1.

Introduction
a. In the United States during the second half of the nineteenth century,
cities grew at a rate unparalleled in world history.
b. Urban population swelled from 6 to 44 million.
c. People came to cities in search of jobs, wealth, and excitement.
d. Rapid urban development produced widespread poverty and political
corruption.
i. Segregation from racial and ethnic background and social class.
2. Americas Move to Town
a. People rapidly moved overseas and from the countryside to towns for
good jobs and social excitement.
b. Technological innovations allowed city buildings to expand vertically to
accommodate surging populations:
i. Elevators
ii. Steam circulating through radiators
c. Electric trolleys, subways, and steam powered trains allowed large
numbers of people to become commuters.
d. Overly crowded apartments created problems of sanitation, health, and
morale for new citizens.
e. Cities in the 19th century were filthy, disease ridden, noisy, and smelly.
They had garbage, contaminated water, manure, and untreated
sewage. Cholera, typhoid fever, and yellow fever plagued citizens.
f. Public water and sewage systems were developed in 94% of cities by
1900.
3. The New Immigration
a. The industrial revolution brought to American shores waves of new
immigrants from every part of the globe.
b. The migration of foreigners to the US has been one of the most
powerful forces shaping American history. Immigrants came to America
to escape famine and lack of opportunity. They fled racial, religious,
political persecution, and forced military service as well.
c. The Contract Labor act of 1864 had the government pay an
immigrants passage. Employers could also import contract labor, a
practice that put the immigrant under the control of the employer.
d. Immigrants were from various parts of Europe with various cultures
and religions.
e. Ellis Island became the new immigrant processing center.
f. New immigrants tended to gravitate towards neighborhoods populated
by people of the same ethnicity who practiced the same religion,
native customs, and conversed in their native tongue.
g. Many nativists believed that immigrants threatened their way of life
and their jobs.
h. Nativist groups such as the American Protective Association (APA)
emerged to stop the flow of immigrants into America. The APA
encouraged government restrictions on immigration, more stringent
naturalization requirements, workplaces to refuse to employ aliens or
Catholics, and English being taught in public schools.

i.

Chinese Exclusion Act-first federal law to restrict immigration on the

basis of race and class. Shut the door on Chinese immigration for ten
years.
4. Popular Culture
a. The flood of people into large towns and cities created new patterns of
recreation and leisure.
b. People spent more time with their family rather than being intimately
connected with neighbors and extended families.
c. People enjoyed more leisure time and an increasing disposable income.
d. Politics became a form of public entertainment.
i. Membership to a political party was like being a part of a social
club.
e. Wild West shows, vaudeville shows, and spectator sports also became
more popular as the number of city dwellers increased.
f. Newspapers became a popular means reading about news and political
parties.
g. Saloons became wildly popular. They were places where men could go
to learn about jobs, engage in labor union activities, cash paychecks,
mail letters, read newspapers, gossip about neighborhood affairs, and
sometimes to play games.
h. Outdoor recreation was also on the rise. Croquet and tennis courts
were added to city parks. Bicycles became popular.
i. Movie theaters, dance halls, amusement parks, and picnic grounds
eventually became other forms of recreation (notably for young or
single women). Married women were buried in household duties.
j. Football and baseball eventually became popular spectator sports.
k. Baseball became Americas pastime. Only whites could play on the
major league teams.
l. The Cuban Giants, a colored exhibition team, got to play the New
Yorks and won.
5. Education and Social Thought
a. Public schools were on a dramatic rise at the time; they intended to
Americanize the immigrants.
b. Many of the public schools moved from curriculum focused on
mathematics and classical language but moved more to teaching
vocational skills.
c. The Morrill Act of 1862 granted each state thirty thousand acres per
representative and senator to create land grant colleges to teach
agriculture and mechanical arts.
d. Women had less access to education.
e. Darwins findings on evolution created heated arguments between
scientists and religious people.
f. The philosophical spin off of Darwinism, Social Darwinism, contended
that human society and institutions would naturally evolve for the
better and that government was an interference to this process.
g. Pragmatism-ideas gain their validity not from their inherent truth but
from their social consequences and practical applications.

h. Reform Darwinism argued that cooperation among man would be

better for social progress.