STUDY QUESTIONS

CALIFORNIA:  AN INTERPRETIVE HISTORY (8th Ed.)

CHAPTER 18  -  POLITICS IN THE ERA OF RAILROAD DOMINATION

1. To which corporation was California's government subservient to?  What gave this corporation so much influence?
2. Who was David D. Colton and what did the "Colton Letters" reveal?
3. How did Collis Huntington's feud with Leland Stanford reveal to the public the corrupt tactics of the Southern Pacific Railroad?
4. Explain the power politics behind Los Angeles' fight for a free harbor.
5. What was the controversy over the Congressional funding bill of the Central Pacific debts?
6. Who was Adolph Sutro?
7. What power did the head of the railroad's political department have in state matters?
8. How did the railroad exert political power over local political bosses?
9. Who were the "associated villainies?"
10. Can be blame this corruption solely on the Southern Pacific?
11. Why was it so important for the railroad to control the state bank commission?
12. How effective was the railroad's "free pass" in influencing public officials?
13. Were the courts immune to the railroad's influences?
14. Why were reformers so disheartened by their own efforts?
15. Did the railroad support one political party over another?
16. How important was Newton Booth to the Southern Pacific?
17. What motivations were behind the formation of the Nationalist party and the People's (aka Populist) party?

Key Names, Terms, and Concepts