Ch 15 Modern America

Sec 1 Immigration  Between 1860 and 1900 over 14 million immigrants arrived in the U.S.  One new group to enter in masses were European Jews

 Immigrants came to America for…  Employment  Few restrictions  Avoiding military service  Religious Freedom  The chance to move up the social ladder

 Most immigrants entered the U.S. through Ellis Island, a small island off of New York Harbor

 Angel Island in California was opened to process immigration on the West Coast

 Nativism – extreme dislike for foreigners, began to be a major problem again in America

 In 1882 Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act  It barred Chinese immigration for 10 years  Prevented Chinese in America from becoming citizens  It was renewed in Congress until 1943

Sec 2 Urbanization  The urban population of the U.S. grew from about 10 million in 1870 to over 30 million in 1900  Immigrants were joined by farmers who moved to cities for better pay, electricity, running water, plumbing, and entertainment

 Skyscrapers, were tall steel frame buildings that rose all over larger cities

 Mass transit developed with the horse car, then the trolley, and later the elevated railroad

Separation by Class  The wealthy of the time lived in the heart of the city in elaborate homes  The middle class tended to live outside the city  The working class lived in tenements dark crowded multi-family apartments

Urban Problems  The growth of cities resulted in an increase in crime, fire, disease, and pollution  Contaminated drinking water from improper sewage disposal resulted in epidemics of typhoid fever and cholera

Urban Politics  The problems in cities led to the development of the political machine  Party bosses ran the political machines

 The most famous was Tammany Hall  It’s boss was William M. Tweed who was arrested for corruption and sent to prison in 1874

Sec 3 The Gilded Age  Mark Twain and Charles Warner co- wrote the novel, The Gilded Age  The term became the name for the time period from 1870 – 1900

 The term “gilded” refers to something that is gold on the outside while the inside is made of something cheaper

 Horatio Alger, a minister from Mass., left the clergy, moved to New York, and wrote over 100 novels about rags-to- riches stories

 Herbert Spencer, an English philosopher, first proposed the idea of Social Darwinism  He taught that the theory of natural selection and evolution applied to human society

 Spencer taught that human society evolved through competition

 Andrew Carnegie believed in Social Darwinism but also felt that those who profited from society should give something back

 Carnegie’s ideas became known as his Gospel of Wealth  This philosophy pushed philanthropy, using great fortunes to further social progress

Realism  Realism was a new movement in art and literature that portrayed people in realistic situations  Mark Twain wrote the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in 1884  Twain is thought to have written the first true American novel

Pop Culture  Pop culture changed in the late 1800s since people had more time and money  The saloon became a community and political center for men  Coney Island in New York was an amusement park that became popular

 Watching sports became a national pastime  Ragtime was a music that became very popular during the time period.

Sec 4 The Birth of Reform  In 1897 journalist Henry George wrote a best-selling book called Progress and Poverty.

Helping the Urban Poor  Organizations like the Salvation Army, YMCA, Women’s Clubs, and the temperance movement were formed for the needy

Racial Equality  Booker T. Washington formed the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1881  W.E.B DuBois encouraged blacks to seek social justice and equality through the NAACP

 George Washington Carver was famous for his work in agricultural science  Plessey Vs. Ferguson upheld segregation in 1896

 The Morrill Land Grant Act gave money and land to states for the purpose of building colleges

 The movement in the 20 th century that called for change in government, business, and social welfare became known as Progressivism  Theodore Roosevelt called the journalist who were intent on exposing the corruption, Muckrakers

 Upton Sinclair wrote The Jungle about problems in the meat packing industry  Ida Tarbell wrote an expose about Standard Oil

Essay Question   Explain the major influences of the Gilded age in terms of immigration, urbanization, and reforms.

 Child Labor  Temperance  Education Reform  Library Reform  Equal Opportunities for African Americans  Women’s Rights  Meat Processing  Monopolies (standard oil)  Workers Rights  Immigration Restraints