Documents from Reading the American Past

Chapter 19

Introduction to the Documents

The economic achievements of the Gilded Age did not appear to be miraculous to working people. Factory workers knew that profits often meant low wages, long hours, and frequent unemployment. Domestic servants knew how much work it took to supply their employers with the comforts of home. Immigrants streamed into America where they hoped to find jobs, security, and a new life for themselves and their children. Union members hoped that strikes might win them a share of gains in productivity. Radicals argued that only revolutionary change could remedy injustice and inequality. As the following documents illustrate, the Gilded Age looked different when viewed from the shop floor rather than the corner office.