced shipping losses because they gathered merchant ships and troop transports into groups, which are called convoys. They also saved lives when a ship was sunk because other ships in the convoy could rescue survivors when a ship went down. To protect and escort them across the Atlantic, they had warships, called destroyers. With this system they ensured that a large number of American troops arrived safely in Europe in time to help stop Germany’s last great offensive of the Western front. The Western front was the last one because Lenin got to power in Russia, after Czar Nicholas the second abdicated his throne. He decided to get out of the war and gave pieces of their land to Germany so he could focus now on bringing communism back.
               Poland, Hungary and Czechoslovakia declared independence in spring of 1918. In Germany sailors in Kiel mutinied, groups of workers and soldiers seized power in other German towns. The revolution got spread and the German emptor stepped down. On November 9, 1918 Germany became a republic. Two days later, the government signed an armistice, an agreement to stop fighting. The war ended on November 11, 1918.

Women Join Military (C) Jill Mingus

           Women were able to serve in World War I in 1917. The women were allowed to serve in armed forces, but only in noncombat positions. There was a shortage of office workers because most men were in active duty, so the navy used women as office workers. Women would wear the standard uniform and assigned the rank of yeoman.  Most women would serve as office workers, radio operators, electricians, pharmacist, chemist, and photographers.

The army wouldn’t enlist women, instead, women were being hired as temporary office workers. The only women to serve in the army were nurses. Since the 1900s, women nurses have served in the navy and army. Women did not have ranks, and were not really enlisted in the army or navy at that time.  

American Heroes (C/KI) Christian Campbell

Alvin York

            Alvin York, born in 1887, learned to shoot by hunting wild game while growing up in the mountains of Tennessee. He was opposed to war and tried to avoid the draft as a conscientious objector (someone, because of their moral or religious beliefs, refuses to obey the law). York was a Christian and as one, he decided he wasn’t allowed to kill. Later, he decided to allow himself to kill because he thought that fighting in a war was justified as long as the cause was too.

            At the Battle of Argonne Forest, October 18, 1918, Germans fired on York’s platoon and killed nine of his men. York took command and killed nine to twenty-five Germans before he took 132 of them as prisoners. York received the Medal of Honor and the French Croix de Guerre. He used his fame to raise money for the Alvin York Institute, a school for poor Tennessee children, after returning home.

Eddie Rickenbacker 

             Eddie Rickenbacker was born in Columbus, Ohio. Rickenbacker had great reflexes, due to his car-racing days. He used these reflexes as an advantage while he was a combat pilot and was named commander of the first all-American squadron to enter combat. While in the 94^th Aero Squadron, Rickenbacker became the top pilot with over 130 air battles fought and 20+ aircrafts shot down. He was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor by surviving an aerial battle alone against seven German pilots.

The Flawed Peace (ME) Cameron Pratt

           After the fighting had stopped, the countries needed to make a peace treaty and it needed to be negotiated and signed. 27 representatives from different countries traveled to Paris to the Palace of Versailles. The first treaty was the Treaty of Versailles. This treaty was designed to blame Germany for the war and to weaken their economy, and army. President Wilson had brought with him the peace plan known as the Fourteen Points.

Wilson wanted to create a “League of Nations,” were the countries would pledge to respect and protect each other’s territory and political independence. The president said that if the Fourteen Points were established that Europe would have long lasting peace. Many people liked the idea of this treaty but the French were more interested in getting revenge on Germany. They went with the Treaty of Versailles. But the U.S. Senate refused to sign the treaty. A year later, the United States developed separate peace treaties with each of the Central Powers. While the League of Nations was created by President Wilson, it took shape without the United States. 

The U.S. Senate Rejects the Treaty (C) Eric Herber

          After the 4 years, World War I had come to an end with the Triple Entente as the victors. The French and the British believed that Germany should have to suffer for what they caused in Europe. So when the leaders of the victorious nations gathered to make a treaty, it was no surprise that France and Britain suggested punishment for Germany. But Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States, wanted a treaty that would bring peace to the nations in Europe in what he called ‘Fourteen Points.’ So what they proposed was the Treaty of Versailles, which established 9 new nations in Europe, and provided appropriate punishment for Germany, including the limitations of the German military and navy.

            As President Wilson heads back to America, he is confident that his nation will be content with the contents of the treaty. To his surprise, the U.S. Senate does not pass the Treaty of Versailles with at least 2/3 of the votes. In response to the rejection of the treaty, President Wilson takes it upon himself to personally take his case to the American people to try and sway the Senate’s opinion. He traveled 8,000 miles and made over 30 major speeches in only three weeks. The stress that the President put his body through caused him to suffer a stroke. The Senate voted in November 1919 and again in March 1920, both times the Senate refused to ratify the treaty. A year later in 1921, the U.S. signed separate peace treaties with each of the Central Powers, leaving the U.S. out of the League of Nations.