The New American Culture: 1880-1910 What technologies allowed for the development of the modern city? How did immigrants play a role in building America? What were important parts of the new American culture?

SCIENCE AND URBAN LIFE By the turn of the 20th century, four out of ten Americans lived in cities In response to urbanization, technological advances began to meet communication, transportation, and space demands Artist Annie Bandez

1. SKYSCRAPERS Skyscrapers emerged after two critical inventions: elevators (Elisha Otis) & steel skeletons that bear weight (William Jenney) Skyscrapers were actually born in Chicago—not New York! Famous architects: Daniel Burnham Louis Sullivan The skyscraper was America’s greatest contribution to architecture and solved the issue of how to best use limited and expensive space Flatiron Building - 1902

2. ELECTRIC TRANSIT Changes in transportation allowed cities to spread outward By the turn of the century, intricate networks of electric streetcars (“trolley”) ran from outlying neighborhoods to downtown offices & stores A few large cities like Chicago moved their streetcars far above street level, creating elevated or “el” trains Other cities built subways by moving their rail lines underground (“subways”)

Central Park is an oasis among Manhattan’s skyscrapers 3. BRIDGES & PARKS Steel-cable suspension bridges, like the Brooklyn Bridge, also brought cities’ sections closer Some urban planners sought to include landscaped areas & parks Frederick Law Olmsted was instrumental in drawing up plans for Central Park and the 1893 World’s Fair Central Park is an oasis among Manhattan’s skyscrapers

Actual photo of Wright Brothers’ first flight AIRPLANES In the early 20th century, brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright, experimented with engines and aircrafts Originally owned bicycle shops They built a biplane; December 17, 1903 they flew their plane for 12 seconds covering 120 feet Within two years the brothers were making 30 minute flights By 1920, the U.S. was using airmail flights regularly Actual photo of Wright Brothers’ first flight

EXPANDING PUBLIC EDUCATION Unlike African Americans, immigrants were encouraged to go to school Most immigrants sent their children to public schools Many adult immigrants attended night schools to learn English Between 1880-1920 college enrollments more than quadrupled Professional schools were established for law and medicine Between 1865-1895, states required 3-4 months of annual education curriculum was poor and the teachers were usually not qualified High schools expanded their curriculum to include science, civics and social studies By 1900 500,000 teen-agers were enrolled in high schools

DAWN OF A MASS CULTURE The new “middle class” could escape city congestion and dull industrial work with their higher wages Birth of leisure activities To meet the recreational needs of city dwellers, Chicago, NYC and other cities began setting aside land for parks Central Park Amusement parks were constructed on the outskirts of cities Coney Island was America’s most famous amusement park After the introduction of the “safety bike” in 1885, Americans increasingly enjoyed biking By 1890, 312 companies made over 10,000,000 bikes

SPECTATOR SPORTS Americans not only participated in new sports, but became avid fans of spectator sports Baseball and boxing became profitable businesses Mark Twain called baseball, “the very symbol of the booming 19th century” Famous baseball players: Candy Cummings George Bradley Famous boxers: John Sullivan “Gentleman Jim” Corbett Jack Dempsey

PROMOTING FINE ARTS By 1900, free circulating Public libraries numbered in the thousands Major philanthropy by Carnegie—NY Library By 1900, most major cities had art galleries In the early 20th century, the Ashcan School of American Art painted urban life Famous artists: Robert Henri George Wesley Bellows Edward Hopper

MAGAZINES and NEWSPAPERS By 1890, the literacy rate in the U.S. was nearly 90% Advances in printing, aviation, and photography helped speed the transfer of information Mills produce huge quantities of cheap paper from wood pulp Electric presses printed on both sides of paper at the same time Mass production made newspapers and magazines more affordable (most papers sold for 1 cent) led to the publication of millions of books, magazines, and newspapers Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst: leading publishers and created “Yellow Journalism” to gain attention Yellow Journalism included huge, sensational, exaggerated headlines

POPULAR FICTION “Dime” novels were popular & inexpensive Most of these focused on adventure tales and heroes of the west Some readers preferred a more realistic portrayal of the American West and South Famous authors: Mark Twain Jack London Willa Cather

PHOTOGRAPHY EXPLOSION Before 1880, photography was a professional activity Expensive to produce pictures Usually set/developed on metal (“tintypes”) Subjects could not move and the film had to be developed immediately Most newspapers used drawings (lithographs) to illustrate George Eastman invented lighter weight equipment and more versatile film In 1888, Eastman introduced his Kodak Camera The $25 camera came with 100-picture roll of film 1888 Kodak

GROWING CONSUMERISM The turn of the century witnessed the beginnings of the shopping center, department and chain stores, and the birth of modern advertising CHAIN STORES 1870s: F.W. Woolworth found that if he offered an item at a low price, “the consumer would purchase it on the spur of the moment” By 1911, the Woolworth chain had 596 stores and sold $1,000,000 per week Marshall Field of Chicago brought the first department store to America Field also pioneered the “bargain basement” concept

ADVERTISING Ads appeared in newspapers, magazines and on billboards Expenditures for advertising increased to $95 mil. in 1900 Montgomery Ward and Sears were two pioneers in catalog sales By 1910, 10 million Americans shopped by mail In 1896 the Post Office introduced a rural free delivery (RFD) system that brought packages directly to every home