Gilded Age

Prohibited the use of the U.S. Army to enforce domestic law unless expressly authorized by the Constitution or an act of Congress. Enacted in response to the military enforcement of Reconstruction policies in the South.

Established the principle of civilian control over domestic law enforcement.

Prohibited the immigration of Chinese laborers for ten years and barred Chinese residents from becoming naturalized citizens. It was the first federal law to restrict immigration based on nationality.

Established the precedent for race-based immigration restrictions and remained in effect for over 60 years.

Established that government positions should be awarded based on merit through competitive examinations rather than political patronage. Created the Civil Service Commission to oversee the process.

Ended the spoils system and professionalized the federal workforce.

Created the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), the first federal regulatory agency, to regulate railroad rates and practices. Required that rates be 'reasonable and just' and prohibited discriminatory pricing.

Established the precedent for federal regulation of private industry.

Divided Native American tribal lands into individual allotments and granted citizenship to those who accepted allotments. Resulted in the loss of approximately 90 million acres of tribal land.

Dismantled tribal land ownership and devastated Native American communities for generations.

Outlawed monopolies and conspiracies in restraint of trade. Declared every contract or combination in restraint of interstate commerce to be illegal, with criminal penalties.

Became the cornerstone of American antitrust law and was used to break up Standard Oil and other monopolies.

Created the Bureau of Immigration and established federal control over immigration processing. Excluded categories of immigrants including those likely to become public charges, polygamists, and persons with contagious diseases.

Centralized immigration control under the federal government and led to the opening of Ellis Island.