An Urban Society

1. An Urban Society 1865-1914

2. The New Immigrants Essential Question: What were some characteristics of the wave of new immigrants?

3. Partner Discussion Get to know your partner!! Where did your family come from? Which part of your heritage do you most identify with? When did your family come to the United States?

4. Old Immigration • Before 1865, most immigrants to the United States came from Northern and Western Europe • These immigrants are referred to as “old” immigrants • Ireland, Germany, England, Scandinavia • Most speak English

5. New Immigration • “New” immigrants began to arrive after the Civil War, (1865) seeking opportunities in the United States • What kind of opportunities might they be seeking? ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. New Immigration • New immigrants are arriving from Eastern and Southern Europe • Greeks, Russians, Hungarians, Italians, Turks and Polish • Also, China, Japan and Mexico

7. Partner Discussion Would your family be considered old or new immigrants? Why? Discuss with your partner what the differences is between old and new immigrants.

8. New Immigration • Many newcomers are Catholics and Jews • Many do not speak English • Have more difficulty blending into American society than “old” immigrants have • Often cluster together in neighborhoods made up of people of the same ethnicity

9. Leaving Troubles Behind • Why do so many people leave their homelands for the US? • Pushed away by economic troubles, overcrowding, poverty, crop failures, religious persecution of ethnic groups • Pulled by lure of opportunity

10. Seeking Opportunity • Immigrants saw US as a land of opportunity • Jobs • Land • Better life • Difficult journey to America • Could only afford cheapest tickets and often traveled in steerage • Cramped quarters on lower decks

11. Entering America • Encountered the Statue of Liberty as they sailed into New York Harbor and to registration on Ellis Island • Asian Immigrants registered at Angel Island on West Coast • New immigrants were given health examinations and could be turned away

12. Ellis Island

13. The Immigrant Experience • Greatest challenge was finding work and a place to live • Some fast growing industries hired large amounts of unskilled immigrants • Many immigrant women and children worked in sweatshops • Dark, crowded shops where workers made clothing • Work was repetitious and hazardous • Long hours, low pay

14. Adjusting to America • Immigrants wanted to preserve their own culture while trying to assimilate to American culture at the same time • This creates conflict

15. Building Communities • People of the same ethnic group tended to form separate communities • Sought to recreate some of the life they had left behind • Developed houses of worship, published newspapers in their Native Language, opened stores and theatres, organized social clubs • All of this helped to preserve their cultural heritage

16. Partner Discussion Can you think of any “immigrant communities” in buffalo?

17. Buffalo Cultural Heritage

18. Reactions Toward Immigration At first when immigrants arrived in the United States they were extremely disliked because people thought they were taking away jobs from native born citizens. However, they were not treated very badly because there was a steady demand for labor. During the 19th century, the United States had an open immigration policy mainly because there were plenty of jobs going around.

19. Nativism • The flood of immigrants in the late 1800s brought with it a new wave ofnativism. What is nativism? • Belief that native born Americans and their ways of life were superior to immigrants and their ways of life.

20. Partner Discussion Can you think of any modern reactions toward immigrants? Positive or negative? Can you think of any modern hate crimes against immigrants?

21. Nativism • Nativists had the following beliefs • Religion, customs and language were a negative impact • Stealing work away from native born citizens • Believed laws should be passed to limit immigration

22. Nativism As jobs became more scarce because more immigrants were coming to the United States, immigrants were often met with prejudice and discrimination. Nativists became very vocal and active in trying to influence legislation to be passed against immigrants.

23. Nativism Major groups and laws that developed out of this nativist movement Know Nothing Party: Anti-immigrant organization set up to pass laws against immigrants Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882:No Chinese were permitted into the United States Immigration Act of 1917:Required immigrants to pass a literacy test in order to enter the country National Origins Act of 1924:Only immigrants from Northern and Western Europe are allowed to enter the US

24. Partner Discussion Do the languages and customs of immigrants have a negative impact on American culture? What kinds of things do we get from the presence of immigrants and their cultures?

25. Making Connections How did immigration change after 1865?

26. Moving to the Cities Essential Question: How did cities change in the late 1800s?

27. Growth of the Cities • Immigrants and others flooded to American cities, where extremes of wealth and poverty existed • Industrialization made it possible to produce crops with fewer farm workers • Women in rural areas no longer had to make clothing or household goods • African Americans flocked to Southern and especially Northern cities

28. Tenement Living • The poorest residents, usually immigrants lived in tenements located in the slums of the city • Several people living in each room • Cold tap water (if lucky) • Communal toilets

32. The Middle Class • Doctors, lawyers, ministers, managers, office clerks, etc. • Comfortable life in the suburbs made possible by new transportation • Streetcars • Trolleys • Subways • Bridges • Might have servants • Leisure time to enjoy music, art and literature

33. The Very Rich • Built enormous mansions in the cities and large estates in the country • Because of their extravagant wealth and the terrible poverty that lay beneath it, this period became known as the Gilded Age • Something covered with a thin layer of gold

34. Carnegie and Vanderbilt Mansions

35. Cities in Crisis • Growing cities suffered from • Health and sanitation problems • Poverty • Fire • Crime • High infant mortality rates • Disease • Gangs • Poor received assistance from people dedicated to improving urban life • Settlement Houses • Jane Addams – Hull House (1889)

36. The Changing City • New technology in transportation and architecture reshaped cities • Sky scrapers • Bring nature to the cities (Frederick Law Olmstead – Central Park)

37. Making Connections • Listing. What problems did cities face in the late 1800s? • Disease, poor sanitation, poverty, crime, fire • Cause and Effect. What effect did the new forms of transportation have on city life? • Helped people travel within cities. Contributed to growth of suburbs • Answer the Essential Question: How did cities change during the late 1800s?

38. A Changing Society

39. Changes in Education • In 1865, most Americans attended school for an average of 4 years • By 1914, most states required children have some schooling • Education opportunities were extended to many more Americans as the system of public schools and colleges expanded • Southern African Americans received little or no education • Boarding Schools were possible for Native Americans

40. A Nation of Readers • Educated Americans found new reading material in public libraries, a growing literary culture and thriving newspapers • More realistic approach to literature • Paperback books (late 1880s) • Technological advances in printing, papermaking and communication spread news quickly

41. Leisure Activities • Middle class has leisure time for sports, art and music • Sports including baseball, basketball and football grow in popularity • Vaudville shows, traveling circuses and the first movies offer new forms of entertainment • Jazz and ragtime (Distinctively American forms of music)

42. Answer the Essential Question: In what ways did American culture change in the late 1800s?