Industrialization, Immigration & Urbanization

After the Civil war, the United States was still largely an agricultural nation

60 years later it had become the leading industrial power in the world because of 3 factorsA wealth of natural resources

The US had large amounts of deposits of coal and ironIron, coal, steel, lumber and glass industries grew

rapidly as they tried to keep pace with the railroads’ demand for materials and parts

Government support for businessA growing urban population that provided both

cheap labor and markets for new products

Natural Resources Fuel Industrialism

The railroads, with thousands of miles of track, became the biggest customers for steel.Inventors soon found many other uses for it: construction, barbed wire, farm machinesAnd bridges

The Bessemer process: This process involved in injecting air into molten iron to removeCarbon and the other impurities. This method produces 90% of the nations steel.

Inventions during the late 1800’sTypewriter, light bulb and telephoneElectricity: Changed business and home

environmentsTelephone: Sped up communications which led to

faster service and faster growthThomas Edison

Light BulbChristopher Sholes

TypewriterAlexander Graham Bell

Telephone

Inventions Promote Change

Rails made local transit reliable and westward expansion possible for business and people

The government made huge land grants and loans to the railroad companies

The Central Pacific employed thousands of Chinese immigrants.

The Union Pacific hired other immigrants and out-of-work Civil War veterans

Railroads united the diverse regions of the countryTo make things more consistent time zones were

created. The US contains four time zones: Eastern, Central, Mountain and Pacific

Railroads

Railroads created the growth of towns, created new markets and offered rich opportunities for both visionaries and profiteers

Railroads promoted trade and interdependence because it linked previously isolated cities, towns and settlements

Towns began specializing in specific productsCities started to grow along the railroad linesInterstate Commerce Act

Congress passed in 1887Allowed the Federal Government to supervise

railroad activitiesThe goal was to lower excessive railroad rates

Railroads

Andrew CarnegieOne of the first rags to riches storyWorked for the Pennsylvania Railroad and then

entered the steel industry after the introduction of the Bessemer process

Had success because of his management practicesHe searched for new ways to make better products

more cheaplyIncorporated new machinery to track costsAttracted talent by offering people stock in the

company and encouraged competition among his assistants

Industrial Leaders

Andrew CarnegieAttempted to control as much of the steel

industry as he couldVertical Integration: he bought out his suppliers in

order to control raw materials and transportation systemsCoal fields, iron mines, ore freighters and railroad

linesHorizontal Integration: Merging companies that

produce similar productsBuying out the competitors

Industrial Leaders

John D. RockefellerEstablished the Standard Oil CompanyIn 1870, Standard Oil Company processed only

3% of the country’s crude oil. A decade later, they controlled 90%

Rockefeller made huge profits by paying his employees extremely low wages and driving his competitors out of business by selling oil at a lower priceOnce he ran business out, he hiked up the price far

above the original levelsCritics call industrialist like Carnegie and

Rockefeller Robber Barons

Industrial Leaders

This 1900 cartoon, captioned “What a funny little government” is a commentary on the power of the Standard Oil empire. John D Rockefeller holds the White House in his hand

Unions EmergeAs business leaders merged and consolidated their

forces, it seemed necessary for workers to do the same

Skilled and unskilled, male and female, white and black workers all came together to form unions to improve their unsafe working conditions, vacation time, sick leave, unemployment and workers compensation

National Labor UnionFirst large scale national organization of laborersFormed by an iron worker in 1866Membership grew to 640,000Legalized the 8 hour workday

Labor Organizations

Unions EmergeKnights of Labor

Membership was open to all regardless of race, gender or degree of skill

Supported the 8 hour workdaySupported “equal pay for equal work” for men and

womenHad 700,000 members

Labor Organization

Strikes turn violentIndustry and government responded forcefully to

union activity, which they saw as a threat to the capitalist systemThe Great Strike of 1877The Haymarket AffairThe Homestead StrikeThe Pullman Company Strike

The Triangle Shirtwaist FirePublic outrage led to major reforms in building

and factory laws, especially those related to fire safety. It also led to changes in local labor laws for women and children

Labor Organizations

This wave of immigration helped make the United States the diverse society it is today

The rapid growth of cities forced people to contend with problems of housing, transportation, water and sanitation. Consequently, residents of U.S. cities today enjoy vastly improved living conditions

Why do we need to study Immigration and Urbanization?

