ARAB MODEL SCHOOLS dup dusoo! Wilsall Handout [3] Subject: American History Date: / ¢ Grade: 11 Section: ACT Name: Part 6: Industrializing America: Upheavals and Experiments, 1877 - 1917 Chapter 17: “Civilization’s Inferno”: The Rise and Reform of Industrial Cities, 1880-1917 ‘al, by 1910, more Americans lived in cities (42.1 million) than had ‘of the | War. The country now had three of the world’s ten. largest cities, though the Northeast remained by far the most urbanized region. = L RSS eae sme to mark urban skylines, and new electric lighting systems N leighborhoods divided long class and ethnic lines, with the working class inhabiting crowded, shod Ittenements. ethnic cultures in their neighborhoods, while racism followed African ‘American migrants from the country to the city. ‘* Popular journalism rose to prominence and helped build rising sympathy for reform. Industrial cities confronted a variety of new political challenges. Despite notable achievements, established machine governments could not address urban problems through traditional means. | politicians took the initiative and implemented a range of political, labor, and social » launched campaigns to address public health, morals, and welfare. They did ‘so through a variety of innovative institutions, most notably social settlements, which brought affluent Americans into working-class neighborhoods to learn, cooperate, and advocate on behalf of their neighbors. ‘Such projects began to increase Americans’ acceptance of urban diversity and their confidence in the government's ability to solve the problems of industrialization. 1, THE NEW METROPOLIS ‘* New technologies allowed engineers and planners to reorganize urban geographies. Specialized districts began to include not only areas for finance, manufacturing, wholesaling, and warehousing but also immigrant wards, shopping districts, and business-oriented downtowns. It was an exciting and bewildering world. The Shape of the Industrial City (0S) Before the Civil War, citie nce not industry. The nation’s largest cities were seaports; ‘urban merchants bought ‘and sold ‘goods for distribution into the interior or to global markets. longer had to dependon less refable water power. Steam power aso vastly Increased the scale of Industry. A factory employing thousands of workers could instantly create a small cit Page | of 4FAB MODEL SCHOOLS Quy st issqaL Quis ol Matinee ys eon Port cities that served as immigrant gateways offered abundant cheap labor, an essential element in the industrial economy. ‘Steam-driven cal ;ared in the 1870s, ‘an electric trolley System) Trolleys soon became the primary le of transportation in most American cities. { Manhattan demonstrated the full potential of high-sps large, beautifully landscaped fots in outlying towns, i By the 1880s, invention of steel gitders, durable plate glass, and possetioey elevators began to revolutionize urban bullding methods. Electricity gave the city Its modern tempo (How?) It lifted elevators, illuminated department store windows, and turned night into day. Electric street lights made residents feel safer and so nightlife became less risky and more appealing. Newcomers and Nelghborhoods ‘* Explosive population growth made cities a world of new arrivals, including many young women and men arriving from the countryside. Americo's cities also became homes for millions of overseas immigrants. % (ipa 882 New encemoninmigraton ety island Wes opened ‘© Sharply defined ethnic neighborhoods grew up in every major city, driven by both discrimination and immigrants’ desire to stick together. * Inaddition to patterns of ethnic and racial segregation, residential districts in almost all industrial cities were divided along lines of economic class. aR Earecs corgi urbon opportunities, These newcomers confronted conditions even .an those for foreign-born immigrants. Relentlessly turned away from manufacturing jobs, most black men ond women took up work in the service sector, becoming porters, laundry-women, and domestic servant: * Blacks faced another urban dar } City Cultures Inthe nineteenth century, white middle-class Protestants had set the cultural standard; immigrants and the poor were expected to follow cues from their betters, seeking “uplift” and respectability. © Entertainment in the City: anytime atte More spectacular were the great amusement parks that appeared around 1900, most famously at New York’s Coney Island. These parks had thelr origins in world’s fairs, whose paid entertainment areas had offered giant Ferris wheels. break with Victorian hymns and parlor songs. Page 2 of 4B MODEL SCHOOLS aye Qissooi! Uuilaal! { heartbreak, it spoke to the emotionallives of young experiencing dislocation, loneliness, and bitter disoppointment along with the thrills of city life. ond had o di 1 1e popularity of such music marked the arrival of modern youth culture. Is enduring features included “crossover” music that originated in the black working class ‘and a commercial music industry that brazenly appropriated African American musical styles. libraries, ond other ' hat could flourish only in major metropolitan centers. + Millionaires patronized the arts partly to advance themselves socially but also out of a sense of civic duty and national pride. , « Artmuseums and natural history museums also became prominent new institutions in this era. 2. GOVERNING THE GREAT CITY Urban Machines: sewnge sveteme, brdnes. ond enacous parks — thon in the areat cities af fhe United States. ‘The Limits of Machine Government «The scale of urban problems became dramatically evident in the depression of the 1890s (Explain). ‘Unemployment reached a staggering 25 percent in some cities. ‘ Homelessness and hunger were rampant; newspapers nationwide reported on cases of Page 3 of 4AWA MODEL SCHOOLS Aussi! disseabl! Ula ott ineratelherem at Ra 3. CRUCIBLES OF PROGRESSIVE REFORM '* The challenges posed by urban life presented rich opportunities for experimentation and reform. * Mony sels pointed 'o he plahi of ibe usban peas, especially chicken, Thus t's not surprising 0, had important roots in the city. Fighting Dirt and Vice + Ascory as he 18708 ‘and Rape i il overnments, the abuse \ ions, and threats to public health. of = Seon large corporati the big city was disease. In the late nineteenth century, scientists in a ae ‘came to understand the role of germs and bacteria. Though researchers could not yet cure epidemic diseases, they could recommend effective measures for prevention. ‘of the era’s most visible and influential reforms (Explain). ‘e Reformers mobilized to demand safe water and better garbage collection. Hygiene reformers, tought hand-washing and other techniques to fight the spread of diseases. v Many municipalities adopted smoke-abatement laws, though they had limited success with enforcement until the post-World War | adoption of natural gas, which burned cleaner than coal. more and better urban park spaces: Though most porks still featured flower gardens and tree-lined paths, they also made room for skating rinks, tennis courts, baseball fields, and swimming pools. Many included play areas with swing sets and ‘seesaw, promoted by the National Playground Association as a way to keep urban children safe ond healthy. Cities and National Politics Congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act (1906) and created the federal Food and Drug ‘Adkninistration to oversee compliance with the new law. k Consumers’ League to improve wages and ization had become the National” pl By 1900, the peor who thronged to the great ci Ip ‘America into a global industrial power and in the hor cies is electorate that was far mor sa Smatt and a iously diverse. Page 4 of 4