Chapter 6-
Expansion of the Industry -
The U.S changed from a farming country to an industrial country.
Black Gold -
While oil had been used by the Native Americans for years, Europeans had never really had a use for it. IN the 1800's the automobile was created. This greatly increased American's need for oil. In1849, Edwin L. Drake used a steam engine to drill for oil. A rush of people and companies came to the Midwest to find and refine oil.
Bessemer Steel Process -
Enormous iron and coal deposits were also found in the U.S. Steel did not rust, it was stronger, and more flexible than iron. Steel was difficult to make. Henry Bessemer created a process where air was injected into iron to remove carbon and create steel. This greatly increased the quantity of steel you could make. By the 1860's the Bessemer Steel Process was already replaced by the Open Hearth Process. The Open Hearth Process allowed people to make steel from scrap metal. Steel was strong and flexible, so it changed the way everything was built. Buildings could be built much higher, bridges could be built longer. Examples are the first skyscrapers and the Brooklyn Bridge. McCormick's and Deere's farm machines were also built using steel. These machines greatly changed how quickly and efficiently crops could be planted and harvested.
Power of Electricity -
In 1876, Thomas Alva Edison became a pioneer when he established the world's first research laboratory. In his lab, he perfected his incandescent light bulb. Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse worked together to make electricity safer and less expensive. The invention of electricity led to many different inventions and soon made its way into many houses. Christopher Sholes invented the typewriter in 1873. In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Watson unveiled the telephone which opened a new way to communicate these two inventions affected office work and gave women a job. In 1910, women made up 40% of the work force.
Railroad -
In 1856, railroads extended to the Mississippi River, and just 3 years later they crossed the Missouri River. On May 10, 1869, a golden spike marked the spanning of the nation by the first transcontinental railroad. By the time of the Civil War, the United States had over 30,000 miles of track and was 6 times greater by 1890. Railroads brought dreams of land, adventure, and a fresh start that many Americans wanted. The Central Pacific Railroad employed thousands of Chinese immigrants along with desperate Americans. The work was very hard and dangerous. In 1888, the first railroad statistics were published and the casualties totaled more than 2,000 employees dead and 20,000 injured. The railroads made our country united. Each community operated on its own time. Noon to each community as when the sun was overhead, but noon is Boston was different than New York, and New York was different from the rest of the country. From California to Maine, one might reset their watch to 20 different times. Professor C. F. Dowd proposed that the earth's surface be divided into 24 time zones, one for each hour of the day. The united States would contain 4 time zones, Eastern, Central, Mountain, and Pacific. The railroad companies used this method and so did many towns. On November 18, 1833 towns and railroads across the country synchronized their clocks and watches. This method wasn't officially standard for our country til 1918.
New Towns and Markets -
The railroads promoted trade and interdependence. Towns started specializing in certain things. Chicago was known for its stockyards, and Minneapolis for its grain industries. New towns grew up along the railroad lines. The railroad helped cities grow and branch out. In 1880, George M. Pullman built a factory for manufacturing sleepers and other railroad cars on the Illinois prairie. Pullman built a nearby town for his employees but had given them strict rules to abide by. These rules, the expensive rent, and the cutting of his employees pay led to a violent strike in 1894.
Credit Mobilier -
It was a scandal in 1867, made by the stock holders of the Union Pacific Railroad. The stock holders gave the company a contract to build the 667 more miles left, but the stock holders doubled or tripled their money and raised the cost from $7 million to $23 million.
Railroad Abuses -
The Grangers were upset with the government and misuse of land grants as the railroads sold to the businesses instead of selling it to the farmers. Government also gave customers different rates on hauls. The Grangers lost and went into political action as they sponsored and voted for their own political candidates to protect their way of life from the railroads. The railroads tried to fight back. In 1877, the Supreme Court went with the Granger laws by voting 7 to 2, giving farmers and consumers benefits from the railroads.
Interstate Commerce Act -
In 1877, Congress passed the I.C.A. which was the first true federal regulatory agency. It was designed to address issues of federal abuse. Examples are shipping rates had to be reasonable, and the rates had to be published. Not until 1906, when Teddy Roosevelt was president, did it become to its full effect.
