14.1 - immigration & urbanization united states history chapter 14 prentice hall

14.1 - IMMIGRATION & URBANIZATION

UNITED STATES HISTORY CHAPTER 14 PRENTICE HALL

The New Immigrants

• Immigrants had always come to America for economic opportunity and religious freedom.

• Until the 1870s, the majority had been Protestants from northern & western Europe. – “Old Immigrants.”

• Many German & Irish immigrants immigrated in the 1840s and 1850s.

• Between 1870 & 1914, the Irish & German were joined by “New Immigrants”, from southern & eastern Europe.

VOCABULARY

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TECHNOLOGY AND INDUSTRIAL GROWTH

New” ImmigrantsteerageEllis IslandAngel IslandAmericanization“Melting Pot”NativismChinese Exclusion Act

UrbanizationMass transitSuburbTenement

New Immigrants Come to America

• In contrast to “old” immigrants who had come before the Irish and Germans, “new” immigrants were often unskilled, poor, Catholic or Jewish, and likely to settle in cities rather than farms.

• Many came alone, hoping to save money & return home.• They came from Italy, Greece, Poland, Hungary, and

Russia.• After 1900, 70% of all immigrants came from eastern or

southern Europe.

Immigrants Decide to Leave Home

• PUSH FACTORS- Come to America for a new start.

• PULL FACTORS- US offered special attractions.Ex. 1863 Homestead Act• CHAIN IMMIGRANTS- following relatives or

friends over.

PUSH FACTORS• Persecution

• Economic hardship• Lack of Jobs

• War

PULL FACTORS• Religious & political freedom

• Cheap land• Factory jobs

• Family in the US

The Immigrant Experience

• Coming to America was a big risk.

• Most immigrants only had enough money for the tickets, nothing else.

• Usually, they only brought with them what they could carry- clothes, pictures of loved ones, instrument, tools of their trade.

The Immigrant Experience

• Most immigrants traveled in STEERAGE-

• The lowest levels of the ship.

• Cramped, no privacy, little ventilation

Immigrants Arrive at American Ports

• The first stop for ships at American ports was a processing station where immigration officials decided who could stay in the United States.

• Immigration officers conducted legal & medical inspections.

• Most European Immigrants landed at Ellis Island in New York.

• Chinese & other Asian immigrants crossed the Pacific Ocean, arriving in San Francisco Bay- Angel Island.

Chinese in America (includes Mixed)

Immigrants Assimilate Into Society

• Most new immigrants stayed in cities, close to industrial jobs in factories.

• They lived in ethnic neighborhoods (ghettos) with people who shared native languages, religions, and culture.

• Americanization- helping newcomers learn English and adopt American dress and diet.

• Settlement workers and immigrants alike believed that American society was a “melting pot” in which white people from all different nationalities blended to create a single culture.

• This model excluded Asian immigrants. • However, most immigrants held on to their original

cultures.• Children were the first to become “Americanized”.

New Immigrants Face Hostility

• Immigrants often faced Nativism, which was the belief that native born white Americans were superior.

• Immigrants often were willing to work for less pay.

• Protestants were also suspicious of Catholics coming from Italy, Ireland, and Poland.

• Natives often would sign restrictive contracts agreeing not to rent or sell property to Catholics, Jews, or African-Americans.

• Chinese Exclusion Act- prohibited immigration by Chinese laborers, limited the civil rights of Chinese immigrants and forbade naturalization of Chinese Residents.

Immigrants Change America

• Despite opposition, Immigrants changed America.

• They fueled industrial growth, acquired citizenship, elected politicians and made their traditions part of American culture.

• Mexicans & Chinese settled the southwest working on the railroads.

• The coal mines & factories of the northeast were powered by Irish, Polish, and Germans.

14.2 - Cities Expand & Change

• In the late 19th century, American came across a period of URBANIZATION.

• America’s major cities were manufacturing and transportation centers clustered in the Northeast, Pacific coast, and Midwest.

• Cities became magnets for immigrants and rural Americans.

Cities Offer Change

• Women’s opportunities also expanded in the cities. In addition to factory work, they could take in a boarder, do piecework, become a seamstress, a laundress or become domestic servants.

• Educated women found work as teachers or as secretaries.

Cities Offer Change

• Some laborers were stuck in poverty, but most immigrants began to enjoy a higher standard of living.

• Life in the cities was hard, but was preferred over the country.

• Churches, theaters, social clubs, and museums all offered companionship and entertainment.

Farmers Migrate From Country to City

• Many rural-to-urban immigrants moved to cities in the 1890s.

• The move from the farm to the factories was wrenching.

• Conditions in the work place were much different from the farm, dim lighting, cramped work space, rigid schedules, no “off” season.

• However, factories paid in cash. Cash and the excitement of city life was enough to attract people.

Technology Improves City Life

• Cities of the late 19th century began to take modern form.

• Skyscrapers began to mark the skyline. These 10 story-plus building used steel and artistic design to impressive all city-goers.

• Mass transit public systems that could carry large numbers of people fairly inexpensively also reshaped the nation’s cities.

Urban Living Creates Problems

• Growing cities faced problems caused by overcrowding and poverty.

• Most newcomers had to live with in walking distance of their factory.

• Housing was often densely populated and aging.

Housing Conditions Deteriorate

• Urban workers often found themselves living in Tenements. - low-cost multifamily housing designed to squeeze as many families in as possible.

• Middle and upper class people who could afford the transit fares, slowly moved away from the crowded cities.

• Suburbs- were housing developments in the cleaner and quieter perimeter of the city.