Which event is considered to have effectively ended the free silver movement and the populist movement?

The election of 1896 is considered to have effectively ended the free silver movement and the populist movement primarily due to the national political landscape it shaped. This election was a pivotal moment in American history, highlighting the tension between agrarian interests and the industrial economy. The Democratic Party, embracing the free silver cause as part of its platform, faced off against William McKinley, the Republican candidate, who endorsed the gold standard and opposed free silver.

The defeat of the Democrats and the populists in this election signaled a critical loss for those advocating for monetary reform and broader economic measures aimed at supporting farmers and working-class citizens. The election firmly aligned the country with a currency based on gold, thereby sidelining the free silver movement and diminishing the influence of the populist movement. This defeat led to a decline in the populists' political power and an eventual assimilation of their ideas into more mainstream politics, thereby marking the end of their immediate impact on the national stage.

In contrast, the other options either occurred later or did not directly address the economic reforms that characterized the populist movement. The Great Depression took place decades later and involved a different set of economic issues; the Spanish-American War did not address monetary policy, and the establishment of the