7. Americans Migrate to Cities Urbanization – the massive movement of people into cities Between 1860 and 1900, our countries population doubled Immigrants tended to go to cities b/c of costs and lack of education Farming technology had also improved New York…1860 (800k) 1900 (3.5 million) Chicago…1860 (109k) 1900 (1.6 million) Cities over 2,500 people --1840 (131 cities) 1900 (1,700 cities)
12. Building Up, Not Out Skyscrapers begin to appear in cities….WHY? NEED MORE ROOM… 1st in Chicago in 1884 b/c no more room for anymore buildings
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14. Urbanization - Water Late 1800s, few had indoor plumbing & water was collected in pails from faucets on the street and heat it for bathing Water poor quality b/c of cholera and typhoid fever Access to safe water (even after the introduction of filtration and chlorination at turn of century) was limited
15. Urbanization - Sanitation Horse manure piled up on streets Sewage flowed through open gutters Factory smoke filled the air Garbage was dumped in the streets (no formal trash collection)
16. Urbanization - Crime Political Corruption Gangs - nativism, violence Theft Drunkenness No police Gangsters Hanging out in NY
20. Jacob Riis Newspaper man Exposure journalism Exposed the problems facing the poor in urban society “How the Other Half Lives”
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33. Bandit's Roost (1888) by Jacob Riis, from How the Other Half Lives. This image is Bandit's Roost at 59½ Mulberry Street, considered the most crime-ridden, dangerous part of New York City.
35. Chicago—October 7, 1871 The midwest was in the middle of an awful drought O’Leary family had a milk business in Chicago Mrs. O’Leary and her cow Daisy Fire begins…and the “windy city” does the rest 17,450 buildings were destroyed and the entire business sector was wiped out Mrs. O’Leary’s house survived…the barn and cow did not 300 people died
36. A popular rhyme in Chicago One dark night when we were all in bedMrs. O’Leary lit a lantern in her shed,The cow kicked it over, winked its eye and saidThere’ll be a hot time in the old town tonight.
37. Urbanization - Fire Building materials were flammable No fire departments No water Overcrowding Fires occurred in every major city (2 major examples): Chicago (1871): 24 hours, 300 ppl died, 100,000 homeless, 3 sq mi destroyed, $200 mil in damages, 17,500 buildings destroyed San Francisco (1906): 4 days, 1,000 ppl died, 200,000 left homeless, 5 sq mi destroyed, $500 mil in damages, 28,000 buildings destroyed
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39. First hand account “The intense heat from the burning buildings, even the flames from them, reached the water, and even stretched out over it, and the flying men, women, and children, rushed into the lake till nothing but their heads appeared above the surface of the waters; but the fiery fiend was not satisfied. The hair was burned off the heads of many, while some never came out of the water alive. Many who stayed on the shore, where the space between the fire and water was a little wider, had the clothes burned from off their backs.”
44. Political Machine PartyBoss Ward Boss Local Precinct Workers And Captains Organized group that controlled the activities of a political party in a city and offered services to voters and businesses in exchange for political or financial support.
45. William “Boss” Tweed Led “Tammany Hall,” NY’s most powerful political machine Ran NY for 12 years Helped the poor – coal in the winter, turkeys at Christmas Stole millions of dollars from taxpayers Helped minimally to get votes, & then failed to help where it mattered
