1. Life in the Cities
8-3

2. City Growth 1880 rural population = 74% 1910s rural population = 54%
Great migration of southern blacks
2 phases (1890, 1910s) – movement of southern blacks to northern and Midwestern cities.
Advances in transportation
Suburbs – Kingwood
Skyscrapers & elevators
Buildings can be taller and cites can be more dense

4. Where do poor people live?
Tenements
Low-cost apartment buildings designed to house as many families as the owner could pack in
Severe overcrowding
Few trees, little grass
Dark, foul air from coal engines & boilers
Open sewers attracted rats (diseases)
Small fires become large fires quickly
Contagious diseases spread easily

5. “Late one night, when we were all in bed,
Mrs. O'Leary lit a lantern in the shed. Her cow kicked it over,
Then winked her eye and said,
"There'll be a hot time in the old town tonight!"

13. How can we improve this? “Lack of ventilation = main problem”
Solution = dumbbell tenements
Wasted because of trash

15. Do we just not know about it?
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (slaves)
A Century of Dishonor (Indians)
How the Other Half Lives (urban poor)
Jacob Riis, reporter, publishes book in 1890
Describes living conditions in cities
Led to legislation to improve tenements

17. Rise of Political Machines
Boss Tweed and Tammany Hall

18. Helped many immigrants who were “fresh off the boat” in exchange for their votes
Filled the void left be social services

19. Extremely corrupt
Controlled local politics

20. Reactions
8-4

21. Addressing the Problems
Appalling living conditions
Gov’t doesn’t do anything
Organizations form to address the issues
Attempt #1 COS – NY Charity Organization Society
Detailed files
Some people unworthy of help
Aimed to Americanize
Mixed feelings among immigrants

22. Addressing the Problems
Appalling living conditions
Gov’t doesn’t do anything
Organizations form to address the issues
Attempt #1 COS – NY Charity Organization Society
Detailed files
Some people unworthy of help
Aimed to Americanize
Mixed feelings among immigrants

23. Addressing the Problems
Attempt #3 Settlement House Movement
Settlement house = community center in poor area of town, offering social services
“Simply giving money to poor never helped”
Hull House established by Jane Addams
Initially just to get to know neighbors
Grew into huge community center over the years
400 settlement houses by 1910
Worked by recent college grads and women

27. Other reactions Sociology – study of society
Nativism – favoring native-born Americans
American Protective Association
Secret society, targeted immigrants & Catholics
Oath to only hire & vote Protestants
Supported teaching of only American culture & English language in schools

28. Other reactions Temperance Movement Purity crusaders
Organized campaign to eliminate alcohol consumption
Several different groups
Purity crusaders
Drugs, gambling, prostitution, other vices
Make America moral, again!
Attacked political machines that seemed to profit from vice