Urban America
UNIT 2: CHAPTER 4
LEQ:
Why did European
immigrants come to
America in the
1800s? What was it
like to enter at Ellis
Island?
Drill:
What nationality or
ethnicity do you
most associate with
the words
“immigrant” or
“immigration” in
America today?
Key Vocabulary
1. immigrant - (n) a person who migrates to another country,
usually for permanent residence
2. emigrate – (v) to leave one country or region to settle in another
A History of Immigration to America to
1882:
•20,000 to 50,000 years ago = Ancestors of the American Indians
•1500 = Early European immigrants (colonization)
• 1620 = African slaves “Unwilling Immigrants”
•1841 to 1860 = Over 4 million from England, Germany, and Ireland
•1849-1882 = 250,000 Chinese immigrants
Reasons for Immigrating to the U.S.
PUSH FACTORS
PULL FACTORS
•Poverty and unemployment
•Land and jobs
•Wars and forced military service
•Higher standard of living
•Political tyranny and religious oppression •Democratic government
•Over population
•Opportunity for social advancement
Ellis Island
•A tiny island in New York Harbor
Interactive Tour of Ellis Island Activity
1. Go to the American History page on Mrs. Leonard’s
website and open the link for the Interactive Tour of Ellis
Island Activity
2. Read each step, examine photos and videos that may be
available, and complete your handout
LEQ:
What was life like
in America for
immigrants?
Drill:
How do you think Americans
in the late 1800s treated
immigrants?
How are immigrants treated
today? Are some treated
better than others? Why?
Nativism
•By the 1880s immigrants made up a large percentage of the population in major
cities
•They were often separated into ethnic groups: “Little Italy”, “Chinatown”
•Overtime the increase in immigrants lead to feelings of nativism – an extreme dislike
of immigrants by native-born people
•Nativists feared the influx of Roman Catholics would “swamp” the mostly Protestant
U.S.A. And many believed the immigrants were taking American jobs
Political Parties and Secret Societies with
Nativism:
•Republican Party
•Nativist Party
•Secret Societies = Order of United Americans and the Order of the
Star-Spangled Banner. Sworn to secrecy; when asked about the
organizations members replied “I know nothing.” = The Know Nothing
Party A.K.A. The Know Nothings
LEQ:
What was urban
life like in
American cities
between 1840
and the early
1900s?
Drill:
How does life in
the city compare
to life in rural
areas?
LEQ:
How was the
U.S. from 1870
to 1900 gilded?
Drill:
Identify some things
that make American
society today good
and bad, fair and
unfair, rich and poor.
"Gilded" means covered with gold on the outside, but not
really golden on the inside
The Gilded Age
•lasted from 1870-1900
•the name came from the title of a Mark Twain book The Gilded Age:
A Tale of Today
•a period of rapid economic growth but also much social conflict
Characteristics of The Gilded Age
•Industrial growth and new inventions
•Crowded cities
•Corruption
•Disparity between rich and poor
•Strikes and riots
New Ideas in the Gilded Age
•Individualism = “from rags to riches” = Horatio Alger
•Social Darwinism = Human society evolves from competition and
natural selection
•Naturalism = the circumstances of life are out of our control
•Realism = portraying the world as it is
Gilded Age Then and Now
THEN
• Average Annual Income: $380 ($5,415 in
today’s money)
•Poverty: 90 % of Americans lived below
the poverty line
NOW
•Average Annual Income: $26, 695 (single)
S50,000 (household)
•Poverty: 14.5% of the population
(42,000,000 of 300,000,000)
•Urban Life: 40% of population; tenements, •Urban Life: 80.7% of population;
apartments, townhomes, homes; higher
high crime rates, filthy
crime rates than rural areas
LEQ:
Is the U.S. in
another Gilded
Age?
Drill:
Do you think America has
entered into a new Gilded Age?
Do you feel that the wealthy
exploit the less economically
advantaged?
Do the “one per centers” control
more than the reset of us?
"Gilded" means covered with gold on the outside, but not
really golden on the inside
Gilded Age Then and Now
THEN
• Average Annual Income: $380 ($5,415 in
today’s money)
•Poverty: 90 % of Americans lived below
the poverty line
NOW
•Average Annual Income: $26, 695 (single)
S50,000 (household)
•Poverty: 14.5% of the population
(42,000,000 of 300,000,000)
•Urban Life: 40% of population; tenements, •Urban Life: 80.7% of population;
apartments, townhomes, homes; higher
high crime rates, filthy
crime rates than rural areas
LEQ:
Is the U.S. in
another Gilded
Age?
Drill:
Get your assigned
laptop and finish
research from Friday –
10 minutes
"Gilded" means covered with gold on the outside, but not
really golden on the inside
Research Articles
1. Go to Mrs. Leonard’s American History webpage
2. In your groups read and discuss the following articles:
•15% of Americans living in poverty
•Why we’re in a new Gilded Age
•25 Most Dangerous Cities in the U.S.
3. Be prepared to answer the LEQ based on the articles you have read:
LEQ: Is the U.S. in another Gilded Age?
Are We In A Second Gilded Age?
