Industrialization, Immigration & Urbanization

1. Industrialization, Immigration & Urbanization

2. Natural Resources Fuel Industrialism • After the Civil war, the United States was still largely an agricultural nation • 60 years later it had become the leading industrial power in the world because of 3 factors • A wealth of natural resources • The US had large amounts of deposits of coal and iron • Iron, coal, steel, lumber and glass industries grew rapidly as they tried to keep pace with the railroads’ demand for materials and parts • Government support for business • A growing urban population that provided both cheap labor and markets for new products

3. The railroads, with thousands of miles of track, became the biggest customers for steel. Inventors soon found many other uses for it: construction, barbed wire, farm machines And bridges The Bessemer process: This process involved in injecting air into molten iron to remove Carbon and the other impurities. This method produces 90% of the nations steel.

4. Inventions Promote Change • Inventions during the late 1800’s • Typewriter, light bulb and telephone • Electricity: Changed business and home environments • Telephone: Sped up communications which led to faster service and faster growth • Thomas Edison • Light Bulb • Christopher Sholes • Typewriter • Alexander Graham Bell • Telephone

5. Railroads • Rails made local transit reliable and westward expansion possible for business and people • The government made huge land grants and loans to the railroad companies • The Central Pacific employed thousands of Chinese immigrants. • The Union Pacific hired other immigrants and out-of-work Civil War veterans • Railroads united the diverse regions of the country • To make things more consistent time zones were created. The US contains four time zones: Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific

7. Railroads • Railroads created the growth of towns, created new markets and offered rich opportunities for both visionaries and profiteers • Railroads promoted trade and interdependence because it linked previously isolated cities, towns and settlements • Towns began specializing in specific products • Cities started to grow along the railroad lines • Interstate Commerce Act • Congress passed in 1887 • Allowed the Federal Government to supervise railroad activities • The goal was to lower excessive railroad rates

8. Industrial Leaders • Andrew Carnegie • One of the first rags to riches story • Worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad and then entered the steel industry after the introduction of the Bessemer process • Had success because of his management practices • He searched for new ways to make better products more cheaply • Incorporated new machinery to track costs • Attracted talent by offering people stock in the company and encouraged competition among his assistants

9. Industrial Leaders • Andrew Carnegie • Attempted to control as much of the steel industry as he could • Vertical Integration: he bought out his suppliers in order to control raw materials and transportation systems • Coal fields, iron mines, ore freighters and railroad lines • Horizontal Integration: Merging companies that produce similar products • Buying out the competitors

10. Industrial Leaders • John D. Rockefeller • Established the Standard Oil Company • In 1870, Standard Oil Company processed only 3% of the country’s crude oil. A decade later, they controlled 90% • Rockefeller made huge profits by paying his employees extremely low wages and driving his competitors out of business by selling oil at a lower price • Once he ran business out, he hiked up the price far above the original levels • Critics call industrialist like Carnegie and Rockefeller Robber Barons

11. This 1900 cartoon, captioned “What a funny little government” is a commentary on the power of the Standard Oil empire. John D Rockefeller holds the White House in his hand

12. Labor Organizations • Unions Emerge • As business leaders merged and consolidated their forces, it seemed necessary for workers to do the same • Skilled and unskilled, male and female, white and black workers all came together to form unions to improve their unsafe working conditions, vacation time, sick leave, unemployment and workers compensation • National Labor Union • First large scale national organization of laborers • Formed by an iron worker in 1866 • Membership grew to 640,000 • Legalized the 8 hour workday

13. Labor Organization • Unions Emerge • Knights of Labor • Membership was open to all regardless of race, gender or degree of skill • Supported the 8 hour workday • Supported “equal pay for equal work” for men and women • Had 700,000 members

14. Labor Organizations • Strikes turn violent • Industry and government responded forcefully to union activity, which they saw as a threat to the capitalist system • The Great Strike of 1877 • The Haymarket Affair • The Homestead Strike • The Pullman Company Strike • The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire • Public outrage led to major reforms in building and factory laws, especially those related to fire safety. It also led to changes in local labor laws for women and children

15. Why do we need to study Immigration and Urbanization? • This wave of immigration helped make the United States the diverse society it is today • The rapid growth of cities forced people to contend with problems of housing, transportation, water and sanitation. Consequently, residents of U.S. cities today enjoy vastly improved living conditions

