Books in America's Industrial Society in the 19th Century series

Founded in 1792 by Thomas Jefferson as the party of the common man, the Democratic Party dominated American politics until the 1850s. At a time when the Civil War about to erupt, the issue of slavery tore the country apart. The Democratic Party, with its large southern vote, could not weather the storm and tore apart as well. By the turn of the 20th century, the Democratic Party regained its focus and led the way into the next century in the fight for women's suffrage and civil rights.

In the years following the Civil War, railroads were privately owned and entirely unregulated. As the railroad industry grew and became more important to the growth of our young nation, the public demanded that these same railroads be regulated by the government. Since these railroads were the only fast transportation in the areas in which they ran, the companies held natural monopolies. In 1887, Congress passed the Interstate Commerce Act, making the railroads the first industry subject to federal regulation.

The Republican Party was founded in 1854 to abolish slavery. Abraham Lincoln was its first president. After the Civil War, as the Democratic Party foundered, party platforms shifted back and forth with the Republicans and Democrats battling over reconstruction of the South, civil rights, political corruption, and the power of big business over immigrants and the working poor.