Urbanization Warm-up: Watch the video and think about the following questions 1.Why did farming families move to the cities? 2.How was the construction.

Urbanization

Warm-up:Watch the video and think about the following questions

1. Why did farming families move to the cities?

2. How was the construction industry affected by urbanization?

3. How did politicians take advantage of the immigrants to gain power?

Changing face of the cities…

• As Immigrants continued arriving single family homes were torn down– 5 and 6 story buildings

replacing them– Elevators

• Why relocate?– Farming hardships– New machinery

Booming cities:• New York City• Philadelphia• Chicago• Saint Louis• New Orleans

Bursting at the seams with people

Living Conditions

• Some employers provided housing for employees

Tenement: low-cost apartments designed to house as many families as the owner could pack in

• Could transform an area into a slum

What is a slum?

• Poverty• Overcrowding• Neglect• No trees/grass• Soot/dirty air• Rats• Open sewers

1905 account of tenements in an Italian district of NYC

“death traps, closely built, jammed together, with no side openings. Twenty-five percent of the yard space is damp and gloomy…where the houses are three or more rooms in depth, the middle ones are dark, without outside ventilation…there is no fire protection whatsoever.”

Fires become a BIG problem!

• Everything so close together

• Small fire could consume everything– Jump roof to roof

Great Chicago Fire - 1871

• 18,000 buildings• 250 people dead• 100,000 homeless• Property damages =

$2 million– $2 billion in today’s $$

Disease

MalariaCholera

Diseases spread rapidly…

Cholera• Spread through

contaminated water• Deadly when reach

small intestine• Can cause death in

24 hours• Severe dehydration

from vomiting and diarrhea

Malaria• Parasitic• Transferred by

mosquito• Parasites multiply

within the liver and let loose into the blood stream

• Viral type symptoms

Diseases continued…

Diphtheria• Swollen neck glands• Thick, gray covering

in the back of your throat that can make breathing difficult

• Once leading cause of death in children

Typhoid Fever• Fever of 103-104• Rash• Headache• Weakness, fatigue• Sore throat• Diarrhea or

constipationIf untreated will cause

delirium

Mostly affected the children

• 6 out of every 10 babies died before 1st birthday– Due to tenements and unsanitary living conditions

• Disease even worse in summer – Disease spreads in warm weather

Making some changes…Dumbbell Tenements - 1879

• Let in ventilation and light into every room• Thought this would help solve problem of diseases• Cities also began chlorinating and filtering water

– Scientists linked disease with contaminated water

Politics in the cities

Political Bosses / Machines

• Huge gap between poor and wealthy

• Political Machine – group in power headed by one powerful “boss”– Exchange of favors– Ward leaders gave out

jobs in exchange for votes

– Took advantage of immigrants need for representation

William Marcy "Boss" Tweed

• leader of New York City's

Democratic political machine • 1865 and 1871, Boss Tweed

and his cronies stole millions of dollars from the city treasury

• escaped from prison and fled

to Europe • Recognized in Spain

– Extradited to NY

• died in debtor's prison on April

12, 1878

Time for reform…

• Middle class citizens joined together to help– Moved by the living conditions

• Believed “prosperous Americans should fight poverty and improve wholesome social conditions in cities.”

Social Reforms

Social Gospel• 1880’s – 1890’s• Churches in cities

provided social services– Poor people– Unhealthy drinking habits– Gambling addictions

• Tried to offer assistance to these people

Settlement House• Like the social gospel• Community centers for

poor families• Provided social services

Hull House - 1889• Jane Addams & Ellen Gates Starr• Purchased old, run-down mansion in

Chicago– Repaired & opened doors to neighbors

• By living among community able to anticipate & respond to their needs– Cultural events, classes, child-care,

playgrounds, clubs, summer camp, job placement, health clinic, legal help, etc.

• Settlement houses began popping up all over U.S.– By 1910 there were 400