17. Through the “Golden Door” • Many immigrants entered the United States lured by the promise of a better life • “Birds of Passage” • These people intended to temporarily earn money and then return to their homelands • Many were escaping famine, land shortages or religious or political persecution

18. Where did they come from? • Europe • 20 million between 1870 and 1920 • Escape religious persecution (Jews) • Rising population (Couldn’t find land) • China and Japan • 300,000 between 1851 and 1883 • Seeking fortunes from Gold • Worked on the railroads, farms, mines and own businesses • Immigration Limited • West Indies and Mexico • 260,000 • Came for work due to the industrial boom • Mexicans came to flee political turmoil

19. The Journey • Almost all immigrants traveled by steamship • Crossing the Atlantic took 1 week • Crossing the Pacific took 3 weeks • Due to the conditions and the spread of disease many died on the trip • Crowed • Under the deck • Infested bunks • Share toilets • Had to pass inspection once they arrived to an immigration station

20. Ellis Island • Immigration station in NY Harbor • Inspection • About 20% were detained for a day or more before being inspected • Had to pass a physical exam • If you had a serious disease or health problem, you were sent home • Government Inspection • Never had been convicted of a felony • Demonstrated that they could work • Had to have some money (at least $25 after 1909)

21. Ellis Island

22. Angel Island • West Coast Immigration Port • Many Chinese and Japanese immigrants arrived here • San Francisco Bay • Immigrants had to wait a long time to see if they were going to be admitted or rejected • Had to wait in filthy broken-down buildings

23. Immigration • Once admitted into the United States Immigrants had to: • Find a place to live • Find a job • Learn a new language • Find way around a new city • Many immigrants with similar backgrounds formed enclaves • Tensions between native-born people and immigrants stared to arise

24. Immigration Restrictions • Native born Americans like the idea of their country being a melting pot • Melting Pot: a mixture of people of different cultures and races who blended together by abandoning their native languages and customs • New immigrants did not want to give up their cultural background • With more and more immigrants coming into the country, a stronger anti-immigration feeling emerged • Rise of Nativism • Favoritism towards native born Americans

25. Immigration Restriction • Anti-Asian Sentiment • Native Born Americans feared jobs would go to Chinese • Chinese accepted lower wages • 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act • Banned all Chinese except students, teachers, merchants, tourists and government officials • Law was not repealed until 1943 • The Gentlemen's Agreement • The Anti-Chinese attitude also moved to Anti-Japanese and other populations • Japan’s government agreed to limit emigration of unskilled workers to the U.S in exchange for the repeal of the San Francisco order

26. Migration from Country to City • Industrialization led to Urbanization • Urbanization: Growth of cities • Mostly in the regions of the Northeast and Midwest • Mostly in cities because cities were the cheapest and offered the most jobs • By 1910, immigrant families made up more than ½ the total population of 18 major U.S. cities

27. Migration from Country to City • Americanization Movement: Assimilate people of wide-ranging cultures into the dominant culture • Schools taught skills needed for citizenship, American history, government, cooking and etiquette • Since many immigrants didn’t want to change their cultural identity, enclaves gave them their own community where they could communicate in their own language, practice their own customs and practice their own religion • These neighborhoods became overcrowded

28. Migration from Country to City • Farming jobs decreased due to Industrialization • African Americans displaced (1880-1990) • 200,000 moved north and west to cities like Detroit and Chicago • Trying to escape racial violence, economic hardship, and political oppression • Job competition between black and white immigrants created even more tension

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30. Ethnic and Class Groupings in Milwaukee, 1850-1890

31. Urban Problems • Housing • Two options • Buy a house on the outskirts of town • Transportation Problems • Rent a room • Cramped rooms in a boarding house • Tenements: Multifamily urban dwelling • Many times 2 or 3 families would live in a one family residence • Unsanitary • Transportation • Mass Transit created • Designed to move large numbers of people along fixed routes • Enables workers to go to and from jobs more easily

32. Urban Problems • Water • Until 1860, many cities didn’t have public waterworks to supply their residents with fresh water • Many homes didn’t have indoor pluming • To improve water conditions, chlorinating the water was necessary to prevent diseases such as cholera and typhoid • Sanitation • As cities grew, it became harder to keep them clean • No public garbage facilities • Crime • Pickpocketers and thieves increased • Fire • With limited water supply, fires were hard to put out • Many buildings were made of wood • Many people used candles and kerosene to light up their house