City Life In The 1800s

Tenement life in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s was very difficult, it could even be called somewhat dangerous. Tenements were usually very small living spaces that contained no more than 2 rooms. Most rooms had 2 or no windows at all, the buildings were also built very close together on narrow streets. Some tenements had little ventilation, there was no central heating or air conditioning so the tenements were very hot during the summer and very cold during the winter. Tenements were not the safest place for a person to live because living conditions were very poor.

Transportation vastly improved in the early 1800s. As production increased, people needed faster and easier ways to transport their product. In the early 1800s, the steam locomotive was a huge advancement. “In the early 1800s, pioneers like George Stephenson developed steam-powered locomotives to pull carriages along iron rails” (202). This was a big advancement because a railroad track did not have to follow a river. The tracks could be placed wherever. People could travel further and faster than ever before. “Other inventors applied steam power to improve shipping. In 1807, an American, Robert Fulton, used Watt’s steam engine to power the Clermont up the Hudson River in New York”(202). This was a huge victory at the time. It traveled at

What are some of the hardships Americans in the early 1800s faced when traveling? One hardship they faced was having their entire food supply exhausted. Most of the families had to kill their oxen for food and leave their wagons, which resulted in the travelers walking on foot. Unfortunately, a lot of the people ended up dying of starvation anyway. Another hardship they faced was not being able to bury those that had died in coffins. This particular hardship might not have affected anyone physically but it definitely affected them emotionally.

The book ‘Everyday Life in Early America’ by David Hawke provides a comprehensive account of the history of early settlers in America. It maintains that the geographic concept including the physical environment is a chief factor that influences the behavior of individuals. The author assumes that early settlers came to America in the hope of taking forward their customs and traditions while starting afresh in a foreign land. However, the physical environment brought about certain changes to their traditions and customs. The people slowly began to understand that the only way to survive would be to modify their patterns of living (Hawk, 1989).

Shouts filled the air as various sellers promoted their goods. The putrid stench of human excrement contaminated the air and the bleak horizon was consumed with smog and tall buildings, rendering any air polluted. These elements came together launching an all-out assault on your senses. Both Paris and Vienna experienced these conditions. Both cities shared the same common health problems, from a lack of fresh air to the rampant spread of disease, as well as over-crowding, which then lead to economical segregation. These cities had issues as an outcome of the Industrial Revolution. Ironically, this same event would eventually solve the problems by reshaping the cities and creating healthier, more efficient spaces to live in.

The late 19th century was a time of exploration, innovation, and continued westward expansion. The West, however, was not as glorified as people today like to think it was. Westward expansion had many benefits, the main being lots of new land for both the Americans and immigrants, but many ideas of the West have been altered throughout the years. The West was romanticized in many ways, people moved to the West in the pursuit of happiness, but today many hardships of westward expansion have been ignored. Cowboys and homesteads are two major concepts that have been romanticized today about the West.

In what ways did the American West of the late nineteenth century represent a contrast to the East? In what ways did the two regions resemble each other?

The building of roads, canals and railroads played a large role in the United States during the 1800s. They served the purpose of connecting towns and settlements so that goods could be transported quickly and more efficiently. These goods could be transported fast, cheap and in safe way through the Erie Canal that was built to connect the Great Lakes to New York. Railroads were important during Civil War as well, because it helped in the transportation of goods, supplies and weapons when necessary. These new forms of transportation shaped the United States into the place that it is today.

Some significant reforms in the 1900s were the homes families and strangers lived in going from slums to nicer living conditions. For example living in an apartment that is meant for 1 maybe 2 adults has 10 to 15 adults living in it with a bathroom down the hall away from the rooms for people in other apartments to use as well, or when someone gets a sickness in the apartment and everyone in the whole building gets it because everything is contaminated from the person being sick. It went from that to a little bit bigger homes with lesser people and cleaner rooms and bathrooms.

Before the Gilded Age, transportation of any sort was slow, unreliable, and unavailable. However, with the invention of the assembly line and some invention, mass produced automobiles, subterranean trains, elevated trains and basic airplanes were spread out. Therefore, during the late 19th century, transportation was allowing for extreme expanse of trade and economic capability.

The late 1800s marked the start of the Industrial Revolution for the United States. Prior to the rapid industrialization, people lived in rural communities and manufacturing was done largely by local craftsmen. After the Civil War, certain needs were emphasized such as the need for faster production, transportation, and better communication. All of these needs were met by the Industrial Revolution due to technological advancements. These advancements had great effects on the structure of cities at the time. Around the time of these advancements, immigrants from all over Europe and Asia decided to attempt to make lives for themselves in America. This increase in population also led to changes in the cities, making them more urban. Ultimately, many factors including technological advancements, immigration, and the new laissez-faire government led to fairly extreme changes in American cities in the late 1800s.

During the industrial revolution factories flourished and for many people improved their financial status. Factories and machines that could process food faster and in larger quantities caused some jobs to be obsolete. The umemployed migrated from their rural homes along with others immigrateing from other countries in droves flooding urban areas. Most were seeking employment and the ability to provide a better life for their families,. This rapid urbanization caused cities to become overcrowded and dangerous. The normal standard of living changed drastically. It was impossible to build homes as fast as people were coming in. . Some families were forced to live in warehouses or other buildings not meant for housing. People also lived

Throughout this weeks reading on Chapter 4, we focus in on the Progressive Era and the establishment of urban America. The industrial revolution was at its peak and the United States was developing rapidly. Immigration, manufacturing output, and urban development grew faster than any other time in the nation’s history. Not only that, but scientific developments changed lives and revolutionary theories challenged traditional beliefs. As Rury suggests, “ . . . it is probably safe to say that there was a greater degree of social change at the point than any other, simply because of the magnitude of economic expansion an population movement” (Rury 136). It was a time of globalization, when there was movement around the world on an unprecedented scale. Even when compared to

In the late 1800’s the United States was a young nation. That wanted to expand it’s boarder’s so they headed west. This began the great “Westward Expansion”. Due to the westward expansion natives were taken from their and pushed to reservation around 1849. Native tried to fight back. The government by either using forces or speaking politically. The government sold Native American land for profit. The westward expansion decreases the Native American population while the settlers benefit by it from land and gold.

The late 19th century was a monumental era for the city of Paris. As the city kept growing and increasing in popularity around the globe, the city itself was being modernized from its dated medieval layout. These modernizations had a direct impact on the culture of the city, the lifestyles of its inhabitants, and the prominence of the city across the world. Paris’ inhabitants were as social as ever, and often enjoyed themselves at cafés and bars. This modernization acted as a perfect catalyst to support the surging wave of capitalism across Western Europe. In the novel “The Ladies’ Paradise,” Emile Zola focuses on this rising capitalistic culture, specifically in the form of department stores. Like many features of Paris, the way the cities