Changes in American Life

1. Changes in American Life Chapter 21 Section 1

2. Urbanization • Industrial revolution changed not only howpeople worked, but where. • Prior to second half of 1800’s, people mostly lived and worked in rural (country) areas. • Increasing number of factory jobs leads to urbanization(cities). • Workers migrate within US, but also from other countries

3. Technology • New technology helped make the construction of skyscrapers possible. • Cities began to grow vertically (upward), rather than horizontally (outward). • The elevator allowed buildings to grow taller than just a few stories, holding more people.

4. Home Insurance building • Chicago (1885) • 10 Stories tall

5. The streetcar • Travel also changed outside of buildings and in urban streets. • People originally used horses and horse-drawn carriages. • By 1900, streetcars in urban areas were carrying more than 5 billion passengers. • (Virginia first in 1888)

6. Changes in urban transportation Prior to 1900 Post 1900

7. DIFFERENCES IN LAYOUT • Chicago created elevated streetcars going above the street • New York chose to take their streetcars underground with the subway.

8. Urban disasters • Increased populations led to increased risk for disasters • San Francisco Earthquake (1906) - Central business district is destroyed - Almost 700 killed - $400 million in damages

9. San Francisco Quake (1906)

10. Urban Poverty • Overcrowding was common due to increased population • Those who could not afford houses would rent apartments. • Tenements: run down and overcrowded apartment building.

11. Tenement renting • Dangerous conditions of tenements: • Older buildings • Landlord neglect • Poor designs • Little government regulation

12. Urban “slums” • Poor families who could not afford to live on their own would pack in with other poor families. • Inadequate garbage pick-up led to renters dumping their garbage in between buildings. • No clean water • Sewage flowed in open gutters

13. New york city slums

14. Urban reformers • Social Gospel: based in Christian values, aimed to improve the lives of the poor. • Most concerned with abolishing child labor. • Settlement Houses offered services • Daycare • Education • Health Care

15. Jane addams • Founded Chicago’s Hull House. • Fought for the passage of laws to protect female workers and outlaw child labor. • Worked to improve housing and public health.

16. Political machines • Organization that gains enough votes to control a local government. • “Machine” leaders would trade food or jobs for votes. • Would often gain support through doing good things such as building parks, sewers, schools, roads, and orphanages.

17. Tammany Hall • William “Boss” Tweed • Stole enormous amounts of money from N.Y. City

18. New Immigrants Chapter 21 Section 2

19. New Immigrants vs. old immigrants • Prior to 1890’s, most immigrants were coming from northern and western Europe. • New Immigrants: Southern and eastern European immigrants moving after 1900.

20. Immigration 1880-1920

21. Poverty fueled immigration

22. Ellis Island • First stop for immigrants coming from Europe • Processed before entering US • Had to pass a physical (anyone with serious health problems would be sent back to Europe)

23. Ellis Island

24. ANGEL ISLAND • San Francisco holding area for Asian immigrants • Many immigrants would be held for weeks in filthy conditions

25. Angel ISLAND

26. Settling in America • Many found work in American factories and cities such as: New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Chicago. • Immigrants would often migrate to similar communities. - Little Italy - China Town

27. Immigrant communities • Collected money to build places of worship • Published newspapers in native languages • Supported political machines and politicians coming from their country of origin

28. European Immigrant jobs • Usually took whatever jobs were available • Many worked in Northern factories for little pay ($10 a week), long hours and unsafe conditions.

29. Asian immigrant communities and jobs • Mostly settled in the west • Many Chinese immigrants worked on the railroad, or settled in cities where they opened restaurants • Many Japanese immigrants settled in Hawaii to work on sugar plantations

30. Immigrant settlement • http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/03/10/us/20090310-immigration-explorer.html?_r=0

31. “Melting pot” • Immigrants went through assimilation: the process of blending into a society. • Assimilation was a process of learning English and how to be American citizens.

32. Changing AMERICA • Immigrants also had an impact on American lifestyle. • Immigrant language, food, and music were adopted by American culture.

33. Resistance to immigration • Immigrants still faced prejudice despite their efforts to assimilate. • Protestants feared Jews and Catholic immigration, while others feared immigrants would be swept-up by political machines. • This led native-born Americans to push for restrictions on immigration.

34. Resistance continued… • Native-born Americans feared they would lose jobs to immigrants. • They would often take jobs for lower wages out of desperation.

35. Chinese Exclusion Act • Congress begins to pass laws to restrict immigration (1882). • Taxes were placed on new immigrants and bans were put on groups such as beggars and people with diseases. • In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, banning Chinese immigration for 10 years.