Leaving New York City for the Farmlands of Illinois Essay

By the late 1800s, America was transitioning from an economy based on agriculture to one based on industry. Although this transformation made the United Stated richer and more powerful than it had ever been before, it caused farmers to face numerous problems to which they found themselves unable to successfully overcome. Even though many farmers moved into the industrial workforce, the ones who wished to continue agricultural work faced problems such as overproduction and tariff policies. Also, the farmers lost their political power due to the decreased focus on agriculture.

Sugar Creek: Life on the Illinois Illinois Prairie, a monograph written by John Mack Faragher discusses the life of settlers in Sugar Creek a town of Sagaman county, Illinois. Faragher argues the discoveries of the environment, society, culture, and economy in Sugar Creek throughout the nineteenth century and the changes, development, improvements with it. There are four common themes throughout the monograph: First, the kicking out of the Kickapoo and other Indians in place of Anglo-Americans. Second, the relationship and changes between men and women’s roles throughout the nineteenth century. Third, the community life and the sensibility of bringing the town together. Finally, the transition of agriculture and the innovations that changed the town. Faragher uses many censuses, charts, and records to get an idea of the transition of life in Sugar Creek and the affects it had on the community. Although Faragher presents many arguments he does not entirely discuss the men’s involvement in contrast to women’s roles in the household and town.

As a person that has grown most of my own food, without chemicals or engine powered equipment, for the last 15 years and lesser so for many more years I can relate to some degree what it may have been like for a farmer in the 1800’s (I even live in a house built in 1850).

America — a land known for its ideals of freedom and new opportunities, a nation built under the idea that every man and women is created equal. However, the definition of what makes a person an American is entirely different from what it is that makes up America, itself. J.Hector St. John Crevecoeur, author of Letters from an American Farmer (1782), exposes what he believes makes an American. However, when compared to the standards of what makes an American in today’s world, it seems that becoming an American then was much simpler then, than it is today. The definition of an American is always evolving due to the influences of our changing nation. During a simpler time, Crevecoeur defined an American as someone of European

Historically, Chicago has been and always will be a city of change both industrially and agriculturally to the metropolis we know and revere today with skyscrapers and culture abound. In order for the city to become the industrial hub, changes were made to the natural landscapes to accommodate business and residency. Steel became the staple good, and green spaces were demolished during the expansion of industry in the Calumet region by the masses in the creation of steel for railroad tracks and structural steel for commercial buildings. For geographical ambiance, The Calumet region of Chicago is consisted of the following neighborhoods: Burnside, Calumet Heights, East Side, Hegewisch, and Pullman, South Chicago, and South Deering. In this

The article “Life in Mississippi: East St Louis, Illinois” is one that is not taken lightly. The article shows one the injustice that African Americans face in the city of St. Louis. The article all together is shocking and heartbreaking. To know that in a country that is suppose to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest, there still is so much injustice is not only eye opening but also upsetting. One of the 2 most heartbreaking parts for me was when Kozol describes the old men leaning on his cane listening to Jesse Jackson and crying. This is something so powerful to me because this is someone who has experience all of the hardships that east St. Louis has to offer and he has to live knowing that not much has change and maybe Jesse Jackson was the only one promising the change they deserve. The last scene was when one of the students goes up to Kozol after class and tell him that what Dr. King did was nothing because they are still living in such horrible situations. For a teenage kid to think and feel that way, they must have had to suffer through so much, which is exactly what the article is able to show us, the injustice that these kids face on a daily basis. Having read this is shocking to one because we live in a different area where we aren’t prone to see such things and because we have grown up and taught to believe that racism and poverty is almost non existing because this is American a country that doesn’t fail the people.

As the population of the young United States increased more and more people hungry mouths were asking for food. Farmers had to keep up with new technology but there were also many setbacks in government policy and economic conditions. In the period of 1865-1900, there were many ways in which technology, government policy, and economic conditions changed early American agriculture.

The agriculture industry is not only the largest industry within our state, but also within our nation. However, in recent years it has also been one of the most heavily criticized. This has led to a ‘brain drain’ in rural America as more people decide to leave our industry and their family farms.

Poor American farmers might have moved to the cities during the Great depression simply because they felt economically disenfranchised. The country was undergoing a very hard time economically wise which motivated many people (mostly farmers) from all parts of the country to move to cities. All of the documents (1, 2, 3, 4,5,6,7, and 8) we read in class actually do show that most Americans had lost their jobs and consequently couldn’t take care of their families unless they moved to cities.

When making a career choice it is wise for one to consider the laws of supply and demand. The current shortage of agriscience educators in Alabama and across the nation has made this a

dad,” whom “had inherited the extra farm” that Ty had farmed for six years (12). His good

Chicago in the 1920s was a turning point for the development of ethnic neighborhoods. After the opening of the first rail connection from New York to Chicago in the 1840s, immigration sky rocketed from that point on. Majority of the immigrants to Chicago were Europeans. The Irish, Italians, eastern European Jews, Germans, and Mexicans were among the most common ethnicities to reside in Chicago. These groups made up the greater part of Chicago. The sudden increase in immigration to Chicago in the 1920s soon led to an even further distinguished separation of ethnicities in neighborhoods. The overall development of these neighborhoods deeply impacted how Chicago is sectioned off nowadays. Without these ethnicities immigrating to Chicago

The demand for corn has greatly increased because of its many new found uses but mainly because it has been discovered that corn can be use as an alternate energy source. This great demand for corn has increased many area of farming and production of corn here and other countries such as Mexico and South America. This great demand has lead to an increase in farmers who are willing to cash in on these cash crops and try to earn a few quick dollars because of the great demand for it. In 2007 Corn farmer saw record profits because famer where getting twice as much for corn as they did in previous years. The same trend continued but farmers dealt with so many obstacle such as weather, bugs and lack of

My capstone project was to go to Chicago and to see many high quality art in art museum and murals/monuments in public in the city. It was also to study the diverse art culture of Chicago.

The first settlers, finding that European agriculture could not easily be transferred to the new environment, adopted the Indian practices of raising corn, squash, tobacco, and other crops. From the beginning corn, grown in all the