Population Shifts in the 1800s

Bellwork• The US has been described as a melting pot: people from all kinds

of different cultures come here and “melt” and blend together, losing their own identities and taking on an “American” identity (this is called assimilation)

• The US has also been described as a salad bowl: people from all kinds of different cultures come here (lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, olives, chicken) and mix, but keep their old and unique cultural identity.

• Which analogy do you think is more accurate? Why?• Do this as a CHALK TALK…Rules:

– No talking.– Everyone must write SOMETHING.– Return to your seat if you aren’t writing.– Feel free to respond to each other…in writing and silently!

Immigration in the 1800s• Immigration has always been a part of the history of the

US, but it increased in the middle of the 1800s• By 1920, immigrants made up half of the manufacturing

workforce in America– If you include grandchildren of immigrants, recent

arrivals made up 2/3 of the workforce–Unskilled workers and farmers could also find jobs

relatively easily• 1845-51: potato famine in Ireland brought lots of

people; in 1850 alone, more than 117,000 people came from Ireland

•

Two Major Waves of Immigrants• First Wave of Immigrants: mostly from Western Europe, especially

England, Ireland, Germany, and Scandinavia– Skilled workers from Britain were in high demand– Culturally adapted pretty well, though there was de facto segregation

(not by law but by natural tendency)– Assimilated quicker than the Second Wave

• Second Wave of Immigrants: Southern and Eastern Europe; Jewish people fleeing persecution in Russia and Poland; Cholera in Italy– had a harder time fitting in – Less likely to have skills needed in factories (why?)– Less likely to be literate even in their own language– Would accept lower wages, which put earlier immigrants/Americans

out of work• By 1921: restrictions on immigration passed by Congress

Pause!• Let’s look at some information on immigration

today!

Cities Grow!• Urbanization: people moving from the rural/country areas to the

cities– Happened more and more as factories were built– More opportunities for work!– The North had more factories, so many also moved from the South to the

North• Pittsburgh, PA in 1840: 23,000 people• 1850: more than 46,000 people

– After the Civil War, many African Americans moved from the South to the North for factory jobs

• Crowded cities brings problems– Increased diseases (bad sanitation + crowded areas)– More people having to work (including kids) to support a new lifestyle

(high rent for apartments, expensive food, etc.)– Lots of people crowded into apartments leads to health problems

Tenements• Crowded, small apartments that were part of a larger,

multi-family apartment building• Most families who moved to cities (as immigrants or from

rural areas) started out in tenements• Tenements were cheaper than houses but disgusting and

unhealthy• Some were better than others; depended on location,

landlord, whether or not you had a window, and many other factors

• Author Jacob Riis helped inform the general public about tenements (and the horrible conditions that people lived in) with his book How the Other Half Lives

Family Life for the “Other Half”• Many kids would not learn how to read and write because they had to quit

school at an early age (if they went at all) to start working in a factory or at another job to earn money to support the family

• Mothers worked around the home or did odd jobs for other families (sewing, cooking, cleaning) to earn extra money

• Fathers worked in factories from 10-12 hours, 6 days/week– If they asked for time off or to work less hours each day, they probably would

be fired– They were easily replaceable because there were a lot of people wanting jobs– Factories were loud, dirty, and dangerous– and you were just out of luck if you

got your arm chopped off by a machine• Working this way, most families could make enough money to survive but

wouldn’t often move up in society or be able to work less hours. – Income disparity: gap between the rich and the poor– The rich get very rich and the poor stay very poor

 

TENEMENT OF 1863, FOR TWELVE FAMILIES ON EACH FLAT 2 D. dark L. light. H. halls.

A rented room: “5 cents a spot”…how many people can you count?