1905
Lochner v. New York
No. The limit interfered with liberty of contract protected by the Due Process Clause.
Source: Opinion of the Court
The Progressive Era and World War I. 1901–1920
Four amendments in eight years bring the income tax, direct election of senators, Prohibition and women’s suffrage. World War I brings the Espionage and Sedition Acts and the first major free speech cases.
The questions. As the record frames them.
The constitutional questions this era’s decisions and laws turned on.
- When can speech be punished?
- Can government regulate working conditions?
The record. 10 entries, in order.
Every case, amendment and event in Constilumen dated 1901 to 1920.
1913
Sixteenth Amendment: Income tax
Congress may tax incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the states.
Source: National Archives
1913
Seventeenth Amendment: Direct election of senators
Senators are elected directly by the people of each state, replacing election by state legislatures.
Source: National Archives
1917
Espionage Act
Two months after the United States enters World War I, Congress makes it a crime to interfere with military operations or recruitment. The Sedition Act of 1918 extends it to “disloyal” speech about the government; that extension is repealed in 1920.
Source: National Archives
1918
Hammer v. Dagenhart
No. Manufacturing was not commerce, and the law reached into matters reserved to the states.
Source: Opinion of the Court
1919
Schenck v. United States
No. Speech that creates a “clear and present danger” of evils Congress may prevent can be punished, especially in wartime.
Source: Opinion of the Court
1919
Abrams v. United States
Yes, the convictions stood. Justice Holmes, joined by Justice Brandeis, dissented in an opinion later cited as a foundation of modern free speech law.
Source: Opinion of the Court
1919
Eighteenth Amendment: Prohibition of alcohol
Prohibited the manufacture, sale or transportation of intoxicating liquors within the United States.
Source: National Archives
1920
Palmer Raids
Justice Department raids under Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer arrest thousands of suspected radicals in more than thirty cities, many without warrants; hundreds of non-citizens are deported.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation
1920
Nineteenth Amendment: Women’s right to vote
The right of citizens to vote shall not be denied or abridged on account of sex.
Source: National Archives
The language. What stood out in print.
Tracked terms printed most often in 1901–1920 compared with their own average across 1789–2022. A value of 2× means the word appeared twice as often as usual.
- suffrage1.4×
- unconstitutional1.2×
- rule of law1.0×
- patriotism1.0×
- habeas corpus0.9×
- democracy0.8×
Executive orders. Presidencies of the era.
Totals for each full presidency, including years outside the era. Counts before 1945 include unnumbered orders.
| President | Took office | Orders | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| William McKinley | 1897 | 185 | 41 |
| Theodore Roosevelt | 1901 | 1,081 | 145 |
| William Howard Taft | 1909 | 724 | 181 |
| Woodrow Wilson | 1913 | 1,803 | 225 |
Source: The American Presidency Project. All presidencies