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Life in the Big City

Life in the Big City. Life in 1900. Life expectancy 1900: 46.3 yrs for men 48.3 yrs for women Family size 5.7 kids for laborers 5.2 children for skilled workers Top 12% of nation controlled 86% of wealth in 1900; lowest 44% controlled 1.5%. Urbanization.

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Life in the Big City

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  1. Life in the Big City

  2. Life in 1900 • Life expectancy • 1900: • 46.3 yrs for men • 48.3 yrs for women • Family size • 5.7 kids for laborers • 5.2 children for skilled workers • Top 12% of nation controlled 86% of wealth in 1900; lowest 44% controlled 1.5%

  3. Urbanization • Major cities developing during this time are Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore • From 1860 to 1910 city population increases dramatically. • By 1920, majority of Americans move from rural to urban areas. • One of the major factors for this growth was eastern European immigrants.

  4. Immigration • 1860-1890: Large amount of Irish and German immigrants. • 1890: NYC has as many Germans as Hamburg, 2x as many Irish as Dublin. • Some came for religious freedom others for a better way of life. • After 1890: Immigrants flow in from Italy, Poland, Greece • http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/immigration/tour/index.htm

  5. Immigration (Con’t) • 4 out of 5 New Yorkers were born abroad or were children of immigrants • Discrimination by native-born Americans • Some stopped speaking native language for fear of being prosecuted

  6. Family Life • Everyone in the family contributed in one way or another: • Women did laundry and took care of boarders • Children went to work as young as 10 years old • Most children stopped their education to help support the family.

  7. Housing in Urban Cities

  8. NYC Slums

  9. Water Becomes a Problem • Skyrocketing population; not enough clean drinking water • Poor (or no) indoor plumbing • Disease (cholera, smallpox, diphtheria, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, whooping cough, measles, scarlet fever) • 20% infant mortality rate in Chicago in 1900 • Filtration and chlorination introduced in late 19th and early 20th century

  10. Crime Runs Wild • Pickpockets and thieves, murder • Ethnic street gangs • NYC: first police department, 1853 • Widespread corruption and cooperation between criminals and police

  11. Final Questions • Whose responsibility is it to deal with these problems? • How does reform and positive change usually happen in America?

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