Home History VII. THE HEPBURN ACT
Chapter
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

VII. THE HEPBURN ACT

View more publications by Princeton University Press
To Publisher Page
Railroads and Regulations, 1877-1916
This chapter is in the book Railroads and Regulations, 1877-1916
CHAPTER VII THE HEPBURN ACT THE Hepburn Act has been generally regarded as a de­feat for the railroads in particular and conservatism in general. "It was in 1906 that the railroads fought their fight to a finish against federal regulation," Frank H. Dixon wrote in 1922.1 This impression was in part a by-product of the campaign of 1912, when Progressive Party publicists made the Hepburn Act one of the pro­gressive monuments of Roosevelt's presidency—a vic­tory allegedly snatched from the grips of conservative Senators and avaricious railroads.2 Most historians have accepted this interpretation at its face value, and the standard treatment of the Hepburn Act has varied only in details and not in the basic analysis. John M. Blum, for example, has concluded that Roosevelt's claim to be a progressive in the generic sense is justified by his role in passing the Hepburn Act. Although he admits the Hepburn Act was in many ways inadequate, Blum suggests the act "nevertheless earned for Roosevelt the opprobrious criticism of a large part of the business community and the tenacious opposi­tion of a near majority of the United States Senate."3 ". . . the Hepburn Act provided the precedent . . . by which federal regulatory agencies have promoted the na-1 Frank Haigh Dixon, Railroads and Government, 1910-1921 (New York, 1922), p. 3. 2 Judson C. Welliver, Catching Up With Roosevelt [reprint from Munsey1B Magazine, March, 1912] (New York, 1912), p. 7, is one example of this. 3 John M. Blum, "Theodore Roosevelt and the Hepburn Act: Toward an Orderly System of Control," in The Letters of Theodore Roosevelt, VI, 1561.
© 2016 Princeton University Press, Princeton

CHAPTER VII THE HEPBURN ACT THE Hepburn Act has been generally regarded as a de­feat for the railroads in particular and conservatism in general. "It was in 1906 that the railroads fought their fight to a finish against federal regulation," Frank H. Dixon wrote in 1922.1 This impression was in part a by-product of the campaign of 1912, when Progressive Party publicists made the Hepburn Act one of the pro­gressive monuments of Roosevelt's presidency—a vic­tory allegedly snatched from the grips of conservative Senators and avaricious railroads.2 Most historians have accepted this interpretation at its face value, and the standard treatment of the Hepburn Act has varied only in details and not in the basic analysis. John M. Blum, for example, has concluded that Roosevelt's claim to be a progressive in the generic sense is justified by his role in passing the Hepburn Act. Although he admits the Hepburn Act was in many ways inadequate, Blum suggests the act "nevertheless earned for Roosevelt the opprobrious criticism of a large part of the business community and the tenacious opposi­tion of a near majority of the United States Senate."3 ". . . the Hepburn Act provided the precedent . . . by which federal regulatory agencies have promoted the na-1 Frank Haigh Dixon, Railroads and Government, 1910-1921 (New York, 1922), p. 3. 2 Judson C. Welliver, Catching Up With Roosevelt [reprint from Munsey1B Magazine, March, 1912] (New York, 1912), p. 7, is one example of this. 3 John M. Blum, "Theodore Roosevelt and the Hepburn Act: Toward an Orderly System of Control," in The Letters of Theodore Roosevelt, VI, 1561.
© 2016 Princeton University Press, Princeton

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS v
  3. CONTENTS vii
  4. INTRODUCTION 1
  5. I. IN QUEST OF STABILITY 1877-1883 7
  6. II. AGITATION FOR A FEDERAL RAILROAD LAW 1884–1886 30
  7. III. FORMATIVE YEARS OF THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION 1887–1890 45
  8. IV. COMPETITION AND CRISIS: THE FAILURE OF REGULATION 1891–1897 64
  9. V. THE MOVEMENT FOR REFORM 1898 THROUGH THE ELKINS ACT 84
  10. VI. PRESSURES FOR RAILROAD LEGISLATION 1903–1905 102
  11. VII. THE HEPBURN ACT 127
  12. VIII. THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND REGULATION, 1906–1908 155
  13. IX. FREIGHT RATES, POLITICS, AND THE PRESIDENT 1909–1912 177
  14. X. WOODROW WILSON AND THE TRIUMPH OF FEDERAL CONTROL 1913–1916 208
  15. CONCLUSION 231
  16. BIBLIOGRAPHY 241
  17. INDEX 265
Readers are also interested in:
https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400878741-009

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter i
  2. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS v
  3. CONTENTS vii
  4. INTRODUCTION 1
  5. I. IN QUEST OF STABILITY 1877-1883 7
  6. II. AGITATION FOR A FEDERAL RAILROAD LAW 1884–1886 30
  7. III. FORMATIVE YEARS OF THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION 1887–1890 45
  8. IV. COMPETITION AND CRISIS: THE FAILURE OF REGULATION 1891–1897 64
  9. V. THE MOVEMENT FOR REFORM 1898 THROUGH THE ELKINS ACT 84
  10. VI. PRESSURES FOR RAILROAD LEGISLATION 1903–1905 102
  11. VII. THE HEPBURN ACT 127
  12. VIII. THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND REGULATION, 1906–1908 155
  13. IX. FREIGHT RATES, POLITICS, AND THE PRESIDENT 1909–1912 177
  14. X. WOODROW WILSON AND THE TRIUMPH OF FEDERAL CONTROL 1913–1916 208
  15. CONCLUSION 231
  16. BIBLIOGRAPHY 241
  17. INDEX 265
Sign up now to receive a 20% welcome discount
Institutional Access
How does access work?
Have an idea on how to improve our website?
Please write us.
© 2025 De Gruyter Brill
Downloaded on 24.9.2025 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781400878741-009/html?licenseType=restricted&srsltid=AfmBOooqvcoxMAElSVeh1MqwnGD9fARDeZvxJAfKe1O1_up8FH4gUWtU
Scroll to top button