Tenement House Law Research Paper

The slums were packed with the urban poor. These people would be crammed into awfully built apartment buildings. There were roughly four families that would live on each floor. These building were called slum tenements. These buildings were placed side by side, therefore making them appear and feel even more crowded. Since these tenements were so incredibly crowded, fire and illness were a big hazard. Many city roads and sidewalks were made of wood which made them very flammable. If a fire was lit, it could spread to the crowded building forcing many people to attempt to evacuate, which was very difficult because of the tiny space and the surplus of people. Illness was another big issue. Illness would spread incredibly fast because of the horrid conditions of the tenements and again, the amount of people crammed in these spaces. Therefore, the slums are not suitable for any person, especially not one who needs an adequate amount of rest after an incredibly exhausting day at the factory.

You would think that today’s society would not discriminate against someone based on their race, color, or national origin. With the changes in lifestyle, people continue to discriminate against those, but also someone’s sexual orientation. Even with laws and regulations, it continues in all parts of the country. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, more specifically Title VI, stated that you could not discriminate against anyone in programs and activities receiving federal

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

These settlement housing complexes, along with other emerging municipally supported housing and projects, were failing considerably as time went on, in more ways than not. Ways these housing and government projects were failing were in hygiene and sanitation, in addition to perishable products that went uninspected, like meat and dairy products, which eventually made citizens very ill, and even killed a few. Local factories emitting toxic fumes also did not help the issue at all8

As the problem of overcrowding became more and more evident, several remedies were tried. There was some individual philanthropy, model dwellings were built by "philanthropic capitalists," legislation was passed prohibiting overcrowding, slums were torn down(which, of course, only worsened the problem by displacing more people), there was suburban speculative development closely following the development of the railroad which provided cheap, rapid transit to the newly-forming

There are three distinct classes of houses in the tenement-houses; the cheapest is the attic home. Three rooms is next and is usually for very poor people. The vast majority of respectable working people live in four rooms. Each of these classes reflects the needs and resources of the renters in that the attic home, for example, is generally one small room and is usually rented out by a lonely elderly person with not much money. Three rooms generally consist of a kitchen and two dark bedrooms and are usually rented out to very poor people who have a

Although the industrial industry played a major role, in how all the tenement dwellers made their incomes Riis never discussed that issue at any great length. He focused purely on the housing and the conditions of it. One of the examples of the conditions in the book refers to how dusty and full of dirt the buildings are. On page

Most contracts never mentioned the safety and comfort of tenants (p. 10). In addition, many of the tenants were working and needed to be close to where they worked. The costs of living in these tenement houses were ridiculously high for the condition and size of the rooms.

In the early 19th Century the vast majority of housing for the working class was in a terrible condition, which were mainly due to overcrowding, poor ventilation and unsanitary environments. These issues lead to outbreaks of cholera on a number of occasions between the years 1813 and 1865. The Public Health Act was introduced in 1848, which required all local authorities to provide towns with hygienic sewage disposal and clean water supplies. Due to the presence of disease in slums, the Sanitary Reform Act was introduced in 1866. The act gave local authorities powers to inspect the cleanliness of homes in their district. (Naidoo and Wills, 2009). As stated by Berridge, Martin and Mold (2011), the Sanitary Reform Act aimed to address the problems with sewage, household waste and contaminated

Jersey Street is now gone and it was where Italians lived in the the worst slums. The floor is uneven, the buildings are broken and there are pieces of wood all over the place. What seems to be a family in this picture, shows that everyone is in the low class because of the condition they are living in and also the formal type of clothes they are wearing. Continuing with tenements, A tenement House commissioner, Robert W. de Forest wrote a letter to the Mayor of New York addressing that, “the Tenement House Department is an entirely new department, and as a large part of its work during these eighteen months had been that of organization, I have deemed it due to the city’s interest… to set forth fully the organization of the department and some of the chief reasons for the form which has been given to it.” This was in the “First Report of the Tenement House Department of the city of New York” and this report points out that the tenements weren’t in good condition. “Tenement conditions in many instances have been found to be so bad as to be indescribable in print; vile privies and privy sinks; foul cellars full of rubbish, in many cases of garbage and decomposing fecal matter; dilapidated and dangerous stairs; plumbing pipes containing large holes emitting sewer gas throughout the houses; room so dark that one cannot see the

Tenement buildings are run down buildings, mostly in the city. Poor families and mostly poor immigrants would live inside these buildings. Tenement buildings were very unhealthy to live in. A danger that families had to face in these buildings was that they were run down. Run down buildings could fall apart and the ceilings could be tore. Also, the buildings could have mold and people can get sick from breathing in mold, laying on mold, or ingesting mold. Tenements were also small and crowded with people, so if someone gets sick in the tenement it will spread very fast to the whole family. Tenement buildings are also very unsanitary. There were outhouses outside the buildings and these outhouses would stink up the neighborhood. Outhouses are unsanitary because the waste inside them would be stuck inside them for a long time and that can attract bugs. Furthermore, outside these tenements in the backyard, were mud and animal feces all over the place. Along with the mud and animal waste children would try to play outside but, it would be to dirty for them to go outside and play. Fires were one of the many dangers that people in tenement buildings had to face. If there was a fire it would be hard for tenement residents to evacuate the building because there was no fire escapes. Likewise, tenements residents could also have fire hazards like cigarettes or

Life in tenements was tough because as the population was increasing exponentially; the quality of life was becoming increasingly crowded and unsanitary. Since these buildings were in high demand, housing over two thirds of the population of New York, they were commonly made of cheap materials. Maks’ family’s rooms were not well made because “the ceiling is tin. The floor is wood. As for the walls, they’re all faded green with a few cracks” (Avi 54). The buildings themselves were packed with inhabitants so that the landlords could pack more money in their back pockets. The tenement flats were very dimly light, which left many lowlifes living in low light. There was a lack of light put on the subject, and some of the regulations to have better sanitation

The American dream, the right to own land, build a home, and start a family. Unfortunately this was not always the case as Blacks, Hispanics, and other minorities were discriminated from the early 60’s to the late 80’s and even still today. Segregation plagued the U.S., placing minorities in lower classes than whites, restricting certain rights and freedoms that our constitution laid by our forefathers has been implemented to protect U.S. citizens.

In the nineteenth century, families of all different kinds of races resided in tenements. The tenements I will be writing about are located on 96 Orchard Street in the lower east side of New York City. Every room tells a remarkable story of the lives

Due to this loss, houses became very overcrowded to the point where families had to live in a single room. This would be where they would cook, eat, sleep and socialise. Rooms to rent became very popular.