1. Urbanization: 1870-1900

2. Gilded Age Urbanization ■From 1870 to 1900, American cities grew 700% due to new job opportunities in factories: –European, Latin American, & Asian immigrants flooded cities –Blacks migrated into the North –Rural farmers moved from the countryside to cities

3. The Lure of the City By 1920, for the 1 st time in U.S. history, more than 50% of the American population lived in cities

4. Skyscrapers and Suburbs ■By the 1880s, steel allowed cities to build skyscrapers ■The Chicago fire of 1871 allowed for rebuilding with new designs: –John Root & Louis Sullivan were the “fathers of modern urban architecture” –Elisha Otis’ safety elevator

5. Louis Sullivan “Form follows function” John Root “Simple & Dignified”

6. Grand Central Station in NYC Western Union Building, NYC Wadsworth Building, NYC

7. Skyscrapers and Suburbs ■Cities developed distinct zones: –Central business district with working- & upper-class residents –Middle-class in the suburbs ■Electric streetcars & elevated rapid transit made travel easy

8. Tenements & Overcrowding ■½ of NYC’s buildings were tenements which housed the poor working class –“Dumbbell” tenements were popular but were cramped & plagued by firetraps –Slums had poor sanitation, polluted water & air, tuberculosis – Homicide, suicide, & alcoholism rates all increased in U.S. cities

9. Jacob Riis’ “How the Other Half Lives” (1890) exposed the poverty of the urban poor

10. Strangers in a New Land ■From 1880-1920, 23 million immigrants came looking for jobs: “new” immigrants –These “new” immigrants were from eastern & southern Europe; Catholics & Jews, not Protestant –Kept their language & religion; created ethnic newspapers, schools, & social associations –Led to a resurgence in Nativism & attempts to limit immigration

11. Immigration to the U.S., 1870-1900

12. Foreign-born Population, 1890 melting pot The influx of ethnic nationalities led to a new “melting pot” (“salad bowl”?) national image

14. Urban Political Machines political machines ■Urban “political machines” were loose networks of party precinct captains led by a “boss” –Tammany Hall was the most famous machine; Boss Tweed led the corrupt “Tweed Ring” –Political machines were not all corrupt (“honest graft”); helped the urban poor & built public works like the Brooklyn Bridge

15. Boss Tweed Tweed Courthouse— Courthouse was supposed to cost $250,000 but cost $13 million. Tweed Courthouse— NY County Courthouse was supposed to cost $250,000 but cost $13 million.

16. Social Changes in the Gilded Age ■Urbanization changed society: –The U.S. saw an increase in self-sufficient female workers –Most states had compulsory education laws & kindergartens –150 new public & private colleges were formed –Cities set aside land for parks & American workers found time for vaudeville & baseball People of all races married later & had fewer children “Family time” disappeared for working class Women made up 40% of university students Private philanthropy led to Stanford, Tulane, Vanderbilt, Cornell, & the Univ of Chicago Land Grant Act (1862) led to the Universities of WI, CA, MN, IL

17. American Industrialization ■Benefits of rapid industrialization: – The U.S. became the world’s #1 industrial power – Per capita wealth doubled – Improving standard of living ■Human cost of industrialization: – Exploitation of workers; growing gap between rich & poor – Rise of giant monopolies