Looking Backwards: Emerson in 1903‪.‬

America in 1903 was a place of power and powerful conflicts. The Captains of Industry had made America an economic powerhouse. A quick military victory in the Spanish-American War at the close of the nineteenth century had given the nation an empire almost overnight. Immigrants from all over the world were streaming into the country seeking their full measure of the "American Dream." Many would be disappointed. Poverty was pervasive in large cities. Racism and lynching were an international embarrassment. Men, women, and children worked long hours under oppressive conditions for substandard wages. Political corruption was rampant. But optimism prevailed and the "Progressive Era" was about to emerge. In this dynamic context, the one hundredth anniversary of Ralph Waldo Emerson's birth was widely celebrated throughout the nation. Reformers found in him the answer to the nation's ills. Conservatives found in him ample confirmation of the status quo. Virtually all agreed, however, that the "Sage of Concord" would provide invaluable guidance to the young nation in what would ultimately become known as "The American Century." **********