The Challenge of the Cities Chapter 8 Section 3

Discussion Questions Why did cities expand in the late 1800s and early 1900s? What new developments helped cities grow? How did living conditions in cities change? What were the results of city growth?

Migration to the Cities 11 Million Americans leave the economic hardship of the Farms for the opportunities of the cities. Factories replaced many of the jobs that women held on the farms. New equipment replaced manual labor on the farms. Between 1880 and 1910 the Percentage of people living on the Farms fell from 72% to 54%

African American Migration African Americans in the south leave the rural areas for nearby cities 1910 the Boll Weevil destroys the cotton farms in Alabama and Mississippi, resulting in many more African Americans moving to Northern Cities.

How Cities Grew Before the Civil War cities were small. Most people walked wherever they needed to go. The introduction of the horse-drawn carriage allowed people to move out of the cites to the suburbs, or residential communities surrounding the cities. Later in the 1800s, motorized transportation made commuting even easier.

How Cities Grew The first elevated trains opened in 1868 in New York and the first subway trains appeared in Boston in The automobile began mass production in 1910’s

How Cities Grew Before the civil war no building stood more than 5 stories high 1852 Elisha Otis Invents the elevator The Bessemer Process makes steel stronger, lighter and Cheaper The First Sky Scraper was Chicago’s Home Insurance Company at 10 stories tall

How Cities Grew Specialized Areas emerged as Cities Grew Banks, Financial Offices, Law Offices and Government Offices grouped together Retail Shops and Department Stores grouped in another central area Industrial, wholesale, and warehouse districts formed a ring around the centre of the city

Urban Living Conditions low-cost housing for immigrants- landlords cram many families in small building space meant for single family Soot from coal-fired steam engines and boilers make the air seem dark and foul even in the daylight Open sewers attracted rats and other disease spreading vermin tenements- apartments building housing as many people as cheaply as possible small, poor lighting, ventilation and plumbing diseases- poor sanitation

Urban Living Conditions “[the Italian tenements are] death traps, closely built, jammed together, with no side openings. Twenty-five per cent of the yard space is damp and gloomy. … Where the houses are three or more rooms in depth, the middle ones are dark, without outside ventilator. … There is no fire protection what so ever.”  Eleanor McMain 1905

Urban Living Conditions The tenements were so closely packed together that even a small fire could quickly consume and entire neighborhood. The Great Chicago Fire of ,000 Buildings 250 People dead 100,000 people homeless $2 Billion dollars of damage in today’s money.

Urban Living Conditions Contagious diseases, including cholera, malaria, tuberculosis, diphtheria, and typhoid thrived in crowded tenements. Epidemics took thousands of lives Children were especially vulnerable In one New York district 6 out of 10 children died before their first birthday Disease spread rapidly especially during the summer months, with 80% of children's death under two were from preventable diseases

Urban Living Conditions dumbbell tenements- improved airshafts allowed little fresh air and light, allowed noise and view of only the window across the way smell of garbage that collected at the bottom of the airshaft was bad They were still fire hazards 50% of New York population in 1894 lived in tenements

Urban Living Conditions

The Result of City Growth As cities grew so did the demand for police and fire protection, transportation systems, sewage disposals, electrical and water service, and health care To deliver these services cities raised taxes and set up offices to deal with people’s needs The middle and upper class left for the suburbs widening the gap between the very rich and the very poor in the cities

The Results of City Growth The political machine, born from these clashing interests, was an unofficial city organization designed to keep a particular group in power. Political machines worked through the exchange of favors. Many people who wanted favors would pay money, graft, to the machine. Graft was a major source of income for the machines.

Political Bosses bosses- city leaders who used immigrants to gain and keep power political machines- created by bosses to maintain and extend power Used bribes, rigged elections, bought votes, appointed friends to jobs helped immigrants but also used them

Boss Tweed The most notorious political boss Ran New York’s Tammany Hall, that ran the Democratic Party Plundered millions from the NY treasury Tomas Nast political cartoons helped bring him down