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The Progressive Era (1890s–1920s [1] [2]) was a period in the United States during the early 20th century of widespread social activism and political reform across the country. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] Progressives sought to address the problems caused by rapid industrialization, urbanization, immigration, and political corruption as well as the enormous ...
Standard Oil (Refinery No. 1 in Cleveland, Ohio, pictured) was a major company broken up under United States antitrust laws.. The history of United States antitrust law is generally taken to begin with the Sherman Antitrust Act 1890, although some form of policy to regulate competition in the market economy has existed throughout the common law's history.
In 1898, President William McKinley launched the trust-busting era (one aspect of the Progressive Era) when he appointed the U.S. Industrial Commission. Theodore Roosevelt seized upon the commission's report and based much of his presidency (1901–1909) on trust-busting. [citation needed] Prominent trusts included: Standard Oil [6] U.S. Steel [7]
The rise of the Progressive Era prompted public officials to increase enforcement of antitrust laws. The Justice Department sued 45 companies under the Sherman Act during the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt (1901–09) and 90 companies during the presidency of William Howard Taft (1909–13).
Chief among these aims was the pursuit of trust busting, the breaking up very large monopolies and support for labor unions, public health programs, decreased corruption in politics and environmental conservation. [60] The progressive movement enlisted support from both major parties and from minor parties as well.
A Progressive reformer, Roosevelt earned a reputation as a "trust buster" through his regulatory reforms and antitrust prosecutions. His presidency saw the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act , which established the Food and Drug Administration to regulate food safety, and the Hepburn Act , which increased the regulatory power of the ...
The convention approved a strong "trust-busting" plank, but Roosevelt had it replaced with language that spoke only of "strong National regulation" and "permanent active [Federal] supervision" of major corporations. This retreat shocked reformers like Pinchot, who blamed it on Perkins (a director of U.S. Steel). The result was a deep split in ...
Most important was the Clayton Act of 1914, which largely put the trust issue to rest by spelling out the specific unfair practices that business were not allowed to engage in. [6] The legislative environment was favourable to Wilson, with progressive Democratic majorities in Congress during his first term in office. [7] [8]