Many immigrants entered the United States lured by the promise of a better life

“Birds of Passage”These people intended to temporarily earn

money and then return to their homelandsMany were escaping famine, land shortages

or religious or political persecution

Through the “Golden Door”

Europe20 million between 1870 and 1920Escape religious persecution (Jews)Rising population (Couldn’t find land)

China and Japan300,000 between 1851 and 1883Seeking fortunes from GoldWorked on the railroads, farms, mines and own

businesses Immigration Limited

West Indies and Mexico260,000Came for work due to the industrial boomMexicans came to flee political turmoil

Where did they come from?

Almost all immigrants traveled by steamshipCrossing the Atlantic took 1 weekCrossing the Pacific took 3 weeksDue to the conditions and the spread of disease

many died on the tripCrowedUnder the deckInfested bunksShare toilets

Had to pass inspection once they arrived to an immigration station

The Journey

Immigration station in NY HarborInspection

About 20% were detained for a day or more before being inspected

Had to pass a physical examIf you had a serious disease or health problem, you

were sent homeGovernment Inspection

Never had been convicted of a felonyDemonstrated that they could workHad to have some money (at least $25 after 1909)

Ellis Island

Ellis Island

West Coast Immigration PortMany Chinese and Japanese immigrants

arrived hereSan Francisco BayImmigrants had to wait a long time to see if

they were going to be admitted or rejectedHad to wait in filthy broken-down buildings

Angel Island

Once admitted into the United States Immigrants had to:Find a place to liveFind a jobLearn a new languageFind way around a new city

Many immigrants with similar backgrounds formed enclaves

Tensions between native-born people and immigrants stared to arise

Immigration

Native born Americans like the idea of their country being a melting potMelting Pot: a mixture of people of different cultures

and races who blended together by abandoning their native languages and customs

New immigrants did not want to give up their cultural background

With more and more immigrants coming into the country, a stronger anti-immigration feeling emerged

Rise of NativismFavoritism towards native born Americans

Immigration Restrictions

Anti-Asian SentimentNative Born Americans feared jobs would go to

ChineseChinese accepted lower wages

1882 Chinese Exclusion ActBanned all Chinese except students, teachers,

merchants, tourists and government officialsLaw was not repealed until 1943

The Gentlemen's AgreementThe Anti-Chinese attitude also moved to Anti-

Japanese and other populationsJapan’s government agreed to limit emigration of

unskilled workers to the U.S in exchange for the repeal of the San Francisco order

Immigration Restriction

Industrialization led to UrbanizationUrbanization: Growth of cities

Mostly in the regions of the Northeast and Midwest

Mostly in cities because cities were the cheapest and offered the most jobs

By 1910, immigrant families made up more than ½ the total population of 18 major U.S. cities

Migration from Country to City

Americanization Movement: Assimilate people of wide-ranging cultures into the dominant cultureSchools taught skills needed for citizenship,

American history, government, cooking and etiquette

Since many immigrants didn’t want to change their cultural identity, enclaves gave them their own community where they could communicate in their own language, practice their own customs and practice their own religion

These neighborhoods became overcrowded

Migration from Country to City

Farming jobs decreased due to Industrialization

African Americans displaced (1880-1990)200,000 moved north and west to cities like

Detroit and ChicagoTrying to escape racial violence, economic

hardship, and political oppressionJob competition between black and white

immigrants created even more tension

Migration from Country to City

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Ethnic and ClassGroupings in Milwaukee,1850-1890

HousingTwo options

Buy a house on the outskirts of townTransportation Problems

Rent a roomCramped rooms in a boarding house

Tenements: Multifamily urban dwellingMany times 2 or 3 families would live in a one family

residenceUnsanitary

TransportationMass Transit created

Designed to move large numbers of people along fixed routes

Enables workers to go to and from jobs more easily

Urban Problems

WaterUntil 1860, many cities didn’t have public waterworks to

supply their residents with fresh waterMany homes didn’t have indoor plumingTo improve water conditions, chlorinating the water was

necessary to prevent diseases such as cholera and typhoidSanitation

As cities grew, it became harder to keep them cleanNo public garbage facilities

CrimePickpocketers and thieves increased

FireWith limited water supply, fires were hard to put outMany buildings were made of woodMany people used candles and kerosene to light up their

house

Urban Problems