North and South People of the North Chapter 15 Lesson 1

People of the North Factories of the North How do people adapt to their environment? ▪ The factory system was crucial to the growth of the nation’s economy ▪ The factory system changed the way people supported themselves ▪ In the mid-1800s, machines took over more manufacturing tasks as innovations changed the way goods were manufactured ▪ Mass production meant more products were available to more people at lower prices

People of the North Conditions for Factory Workers Why did people push for reform? ▪ Working conditions worsened however as the factory system developed ▪ Longer hours led to fatigue which led to more job-related injuries ▪ Harsh working conditions and no laws to protect workers left them vulnerable to debilitating injuries ▪ Child labor was also a serious problem facing the nation ▪ Reformers called for laws to protect workers

People of the North Worker’s Attempts to Organize Why did people push for reform? ▪ Trade unions organized to force factory owners to improve working conditions ▪ In major cities such as New York City, workers fought for better pay and shorter work days by staging strikes or walk-outs ▪ Strikes were illegal however and many workers faced the threat of jail as well as losing their jobs ▪ In 1842, a Massachusetts court ruled that workers did have the right to strike – but securing other labor rights would take years

People of the North African Americans in the North Why did people push for reform? ▪ Despite the disappearance of slavery in the North, prejudice and discrimination remained ▪ For white men in New York, property ownership was no longer required to vote – for African Americans, this was not the case ▪ States like Rhode Island and Pennsylvania passed laws to prevent African Americans from voting ▪ Communities in the North did not allow African American children to attend public schools and many public services were not available to African Americans

People of the North Women Workers Why did people push for reform? ▪ Women workers also faced discrimination in the workplace ▪ Employers often paid women half the wage earned by their male counter parts ▪ Women weren’t allowed to join unions – many men did not want women in the workplace at all ▪ By the 1830s, many women began to organize on their own ▪ Petitions for a 10-hour workday were ignored because most of the workers were women

People of the North Urban populations grow What challenges did immigrants face in Northern cities? ▪ Industrialization led to rapid urbanization in the north ▪ Towns and villages along the waterways grew into larger cities as steamboats opened up trade ▪ These cities became centers of trade linking Midwest farmers to the factories in the northeast

People of the North Increased immigration Push-Pull Factors ▪ Between 1840 and 1860, immigration increased sharply in the United States as famine in Ireland forced hundreds of thousands to leave their homes for the United States ▪ Political unrest in Germany also forced many German immigrants to leave for the United States ▪ These immigrants brought their languages, customs, and traditions with them to their new home impacting American culture – sometimes, however, conflicts arose

People of the North Immigrants face prejudice ▪ In the 1830s and 1840s, many in the United States were becoming alarmed by the number of immigrants arriving in the U.S. ▪ Nativists believed these immigrants threatened the U.S. and began to actively oppose immigration ▪ Nativists blamed immigrants for crime, disease, and political unrest in the United States ▪ Competition for employment was often at the root of these accusations

People of the North Know-Nothing Party ▪ In 1849, nativists formed the Know-Nothing Party and called for stricter citizenship laws ▪ Know-Nothings were protestant and didn’t trust German and Irish immigrants who were mostly Roman Catholic ▪ Nativists feared these immigrants would be more loyal to the Pope than to the leadership in the United States