Panic and Consolidation -
The panic in 1893 was the worst depression up to that point of time. By the end of 1893, 600 banks and 15,000 businesses had failed. By 1895, 4 million Americans were out of jobs. In min 1894, a quarter of the railroads were owned by financial companies.
Chapter 7 -
Immigrants -
The came in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. They wanted to escape from difficult conditions. Examples are famine, land shortages, religious, or political persecutions. They were promised a better life. Some were known as the "birds of passage". Some came for a little while, but then returned to their homeland. Between 1870 and 1920, about 20 million Europeans arrived in the U.S. Before 1890, most immigrants came from countries in Western and Northern Europe. In 1907, 1 million people arrived from Italy, Austria-Hungary, and Russia. Between 1851 and 1883, 300,000 Chinese arrived. Most wanted to seek fortune after the discovery of gold from the Gold Rush. They helped build the nation's railroad. After building the railroads, they either turned to farming or mining. Some started businesses. Chinese immigration was very sharply limited by the Congressional Act of 1882. 1,184 Japanese government allowed Hawaiians to recruit workers. That's how the Japanese immigration began. U.S. annexation of Hawaii in 1898 resulted in increase of Japanese of the West Coast. In 1907, 30,000 left Japan to U.S. In 1920, 200,000 Japanese lived in the West Coast. In 1880 to 1920, about 260,000 immigrants arrived in the Eastern and Southeastern U.S. from the West Indies. They came from Jamaica, Cuba, Puerto Rico, etc. They left because the jobs were scarce, and the industrial boom in the U.S. seemed promising. The Mexican also immigrated to find work. In 1902, the National Reclamation Act encouraged irrigation of land, made new farmland, and drew Mexican farmers northern. In 1910, about 7% of the population of Mexico at the time came over to the U.S. over the next 20 years.
A Difficult Journey -
By 1870's, most immigrants traveled by steamship. Most traveled in steerage. The cheapest accommodations were in the ship's cargo holds. The Atlantic Ocean from Europe took about 1 week. The Pacific from Asia took about 3 weeks. They were crowded, so they didn't get to exercise or get fresh air. They had to sleep in louse infested bunks. They had to share toilets with many other passengers. Diseases spread quickly. Some died before they reached land.
Ellis Island -
After reaching land, they had to go through inspections. They faced anxiety of not knowing whether they would get admitted to the U.S. One of the inspection centers that was in New York got moved to Ellis Island in the New York Harbor. About 20% of them got detained for a day or more before being expected. They had to pass physical examination by a doctor. If anyone had a serious health problem or contagious disease was promptly sent home. the ones that passed reported to a government inspector. They questioned them to determine whether they met the legal requirements for entering the U.S. They had to prove that they never committed a felony, demonstrate that they were able to work, and showing that they had some money. In 1892 to 1924, Ellis Island was the major immigration center. There was an estimated 17 million immigrants that passed through the facility.
Angel Island -
It is like Ellis Island, but on the East Coast. The Asians came between 1910 and 1940. About 50,000 Chinese came to America this way. Ellis Island and Angel Island has the same process for getting through. Once they were in the country, they faced many challenges such as finding a job, places to live, and living a daily life with a different language. They formed social clubs and aid societies. They made their own newspaper in their native language.
Rise of Nativism -
Nativism is a favoritism towards native born Americans. Prescott F. Hall, a founder in 1894 of the Immigration Restriction League, identified desirable immigrants as "British, German, and Scandinavian stock, historically free, energetic, and progressive." In 1897, Congress, influenced by the Immigration Restriction League, passed a bill requiring a literacy test for immigrants.
Anti-Asian Sentiment -
The Natives worried the Chinese would work for lower wages. Denise Kearney was the head of the Anti-Asian, and she ended every speech with "the Chinese must go!" In 1882, Congress slammed the door on Chinese immigration for 10 years by passing the Chinese Exclusion Act. In 1902, they restricted the Chinese immigration. The Gentleman's Agreement was when they segregated Japanese children by putting them in separate schools. The Japanese government agreed to limit emigration of unskilled workers to the United States in exchange for the repeal of the San Francisco segregation order.
Class dismissed.
Comments