Jane Addams and Hull House Settlement houses in context Yvonne Ford Advisor for Academic English in Fb4

Industrial revolution Away from manual labour, supported by animals, largely in the countryside To machine-based manufacturing Major turning point in human history

Social and cultural change Friedrich Engles, The condition of the working class in England in 1844, spoke of "an industrial revolution, a revolution which at the same time changed the whole of civil society."

England Natural resources Large work force Favourable climate Protestant work ethic Textiles Steam power Iron founding Ruhr Valley was referred to as „Miniature England“

Second industrial revolution Chemical industries Petroleum refining Electrical industries later the automotive industry Late 1890‘s – first global corporations

Factories Child labour, cheap and effective Low wages, long working hours Accidents First laws restricting child labour were passed in 1833 and 1844

Resistance From craft workers (cottage industries) From agricultural workers Unions and co-operatives Strikes, riots Imprisonment or deportation Marxism, Romanticism (nature)

Crowded housing Poor sanitation Small houses Contaminated water Diseases (cholera, tuberculosis, typhoid, chest diseases due to mining)

Effects of industrialisation Increase in life expectancy Despite diseases, children lived longer Expansion of transportation Railways, roads, shipping

Printing – rising literacy Information Demand for participation

Immigration to the USA ,000 Europeans to USA , ,000 Many of these immigrants were sick and weak, suffered from being displaced.

Germans in Chicago From 1850, when Germans constituted one- sixth of Chicago's population, until the turn of the century, people of German descent constituted the largest ethnic group in the city, followed by Irish, Poles and Swedes. In 1900, 470,000 Chicagoans - one out of every four residents - had either been born in Germany or had a parent born there.

Stresses of immigration The number of Germans who killed their wives or daughters was higher than in other immigrant groups. The men who murdered their wives were not only the unskilled workers but also semi-skilled and skilled. Frequently the men then attempted or committed suicide. The killings were often preceded by a history of wife- beating. Adler, Jeffrey S., First in violence, deepest in dirt: homicide in Chicago, , Harvard University Press, 2006

Other immigrant groups Italian and Irish men also committed family murders, often saying they had exploded in rage. Domestic violence played a role in these families as well. The stresses of the workplace, family tension and suspicion of adultery are some of the factors named.

Response to these problems:social activism Political patronage Church based missionaries, urban missions, social gospel Friendly visitors and case conferences of experts Settlement movement Call for scientific charity Secular, rational, empirical

Friendly visiting Focus on helping individuals, trying to help them avoid becoming dependent on outside help Focus on self-sufficiency and personal responsibility Case conferences – knowledgeable people cooperating to help individuals and families

Mary Richmond Charity Organization Society (COS) In 1897 she presented a paper at the National Conference entitled „The Need of a Training School in Applied Philanthropy“ „We can never acquire a professional standard until we have a school.“

Settlement movement – 3 R‘s Research Reform Residence First was Toynbee Hall in London Later in the USA

In USA settlement houses were founded by university-educated women 1889 New York 1892 Philadelphia and Boston 1889 Hull House in Chicago Opened by Jane Addams and Ellen Starr

Vision of the settlement houses Desire for actual social democracy, including women‘s suffrage Desire to share the common interests and problems of life, beyond class divisions Renaissance of the community spirit of the early Christian church (communal spirit)

„Living among those very poor people, my sense of values changed curiously.“ Vera Scudder, founder of one of the settlement houses

Settlement house „caught on“ houses houses in 32 states

Jane Addams Youngest of four children Bachelor of Arts degree in 1882 Traveled to Europe 1883 – 1885 and , saw poverty in Europe and efforts to alleviate it (Toynbee Hall) Opened Hull House in 1889 with friend Ellen Gates Starr

Jane Addams

Hull House

Hull House neighbourhood Mix of ethnic groups that had immigrated to Chicago: Little Italy Germans Jews (from Russia) Greek Irish Canadian-French

Open to all groups, no discrimination due to race, language, creed (beliefs) or tradition

Activities Reseach (gathering information about problems and their causes) Social reform (education, labor legislation, municipal reform, child welfare) Club work (informal education and recreation for children, youth groups, and adults. Volunteers led the groups.)

Significance of club work Clubs could draw out the latent potential of the members. They learned to work together, learned mutual understanding and a sense of democracy and participation, civic responsibility.

Hull House activities Ethnic evenings – food, music, dancing and presentations Kindergarten – for children whose mothers were at work Dispensary – nutritious food was given to sick persons Medical assistance – when there was no doctor available First public playground – led to the foundation of the National Playground Association

Nursery at Hull House

Further activities Education and political reforms – first juvenile court in America, branch library system Theater – American Little Theater Movement Child labour laws Occupational safety, health provisions Immigrant rights and pension laws

Addams lived in Hull House for 40 years, used her inheritance to support the activities.

Pacificism She wrote „Newer Ideals of Peace“ in 1907 and became known as a pacifist. This brought her much ridicule and censure in the USA. She was also active in the international peace movement and founded the Women‘s Internation League for Peace and Freedom.

International Conference, The Hague

Addams was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931, shared with Nicholas Murray Butler. She had a reputation as the „Mother of the World.“

Addams shared her life for 30 years with her dearest friend Mary Rozet Smith; Smith died in 1934.

Addams and Smith

Jane Addams died in 1935 and was buried in Cedarville, Illinois, her birthplace.

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