The Dawn of Mass Culture
Mr. White’s US History 1
Big Questions
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As you complete these notes, think about the
following questions:
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Compare and contrast the way that Americans
spent their leisure time in the early 1900s with
how they spend it today. Are they more alike, or
different?
Compare and contrast mass culture of the early
1900s with today.
Compare and contrast shopping and advertising in
the early 1900s with today.
American Leisure
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Leisure time was primarily a middle- or
upper-class activity – why?
Over the early 1900s, Americans would
enjoy more and more leisure activities
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Amusement parks
Bicycling and tennis
Spectator sports
Baseball
Amusement Parks
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Parks were built that
had picnic areas and
rides to go on
Coney Island in New
York opened in 1884
First Ferris wheel
opened in Chicago
in 1893
Bicycling and Tennis
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Previously male-only – tires were all
rubber, kind of dangerous
After invention of safer bicycles, women
begin to cycle – meant freedom for
many of them
Tennis – not as big now, but people
then enjoyed it
Snacks
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Coca-Cola –
originates in 1886,
hitting mainstream
by 1900s
Hershey’s chocolate
bars
Spectator Sports and Baseball
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Boxing and baseball became popular as
spectator sports – had just been for fun
before
Baseball – appeared in the US in 1845, and
became popular during the Civil War
By 1900s, game had been standardized, and
clubs were appearing everywhere in the
country
Mass Culture
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Newspapers – worked harder to grab
readers’ attention with interesting
stories – “sin, sex, and scandal.”
Fine arts – art galleries appear in cities,
many free and public libraries
Popular fiction – more book writers start
writing light fiction, as opposed to
heavy literature
Shopping
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First shopping center appears in 1890 –
people could come, stroll around, and
view window displays
Department stores – actually begin as
early as 1865
Chain stores – stores that offered the
same products at many locations saved
money by buying in large quantities
Advertising
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Money spent on advertising went from $10
million in 1865 to $95 million by 1900
Advertisers used innovative methods – put
advertisements on buildings, rocks, etc.
Catalogs introduced – people could look
through the catalog and order through a
form, then have it delivered to their house
Discussion Questions
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When you have free time, what kind of
leisure activities do you do? How are these
different from those in the late 1900s?
Compare and contrast news and media of the
early 1900s (newspapers) to today. How are
they the same? Different?
Compare and contrast shopping and
advertising of the early 1900s (newspapers)
to today. How are they the same? Different?