Chapter 3: A New American Dream

Faced with the endless cycle of frontier unrest, presidents and scholars alike scrambled for a permanent fix.

Think-tank types, professors from Harvard and Chicago, even local preachers weighed in—each with their own blueprint for lasting peace. Most of these schemes wound up gathering dust, but every so often, a bold new idea would take root.

It wasn’t until the early 20th century that hope finally broke through.

The air crackled with optimism—new inventions, new cities, a new sense of what America could be. It was the sort of moment when anything seemed possible, if only the right leader could seize it.

Why did this opening only come during the Progressive Era?

You could feel the shift in the air—in new labor laws, in the swelling ranks of immigrants, in the energy of reformers pouring into Washington. The country was in the mood to sweep out old ways and try something bold.

The answer is simple: for the first time, a truly national regime wanted to integrate everyone. It wasn’t just about policy anymore—it was about forging a shared American dream, with room (at least in theory) for everyone. The frontier was shrinking, and with it, the old us-versus-them mentalities began to fade.

Before this, D.C. was run by the old elite. With a worldview that split "Americans" from "Indians," anyone outside the mainstream was treated as an outsider. The feeling was mutual—old grudges ran deep, and both sides saw each other as the enemy. Coexistence was impossible.

Folks on both sides of the line nursed old grudges. Even in parlor rooms and schoolhouses, stories about "the other side" were passed down with a kind of bitter pride. The result? Hatred hardened, and fences—literal and social—went up everywhere.