1. Teddy Roosevelt
and the
Progressive
Movement
“To destroy this invisible Government,
to dissolve the unholy alliance
between corrupt business and corrupt
politics is the first task of the
statesmanship of the day."
– 1912

2. TR and the Progressive Era
• TR became president when
President William McKinley was
assassinated in 1901
• Roosevelt saw the presidency as
a “Bully Pulpit” from which he
could influence the news media
and shape legislation
• Roosevelt wanted Americans to
have a “Square Deal”, a term
used to describe the progressive
reforms sponsored by his
administration

3. Roosevelt’s Progressive Reforms:
Trustbusting:
• Did not want to destroy ALL
trusts, only those which hurt
the public interest
• Used the Sherman Antitrust
Act to sue the Northern
Securities Company which had
a monopoly over railroads
(Supreme Court dissolved the
company)
• Filed a total of 44 suits and
won only a few

4. A New Way of Handling Strikes:
• Threatened coal mine
owners that he would use
troops to take over the
mines in 1902
• Forced owners to accept
arbitration, rather than
siding with the coal mine
owners (as had previous
presidents)
• Coal miners got pay hike
and shorter working hours
The Coal Strike of 1902 was a strike by the United
Mine Workers of America in the anthracite coal fields
of eastern Pennsylvania. The strike threatened to shut
down the winter fuel supply to all major cities

5. Railroad Regulation:
• Urged Congress to pass the
Elkins Act which forbid railroad
rebates and forbid railroads
from changing rates unless they
informed the public
• Urged the passage of the
Hepburn Act in 1906 which
allowed the ICC to set
maximum railroad rates

6. Regulating Foods and Drugs:
• Promoted the Meat
Inspection Act of 1906
which dictated cleanliness
requirements for
meatpackers and created a
program of meat inspection
• Supported the Pure Food
and Drug Act which halted
the sale of contaminated
foods and medicines and
called for truth in labeling

7. Conservation and Natural Resources:
• Set aside 148 million
acres of forest reserves
• Established 50 wildlife
reserves and several
national parks
• National Reclamation
Act of 1902: funded
large scale irrigation
projects such as the
Roosevelt Dam President Theodore Roosevelt and John
Muir at Glacier Point, Yosemite,1903.