Using Walmart as a Case Study
•Money spent at Walmart per minute = $34,880 ($50,227,200 per day; 18,332,928,000 a year)
•Percent of Walmart goods from China = 80%
•“The Walton family is the richest family in the United States…Net worth of $148.8 billion.”
•The Waltons have more wealth than 42% of American families combined
•Walmart, the country’s largest private employer, is paying its associates an average of $8.81 an
hour
How has America Changed Since 1900?
20th Century (1900s)
21st Century (2000s)
Family
Structure
two-parent, oneearner families
Technology
low-skilled labor
low-income singleparent families or
higher-income twoparent, two-earner
families
high-skilled labor &
specialization (higher
education required)
Markets
Local, small
global
businesses, ma and pa
shops
Education and Income in America
Full-time year-round working young adults ages 25–34:
•bachelor's degree was $46,900
•associate’s degree $35,700
•high school diploma or GED $30,000
•no diploma or GED $22,900
Annual Income Statistics in America:
American Population = 316,000,000
•Less than $25,000 = 25%
•$50,000-$100,000 = 30%
•$125,000 = 3.1 %
•$250,000 = 2%
•$350,000 to $1 million = 1%
•$9,141,190 = 0.01%
LEQ:
Is the U.S. in
another Gilded
Age?
"Gilded" means covered with gold on the outside,
but not really golden on the inside.
Many immigrants still come to the United States just as they
did in the late 19th century in hopes of a better life. These
immigrants believe America can provide them with financial
security, safety, better education, and more freedom (2012:
41 million immigrants living in the U.S.)
Based on what we have researched and discussed in class, do
you think America has entered into another Gilded Age?
LEQ:
During the Gilded
Age why was Civil
Service reform
needed?
Drill:
How do you expect
politicians to
conduct
themselves?
What is your opinion
of politicians today?
Civil Service – system or method of
appointing government employees
Key Terms
•Political machines – an organization linked to a political party
that often controlled the local government
•Party bosses – the person in control of a political machine
•Graft - gaining money or power in dishonest or illegal ways
•Pendleton Act of 1883 - government jobs should be awarded on
the basis of merit
Why was Civil Service reform needed?
CAUSES
EFFECT
Civil Service Reform:
The Pendleton Civil Service Act
of 1883
Why was Civil Service reform needed?
CAUSES
•Stealing money from taxes (Grant)
EFFECT
Civil Service Reform:
•Election fraud (Hayes)
•Assassination (Garfield)
•Hiring cronies - a.k.a. friends
•Minimal laws regulating campaigns
•Dominance of political machines
The Pendleton Civil Service Act
of 1883
LEQ:
What was the
People’s Party and
what were it’s
goals?
Drill:
During the Gilded Age
cities were growing in
size, wealth, and
population.
How might this have
affected farmers in the
rural areas of America?
Rural
vs.
Urban
The Rise of Populism:
Unrest in Rural America
•New technology allowed farmers to produce more crops
•Increased supply of crops caused prices to fall. This is good for the
consumer and bad for the farmer
•High tariffs make it difficult for farmers to sell goods overseas
*tariff – tax on goods coming into or leaving a country
•Increase in rail shipping costs
Key Terms: The Election of 1896
The Panic of 1893 a serious economic depression in the United
States Similar; it was marked by the overbuilding and shaky
financing of railroads, resulting in a series of bank failures
Whistle-Stop a from of campaigning when a nominee "ran"
for president instead of "standing" for president. One would
travel to all parts of the country by train to make speeches
and try to gain the votes of the listeners.
LEQ:
How were African
Americans treated
beginning in the late
1800s? Why?
Drill:
During the Gilded Age, 18701900, immigrants, the
working-class, and farmers
all faced hardships.
Another subgroup during
this time was the newly
freed African-Americans.
Based on what you already
know, describe what
hardships African American’s
may have faced during this
time.
Legislation Affecting African Americans
1864-1870:
•Emancipation Proclamation of 1864 ends slavery in rebellious states during the
Civil War
•13th Amendment passed in 1865 ends slavery completely and makes it
unconstitutional = illegal
•14th Amendment passed in 1868 grants citizenship to “all persons born or
naturalized in the United States,” which included former slaves recently freed
•15th Amendment passed in 1870 grants African American males the right to vote
LEQ:
How were African
Americans treated
beginning in the
late 1800s? Why?
Drill:
What were the
Jim Crow laws?
Voting
requirements
African
American
farmers join
the Populist
Party
Violence
(lynching's)
Factors
contributing
to
Discrimination
Jim Crow
Laws
Plessy v
Ferguson
Poll tax
Legalizing Segregation
•Segregation – the separation of the races
•Jim Crow Laws – statutes enforcing segregation in public
places, mainly in the southern states
•Plessy v Ferguson, (1896), Supreme Court Case that upheld
the Jim Crow laws : “separate but equal”
Response to Discrimination
African American
Ida B. Wells
Booker T.
Washington
W.E.B. Du Bois
Response to Discrimination
Response to Discrimination
African American
Ida B. Wells
Response to Discrimination
Booker T.
Washington
W.E.B. Du Bois
Should concentrate on achieving
economic and vocational goals
Newspaper articles and book against
lynching's and demanding fair trials
The Souls of Black Folks; demanded civil
rights, especially voting rights