Turn of the Century Life NCSCOS Goal 7 Page 38

~Frederick Law Olmstead Urban Technology -skyscrapers (steel) Louis Sullivan -elevators -bridges (Brooklyn Bridge) -electric transit systems Streetcars, subways -urban planning Restore peace and serenity to urban areas city parks Frederick Olmstead Headed urban planning Central Park, NYC “The main object and justification of the park is simply to produce a certain influence in the minds of people and through this to make life in the city healthier and happier. The character of this influence…is to be produced by means of scenes, through observation of which the mind may be more or less lifted out of moods and habits.” ~Frederick Law Olmstead

Inventions -first flight, 1903 Wright Brothers Kitty Hawk, NC 120 feet, 12 seconds -air mail Established by 1920 -printing revolutions Cheap paper, better literacy -photography George Eastman Kodak camera Took photography to the masses -radio Nikola Tesla, Marconi On December 17, 1903, Orville Wright made the first successful flight of a powered aircraft in history. The public paid little attention. But within two years, the brothers were making 30-minute flights. By 1908, the pioneer aviators had signed a contract for production of the Wright Airplane with the U.S. Army.

In 1888, George Eastman introduced his Kodak camera In 1888, George Eastman introduced his Kodak camera. The purchase price of $25 included a 100-picture roll of film. After taking pictures, the photographer would send the camera back to Eastman’s Rochester, New York, factory. For $10, the pictures were developed and returned with the camera reloaded. Easily held and operated, the Kodak camera prompted millions of Americans to become amateur photographers. The camera also helped create the field of photojournalism.

-growth of public education Security, social status, assimilation, democracy -most city children could attend school Most states began requiring 12-16 weeks of school per year -increase in high schools Expanded curriculum to science, civics, social studies, and vocational classes -few opportunities for minorities William Torey Harris, US commissioner of education, advised teachers to “lift” students by enforcing strict discipline. “The pupil must have lessons ready at the appointed time, must rise at the tap of the bell, move to the line, return; in short, go through all the evolutions with equal precisions.” According to Harris, this process would create responsible citizens.

“They hits ye if yer don’t learn, and they hits ye if ye whisper, and they hits ye if ye have string in yer pocket, and they hits ye if ye seat sqeaks, and they hits ye if ye don’t stan’ up in time, and they hits ye if ye late, and they hits ye if ye forget the page.” Young student in school in Chicago

Texas A&M Land Grant College Higher Education -Morrill Act, 1862 Federal money for Agriculture/Technology schools to improve farming -only small number of college students 2.3% of Americans attended college annually -change in the curriculum of colleges Research university emerged Industrial development -emphasis on sciences and professional schools Texas A&M Land Grant College

Literature and Art -realism Portray life as it is really lived Thomas Eakins (realist painter who started school) Ashcan School Painted urban poverty and working class people -art galleries, public libraries Creating American culture -Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) -Stephen Crane -Jack London -Dime Novels Add culture to America

Built by trolley car companies to attract customers Leisure Time “A fierce upward rush, a wild grip at a loosening hat, and an instant later the shock. We were on the loop.We were shooting upward as a billow that breaks against the cliff; we were curling over as the wave curls backward; we were darting down to inevitable annihilation.” -Amusement Parks Coney Island, NY Built by trolley car companies to attract customers “world’s largest playground” -bicycle craze Opens doors for women – clothes and freedom -tennis -Hershey bars -Coca-Cola, Pepsi                                                                                                                     

“Inside the park was an enchanted, storybook land of trellises, columns, domes, minarets, lagoons, and lofty aerial flights. And everywhere was life – a pageant of happy people; and everywhere was color – a wide harmony of orange and white and gold…It was a world removed – shut away from the sordid clatter and turmoil of the street.” -- Bruce Blen on Coney Island

Sports/Entertainment “Baseball has seized upon the American people, irrespective of age, sex or other condition.” Harper’s Weekly- __________________ “Baseball is the very symbol…and visible expression of the drive and push and rush and struggle of the raging, tearing, booming nineteenth century.” - Mark Twain - Spectator sports enjoyed by millions -baseball First World Series 1903 Segregated Leagues -boxing -vaudeville, circus Traveling shows attracted many for cheap Theatrical, music, dancing -ragtime music Blends African-Am spirituals and European music Originated in saloons Important for jazz -motion pictures The Great Train Robbery

“Vaudeville appeals to the businessmen, tired and worn, who drops in for half an hour on his way home; to the person who has an hour or two before a train goes, or before a business appointment; to the woman who is wearied of shopping; to the children who love animals and acrobats; to the man with his sweetheart or sister, to the individual who wants to be diverted but doesn’t want to think or feel; to the American of all grades and kinds who wants a great deal for his money.”

Mass Media -Dime Novels -Yellow journalism Want more people to read sensationalism “Sin, sex, sensations” promotions -Joseph Pulitzer -William Randolph Hearst Yellow journalist producers who compete for circulation Create and spread a unique American culture

“Give the lady what she wants.” “We are the servants of the public.” Retail Revolution “Give the lady what she wants.” ______________ “We are the servants of the public.” - Marshall Fields - -shopping centers -special districts in urban areas For shopping -department stores Stores that offer different types of products Field’s Department Store -chain stores Retail stores offering same merchandise under same ownership -advertising -mail order catalogs Products to small towns Rural Free Delivery Routes