Episodes Located: Washington City, District of Columbia in the 1890's

  1. Jim Crows to the Senate-a White Mississippians' Defense of Supremacy
    date December 31, 1890map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Government, Law, Politics, Race-Relations

    On December 31, 1890, Senator James Z. George (D. Miss), a man Dunbar Rowland calls a life-long resident of Carroll County, began his overwhelmingly convincing speech on the Senate Floor defending the newly written Mississippi Constitution. The new constitution, according to Rowland's 1902 reflections, was drafted in order to eliminate ignorance at the ballot box, and Senator George's defense was...

  2. Sanitation in Medicine
    date March 9, 1895map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Health/Death, Science/Technology

    On March 9th, 1895, the Times and Registrar published an article detailing a new hypodermic syringe. Its sleek design, metal casing surrounding a sanitary inner glass chamber, was the newest in medical technology. A screw-on needle kept the syringe itself from being dangerous, decreasing the chance of sticks and accidents. Though the metal casing itself could be used many times,...

  3. The Debate Over Colonization
    date February 28, 1890map Washington City, District of Columbiatags African-Americans, Government, Law, Politics, Migration/Transportation, Race-Relations, Slavery

    Bishop H. M. Turner decided to pick up a copy of the Evening Star on the night of February 28th, 1890, when a certain headline caught his eye: Bruce on the race issue. The Honorable Blanche Kelsoe Bruce was an old friend of the Bishop's who had become a Senator of the state of Mississippi and moved to Washington D.C. Each man greatly admired the other for his work and his distinguished accomplishments....

  4. Journalist Kincaid Shoots and Kills Former Congressman Taulbee in U.S. Capitol
    date February 28, 1890map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Crime/Violence

    In the 1880s, Louisville Times journalist Charles E. Kincaid reported that married Congressman William Taulbee was seen in a “compromising way' with a young woman in the United States Patent Office. As a result, Taulbee's political career ended. On February 28, 1890, Taulbee came across Kincaid in Washington, D.C. and threatened the journalist. According to a Capitol doorkeeper who witnessed...

  5. Debate over McKinley Tariff
    date January, 1890 to May, 1890map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Agriculture, Economy

    Republican Congressman William McKinley from Ohio introduced his plan for the tariff in the Spring of 1890. The legislation set the tariff rate at fifty percent, the highest in United States history. Congressman McKinley and its supporters designed the tariff to protect agriculture. However, the group forwarding the interests of the farmers, the Farmers' Alliance, called for the removal of the...

  6. Debate over Sherman Anti-Trust Act and Sherman Silver Purchase Act
    date January, 1890 to June, 1890map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Agriculture, Economy

    The Sherman Anti-Trust Act represented the first action by the federal government to curb business monopolies. The Act declared the illegality of any contract or combination between business entities that resulted in restraining trade. The Act also granted government attorneys and district courts the authority to investigate these trusts. The Farmers' Alliance actively supported government intervention...

  7. Blacks are requested to enlist for volunteer service in the Spanish American War
    date April, 1898 to August, 1898map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Race-Relations, War

    At the beginning of the Spanish American War, Secretary Alger sent a bill to Congress requesting 25,000 blacks to enlist and support the war effort. Alger was backed by many other political figures that wanted to create separate black forces. It was thought that blacks would be a valuable addition to the forces in terms of physical strength and supposed immunity to tropical diseases. At the same...

  8. The Bankruptcy Act of 1898 is announced
    date November 28, 1898map Washington City, District of Columbiatags Economy

    For fifteen years prior to 1898 the Bankruptcy Act lay pending in the Congress. On November 18, 1898, the rules of the act were finally announced to the American people by Justice Gray of the United States Supreme Court. It was asserted that all rules of the act would take effect as of January 2, 1898. The act replaced the previous Bankruptcy Act of 1867.

    The Bankruptcy Act was first...

  9. Louisiana State Constitutional Convention
    date February 8, 1898 to February 12, 1898map Washington City, District of Columbiatags African-Americans, Race-Relations

    In February and May of 1898, the Louisiana state government held a constitutional convention. In doing so, the legislators focused heavily on certain aspects of the state laws that pertained to voting rights of African-Americans and poor whites. From 1897 on, almost all of the Southern states were revising or creating their state constitutions. Many of the modifications increased the authority of...

  10. Spanish American War
    date April 5, 1898map Washington City, District of Columbiatags War

    On April 25, 1898, the United States officially entered into War with Spain. In the early months of 1898, tensions in Cuba involving Cuban revolutionaries and the Spanish government began to escalate. Following the explosion of the USS Maine, which the Spanish claimed was merely an accident; US President William McKinley was hesitant to begin war and waited on the Naval Court's reports. Questions...

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