UNIT #3 – URBANIZATIONLESSON #3 -

Urban Growth (118-121)

New Plan for Composition Book:

NEW VOCABULARY

Urban

Skyscraper

Tenement

Political machine

Graft

• ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

11. What were some of the problems associated with the fast growth of cities?

12. What were the conditions of a home for a poor person in the city?

Essential Questions

11. What were some of the problems associated with the fast growth of cities?

12. What were the conditions of a home for a poor person in the city?

City Skyline

What changed in the city?

What problems do you think will be associated with an increase in population?

Immigration – late 1800s

Immigration – late 1800s

What was the big change from around 1880 to around 1900?

“ When I went to work for that American family I could not speak a word of English, and I did not know anything about housework. The family consisted of husband, wife, and two children.

They were very good to me and paid me $3.50 a week, of which I could save $3. . . . I worked for two years as a

servant . . . and I was now ready to start in business.”—Chinese immigrant Lee Chew

Asian Immigrants:immediately worked toward owning their own business

Italian Immigrants

In the United States, most new immigrants were uneducated agricultural workers with few language skills. Most settled in cities in ethnic communities and worked in factories.

About 9 million immigrants arrived in the United States from 1880 to 1900.

In 1860 about one percent of all immigrants came from Southern or Eastern Europe. By 1910 more than 70 percent came from those regions.

Where do you think these folks are from?What do you think their skills are?

Why did most Italian immigrants become poor factory workers?

Italian ImmigrantsWhy are we concerned with the Italian immigration at the end of the 1800s?

• Urban population ballooned from 10 million in 1870 to more than 30 million in 1900.

• Most immigrants could neither buy land due to lack of money nor attain well-paying employment due to lack of education. Immigrants worked long hours in factories and were paid very low wages.

• Cities offered electricity, running water, and modern plumbing. They were also home to cultural attractions such as museums and libraries.

• Mass transit efficiently moved residents through cities. At first, mass transit consisted of cable cars. Later, elevated and underground trains were built. The city of Boston opened the nation's first subway system in 1897, and New York City and Philadelphia followed over the next decade.

Fast growth in cities

Urbanization

Reflection Question

What do you think would be some differences between how the rich and the poor live in the cities?

Explain your opinion.

Problems of Urbanization

• Read p. 120• List the problems associated with city

living and urban growth.1. Disease

2. Pollution

3. Crime

4. Fire

5. Violence

The “political machine”

• Read p. 120-121

1. Define the term “political machine.”– Informal political group designed to gain and keep power

2. What did the immigrant gain from this system?– Jobs, sometimes a house and food

3. Why did the “political boss” help immigrants and the poor?– Votes and power

What was the “political machine”?

Were the political machines good for America?

Were they good for Americans?

The “political machine”

Urban Problems

• Crime: Crime increased along with urban populations. Violent crime was worsened by alcohol use. Some reformers believed that saloons contributed to poverty and corruption.

• Pollution and Disease: Disease and pollution were serious problems. City drinking water was contaminated by sewage, causing epidemics of typhoid fever and cholera.

• Corruption: Corrupt political machines began trading votes for jobs, housing, and food. New York City's Tammany Hall was the most corrupt political machine in urban history. It was led by William "Boss" Tweed during the 1860s and 1870s.

The increase in industrial jobs encouraged large numbers of Americans and immigrants to settle in cities.

As cities grew, pollution, crime, disease, and fires became serious problems.

New industrial technology allowed cities to grow even larger with the development of the skyscraper, the elevator, and the trolley car.

Describe details of this picture

One of the first structures to showcase the possibilities of steel construction was the Eiffel Tower, built for the Paris Exposition of 1889.

In a building built with a steel frame, the frame carries the weight, allowing the building to be much taller than stone or wood structures.

With steel beams used for support instead of walls, windows could be larger.

Elisha Otis invented the safety elevator in 1852. By the late 1880s, the first electric elevators had been installed, making tall buildings practical.

On a new “skyscraper” building like this, what new invention will also be needed?

Describe this picture

City Living…

The upper class could afford elaborate mansions and many servants.

Clothing was elaborate and expensive.

Describe what you see here…

This image shows an upper-class family enjoying their leisure time with an afternoon tea in the garden.

Middle-class families could generally afford their own homes and better-quality clothing.Women rarely worked—and if they did, it was

usually because they wanted a career, not out of necessity.

Describe what you see here…

Compare this picture to the previous one…

What do you think makes them different?

Many families had at least one servant (shown here in back holding the baby) and enough money left over to buy luxuries, such as the new gramophone shown here.

THIS IS A MIDDLE CLASS HOME

What was different about Upper and Middle class?

Almost 70 percent of all Americans aged 65 or older lived with their grown children.

By the middle of the nineteenth century, immigration had increased the population in the Lower East Side of Manhattan from 312,710 to 515,547 people—an increase of more than 60 percent.

The houses intended for one family were divided into tiny apartments. Floors were added, making each house as high as six stories.

Soon developers began building cheaply-made structures intended for immigrants desperate for housing.

In New York City, some estimates showed that by 1867, more than half the population of the entire city lived in horrible conditions in tenements that were falling apart.

Describe a “tenement.”What would make it uncomfortable, and even unsafe?

Tenement Living

The shacks were put together with whatever lay at hand. Wood from cast-off shipping crates, broken bricks, and tar paper offered at least a little protection from the weather. Fire was a constant hazard.

Poor sanitation encouraged the spread of diseases, such as cholera and dysentery, that resulted in many deaths.

Extreme poverty such as this often existed within just a few city blocks of extreme wealth.

This is how the poorest Americans lived. Describe their conditions.

How was life for the poorest Americans different than the Middle class?

The Extreme Poor in America

Urbanization

Reflection Question

Do class divisions continue to exist in the United States today?

Explain your opinion.