Unit 2 Getting Down to Business

What is industry? A branch of business, trade, or manufacturing ex. – the automobile industry

What does urban mean? Having to do with cities or towns – example: New York City

What does rural mean? Having to do with the country Examples – farming and open spaces

How did life on the farm and in the cities change after the Civil War? Mechanization increased farm production and reduced the need for farmers Prices for crops dropped lower while expenses became higher Industrial development increased labor needs

What factors supported the industrial development of the United States? Natural resources such as iron ore, copper, and lead Transportation networks for resources and finished goods Access to energy resources

Inventions Workers (immigrants) Financial resources (banking)

Key industries and their locations New England – textiles Detroit – automobiles

Chicago – meat packing Pittsburgh – steel

Key Inventors and their Contributions Alexander Graham Bell – telephone Henry Ford – use of the assembly line Thomas Edison – filament for the light bulb

Why did urban areas grow in the late 1800s? Migration of African Americans to Northern cities Industrialization Immigration

Improved transportation networks Rural-to-urban migration

Big business grew in the late 1800s because of…….. Lower production costs Mass production Corporations Advertising National markets due to transportation routes

What were working conditions like during industrialization? Long hours Low wages Unsafe working conditions

They had sweatshops (a shop or factory where workers work long hours at low wages under unhealthy conditions) They had child labor

Boys rolling cigars in a New York City Sweatshop.

A family working “piece work” for the garment industry.

The methods used by labor to improve working conditions Formation of unions, ex. – American Federation of Labor and Knights of Labor

Knights of Labor It was founded by the garment cutters in 1869. Under the leadership of Terence Powderly, the Knights of Labor became a national labor organization in the 1880’s.

Unlike most unions, the Knights of Labor recruited women, African Americans, immigrants, and unskilled laborers. A wave of violent strikes turned public opinion against the union and it lost members in the 1890’s. The Haymarket Strike: A peaceful assembly that ended with over 60 injuries and deaths.

American Federation of Labor In 1881, a group of national trade unions formed a federation that 5 years later became known as the American Federation of Labor. The AFL represented skilled worker’s in various crafts and in 1886 consisted of 12 national unions with a membership of about 150,000.

The AFL was led by Samuel Gompers and pressed for higher wages, shorter hours, better working conditions, and the right to bargain collectively with employers.

The Homestead Strike of 1892 In 1892 workers went on strike at Andrew Carnegie’s Steel plant in Homestead, Pennsylvania. When the steelworkers union called a strike, Homestead managers hired non-union workers and brought in 300 armed guards to protect them

Pennsylvania’s governor sent the state’s militia to Homestead to restore order. The plant reopened with non-union workers. After the failure of the Homestead Strike, the steelworkers union was broken. The steel workers union will not become active again until the 1930’s.