the gilded age

• the gilded age was from 1877 to 1900
• the gilded age was an era of political corruption
• the spoils system - instead of promoting based on merit, politicians would award jobs to their allies
• the spoils system was replaced by the civil service in 1883
• Tammany Hall - the democratic political center- became a beacon of political corruption
• the Tweed ring gave basic services to immigrants in return for them voting democrat
• the gilded age oversaw rapid economic growth, increasing immigration and political corruption
• The election of 1876 was disputed
• Compromise of 1877 was a phyrric victory for Hayes
• Democrats took control of Southern states like Florida and Louisiana, became known as the "Solid South"
• Hayes aimed to root out patronage and the spoils system but was opposed by the stalwarts, a powerful block of republican dissidents