1. A New Spirit of Change 1820 – 1860

2. Why People Migrated  Most made journey in steerage, the cheapest deck on the ship  Conditions were FILTHY  Illness and death common on journey

3. Why People Migrated  Push Factors:  Population growth  Agricultural changes  Crop failures  Industrial Revolution  Religious and political turmoil  Pull Factors:  Freedom  Economic opportunity  Abundant land

4. Where Did They Come From?  Scandinavians (Sweden, Switzerland, and Norway) left due to poverty.  Many settled in the Midwest, especially Minnesota and Wisconsin.  Many Germans settled in the Midwest as well.  Germans largest immigrant group of the 1800s and contributed most to American culture: kindergartens, the Christmas tree, gymnastics, and the hamburger, to name a few.

5. The Irish Flee Hunger  Irish Catholics were ruled by British Protestants for centuries.  Irish could not vote, hold office, own land, or go to school  British rule created extreme poverty.

6. The Irish Flee Hunger  Disease struck Ireland’s main food crop, the potato, in 1845.  Led to severe food shortage, or famine.  The Irish Potato Famine killed more than 1 million people.

7. The Irish Flee Hunger  Most Irish settled in port cities where their ships docked  By 1850, they made up one fourth of the populations of Boston, NYC, Philly, and Baltimore.  Lack of education and skills led to low paying jobs.  Many Irishmen built canals and railroads  Greatest competition for jobs were free blacks

8. Nativists and Know Nothings Many immigrants were discriminated by and harassed by nativists; native-born people who wanted to eliminate foreign influence. The Know-Nothing Party was founded by nativists who wanted to ban immigrants and Catholics from holding public office. They elected six governors but never a national office due to disagreements over slavery.

9. A Spirit of Revival Renewal of religious faith called the Second Great Awakening helped to awaken a spirit of reform, or change. Charles Finney

10. Temperance Societies  A church-led temperance movement began in America, which is a campaign to stop the consumption of alcohol

11. Fighting For Workers’ Rights  Girls in the Lowell Mills started a labor union, or a group of workers who band together to seek better working conditions.  In 1836, they went on strike, or stopping work to force owners to meet their demands  In 1835 and 1836, 140 strikes took place in the eastern United States  Panic of 1837 brought an end to the young labor movement.

12. Improving Education  Horrace Mann headed up the first state board of education in Massachusetts in 1837.  Boston opened the first public high school in 1821.  Churches and other groups began founding private colleges.

13. Improving Education  Women not allowed to attend most colleges. Oberlin first to admit women and men.  Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to earn a medical degree.  College attendance for women overall was very rare until the late 1800s.  Free blacks were often barred from attending public schools.  Educating slaves in the South was illegal.  If slaves were caught with as much as a book, they were beaten. Elizabeth Blackwell Scars from repeated beatings

14. Caring for the Needy  Boston reformer Dorthea Dix worked to establish fair treatment for the mentally ill  Thomas H. Gallaudet founded first school for deaf children in 1817  Samuel G. Howe founded the Perkins School for the Blind in the 1830s  Reform also took place in prisons as well

15. Spreading Ideas Through Print  Cheaper newsprint and the invention of the steam-driven press lowered the price of a newspaper to a penny.  Publications aimed toward educating Americans on social reform became more widely read.

16. Creating Ideal Communities  Ann Lee founded the Shakers  Shakers vowed not to marry nor have children.  They believed in sharing goods with each other, men and women were equal, and they refused to fight for any reason