Essay On African American Urbanization

Many people lived in small, run-down apartments in cities called tenements. Like the cities, these tenements were also overcrowded, with some homes showing “six children on a single fire escape” (Document 6). With long work hours, many families were unable to come home and see their children; they were essentially separated. Some even described themselves as “a stranger am I to my child; and he one to me” (Document 2) due to the family separation. Another horrid living condition within the cities was pollution. With coal being the main source of power, especially in factories, it could create pollution (Document 3). The pollution could eventually cause breathing problems for the people within the cities, making the living conditions even worse. Even the “fast travel of railroad” (Document 5) could contribute to pollution, since it also ran on coal. Like the machines in the factories, it could create pollution as well since the coal could release potential toxins into the air, worsening living conditions even

The change in transportation led to social changes as well. Due to the construction of railroads in the urban areas there was more settlement in places where transportation was available such as New York. Due to the increase in transportation, white plantation owners increased their need for slave labor on the cotton farms as well as stricter slave code policies were increased in the South. Due to the advanced railroad system Americans are able to move westward very easily. All the migrants were in search for a new life and quick riches. In 1848-1855 Americans moved west because of the California Gold Rush. The gold rush attracted Chinese migrants to the western United States. Some migrants planned to take advantage of the public lands that the federal government was selling in order to

African American Studies is a very complex subject. To confuse African American studies with black history is a common occurrence. African American studies is much deeper and more profound than just Black history alone. There are many unanswered and unasked questions among the Black American culture which causes confusion and misunderstanding in modern day society. In unit one there were many themes, concepts, and significant issues in the discipline of Africana studies. Both W.E.B Du Bois and Vivian V. Gordan touched on many concerns.

For citizens all throughout the United States. By traveling via train passengers could reach their destination in 90% of the time compared to the travel methods before. This also caused a large increase in Western Settlement. Now, families did not have to worry about the harsh and long travel they would have had to make to go West just a few years before. People did not have to worry about weather, supply shortage, disease, and more, as railroad travel helped all of those situations. However, every good thing has a bad side, and it is important to note that the increase of Western Settlement forced more Indians out of their land, which began to cause violence between white men and Indians.

Second, the development of new public transit systems, was important in shaping the design of our cities and the growth of our cities by enabling people to move further away from the inner city. Early on, large cities had very little and inadequate transportation. Their main source of transportation were horse drawn wagons and walking. As a result, most people lived or took housing near downtown, which was where most of the working establishments were located. This made the big cities very congested. However with the breakthrough of the “el”, electric streetcars, and subways, around 1867, cities began to open up more. Those who were fortunate enough to move out of the slums and into better surrounding neighborhoods, did so. The more affluent of the white-collar classes moved into the suburban areas. In contrast, many of the very wealthy continued to live in city mansions. The new transit systems in most cities allowed people to escape the chaos of urban life and provided potential for growth of our cities.

In the 1890’s, America was celebrating it’s 100th anniversary by creating the Columbian Exposition in Chicago which would hence establish Chicago and America’s place on the world’s stage. The Columbian Exposition would be visited and attended by millions of people from all different places and all different kinds of people would visit. America was competing with not only time but also with the Paris Exposition. With only a few years to plan everything and to have every building constructed, Burnham and Root found a team of dedicated architects who deliberately found a way to get the job done just in time for the grand opening. After an enormous amount of stress building the fair, it was completed and they were proud of their accomplishments.

In American industrial cities, late 1800s, Poor neighborhood were not the best place to live. With poor living conditions, poor sanitation and crowded housing, many epidemics of infectious disease spread into the poor population and touched even the wealthy class. Cities such as New York were crowded and workers were living in tenements, which were often cramped, poorly lit and poorly aerated. Moreover, these tenements lacked of adequate plumbing, therefore waste was flooding in the public streets. Streets was crowded of waste and garbage. Population was poorly nourished and has a poor life hygiene like water pollution and poisoned food and milk. Accordingly, infectious disease was the common death reason. Big cities had known outbreaks of

The Transcontinental Railroad was a technological breakthrough that managed to make the USA feel smaller to travelers. Railroad systems had been in place decades before the transcontinental railroad had been constructed. However, these systems were not in synch as there were many different railroad companies and even more laws in place from state to state. This was in part due to the civil war, during this period both governments wanted better transportation of goods and troops. This caused many factors like track gauge (spacings of the rails) lengths to differ vastly. These differences in factors caused the slowing of transportation as, many of the times, people and goods being transported had to move trains where these railways met up. Also, many railways would not intersect towns, causing them to board trains on the other side of town. The Transcontinental Railroad was one of the stepping stones towards standardization as these factors were enforced by law for uniformity, and towns began to be built around these railways. This allowed people to travel from the eastern coast to the western coast without having to swap railways many times and would bring people and their ideas closer together, and, most importantly, caused the massive increase in western expansion. The transcontinental railroad was brought forth due to the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862, Chinese laborers, and western migration allowing for decreased travel times, bulk movement of resources and products, and

The end of the Civil War marked a new integration of industry into American society. Following the war, high tariffs were put in place to compensate for the national debt that were created. The increase in tariffs also promoted domestic industries which became more critical in America. A major shift can be seen during this time, known as the Gilded Age, toward a more industrialized society rather than an agricultural one. One major influence toward this industrialized society was the building of the transcontinental railroad which ran from East to West coast. Finished in 1869, the Railroad allowed for more transport which also benefited the rising of big businesses. Regional companies could become national companies and thus changed the way people looked at industrialization. This industrialization affected the working class the most which consisted of the industrial workers and farmers. One would think that the “Gilded Age” would mean prosperity would be felt throughout the economy but the elite 1% of the population had more money than the rest of the population combined. This did not sit well with the working class, especially the industrial workers, who were the ones making the profit for the elites. However, each the farmers and industrial workers had their own way in which they responded to the industrialization of the Gilded Age.

After the construction of the railroad, more and more cargo was given the opportunity to be shipped between states. Raw materials from the newly found land in the West were able to be quickly shipped to the East. This change helped the states ship over 50 million dollars worth of cargo between each other in the first ten years after construction. The railroad allowed the Eastern states and Western States exchange goods easily and efficiently. Shipping between states was now easier and cheaper than ever before causing commerce to increase rapidly. Farms began to pop up along the railroad. The goods manufactured at these farms were easily distributed because of the transcontinental railroad. Markets were extended because of the railroad construction. More people wanted to start new businesses because they saw opportunities with the railroad and how much easier it was to sell and ship goods. Items that were once scarce and hard to buy were now greatly manufactured and simple to purchase and receive. The transcontinental railroad also expanded the area as to where items can be shipped to. Items were once only able to be sold locally, but since the railroad helped create an outlet for more products, commerce extended majorly. The now larger market made manufactured goods more convenient to buy which increased

The development of the railroads was the beginning of a new transport system in America, it connected the east and west, and the communication across the continent grew easier. With the railroads brought new life to deserted towns, people settled along the railways, it was faster for people to travel from one way to the next, it was cheaper, and it led to new industries in lead,coal, and

These new railroads glued the country together thus creating a massive new market and loads of jobs contributing to the industrialisation of the US. Said industrialisation helped along mining and agriculture and brought supplies to the people that worked in said industries

Railroads were the linchpin in the new industrialized economy. The railroad industry enabled raw materials, finished products, food, and people to travel cross-country in a matter of days, as opposed to the months or years that it took just prior to the Civil War. By the end of the war, the United States boasted some 35,000 miles of track, mostly in the industrialized North. By the turn of the century, that number had jumped to almost 200,000 miles, linking the North, South, and West. With these railroads making travel easier, millions of rural Americans flocked to the cities, and by 1900, nearly 40 percent of the population lived in urban areas.

As the economy began to boom, a change in the way society lived had also changed. Instead of living in large cities, citizens began moving outward in the urban areas further away. Although most of the urbanization movement can be contributed to the raise in population, there were also many other changes that were occurring. Stagecoaches began having more frequent routes to all of the major cities and also most of the smaller outlying cities.

Housing was deemed a necessity as people were living in poor conditions, families were overcrowded and there was families living in tenements that shared toilet amenities. Also there were homeless people living in the streets.