Chapter 7 –US History

» By the end of this lesson, I will be able to:» 1. Identify immigrant’s countries of origin.» 2. Describe the journey immigrants endured

and their experiences at United States immigration stations.

» 3. Examine the causes and effects of the nativists’ anti-immigrant sentiments.

» Main Idea: Immigration from Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, and Mexico reached a new high in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

» Why it Matters: Now: This wave of immigration helped make the United States the diverse society it is today.

» Key Terms:» Ellis Island» Angel Island» Melting Pot

» Key Terms (2):» Nativism» Chinese Exclusion Act

» The year is 1880. New York City’s swelling population has created a housing crises. Immigrant families crowd into apartments that lack light, ventilation, and sanitary facilities. Children have no where to play except the streets and are often kept out of school to work and help support their families. You are a reformer who wishes to help immigrants improve their lives….

» 1. What would you do to improve conditions?

» 2. What skills do newcomers need to make it?

» 3. How might immigrants respond to help from an outsider?

» 4. How do you think you’d react?

» Between 1870 & 1920, about 20 million Europeans immigrated to the U.S.

» 1. Escape religious persecution

» 2. Improve their economic situation (jobs) (Birds of passage)

» 3. Experience greater freedom in the U.S.

» 4. Escape difficult conditions (famine, land shortages – from rising population)

» What main issues do you think the immigrants faced when coming into the USA?

» Which of these do you think would be most difficult for you if you were an immigrant?

» How do you think they were treated?» What do you think was the overall American

view on immigration at this time? (similar or different from today?)

» Most European immigrants to the U.S. arrived in New York and had to pass through immigration station located on Ellis Island in New York Harbor

» Immigrants were carefully health screened and could only bring 100lbs of belongings

Ellis Island - NY

» Officials at Ellis Island decided whether the immigrants could enter the country.

» 1. Check for serious health problems

» 2. Document checks» What do you think the

requirements for entering the country should have been?

» 1. Proving they had never been convicted of a felony?

» 2. Demonstrating that they were able to work.

» 3. Showing that they had some money: at least $25 (1909 standard)

» Let’s look at an example:

» 1.What is your name?» 2. Have you ever been to the America before?» 3. Do you have any relatives here? If the answer was

yes, then asked where they lived.» 4. Is there anyone who came to meet you at Ellis

Island?» 5. Who paid for your passage?» 6. Do you have any money? ( If the answer was yes

then immigrant was told: Let me see it.)» 7. Do you have a job waiting for you in America?» 8. Do you have a criminal record?

» “The language was a problem of course, but it was overcome by the use of interpreters…It would happen sometimes that these interpreters – some of them – were really softhearted people and hated to see people being deported, and they would, at times, help the aliens by interpreting in such a manner as to benefit the alien and not the government.” (I

Was Dreaming to Come to America)

» Not all immigrants came through Ellis Island

» Angel Island - Immigration station for the Asian immigrants arriving on the West Coast- San Francisco.

» Inspection process more difficult than on Ellis Island. (filthy conditions, harsh questioning)

» Think about: Finding a place to live, a job, understanding the language and culture in a new country

» Many immigrants settled in communities with other immigrants from same country.

» America started to be called a MELTING POT - Many cultures & races had blended

» But, many immigrants refused to give up their culture.

» Some Americans didn’t like so many immigrants living in the U.S.

» NATIVISM- preference for native-born Americans.

» Nativism» 1. Gave rise to anti-

immigrant groups » 2. Led to a demand for

immigration restrictions.

» Chinese immigrants worked for low wages – this took jobs from native born Americans

» Labor groups pressured politicians to restrict Asian immigration.

» CHINESE EXCLUSION ACT1882 - Banned all but a few Chinese immigrants

» Not lifted until 1943.

» By the end of this lesson, I will be able to:» 1. Describe the movement of immigrants to

cities and the opportunities they found there.» 2. Explain how cities dealt with housing,

transportation, sanitation, and safety issues.» 3. Describe some of the organizations and

people who offered help to urban immigrants.

» Main Idea: The rapid growth of cities forced people to contend with problems of housing, transportation, water, and sanitation.

» Why it Matters Now: Consequently, residents of the US cities today enjoy vastly improved living conditions.

» Key Terms:» Urbanization» Americanization

movement» Mass Transit

» Key Terms/Names:» Social Gospel

Movement» Settlement House

» Many immigrants settled in cities in the early 1900’s – work

» Cities began to become overcrowded

» Urbanization - the rapid growth of cities.

» Farmers also moved into the city – new technology = less farming jobs

» Our government wanted to help immigrants learn more about the USA

» Americanization Movement – Was designed to assimilate people of wide-ranging cultures into the dominant culture.

» Schools taught them English, American history, and government.

» There became serious shortages in housing.

» New types of housing were created

1)Row house – apartment type homes

2)Tenement – Multifamily urban houses often overcrowded & unsanitary

» Sanitation was a problem

» Transportation also became a huge issue.

» Cities developed Mass Transit – transportation systems designed to move large numbers of people along fixed routes.

» More were needed to keep up with demand

» Cities had hard time supplying safe drinking water.

» People threw garbage out their windows.

» Horse manure piled up on the streets

» Sewage flowed in streets.

» By 1900, many cities built sewers & created sanitation departments.

» Pickpockets and thieves flourished (stealing to survive)

» NYC police was relatively small and didn’t make much impact on crime.

» The city had limited supply of water.

» Most city apartments were made of wood

» People also used candles and kerosene lamps for lighting.

» Paid fire departments were first created in 1853 (Cincinnati)

» The automatic fire sprinkler was also created in 1874.

» Fire burned for 24hrs.» An estimated 300 people died» 100,000 were left homeless» More than 3 square miles of the city center was

destroyed.» Property loss was estimated at $200 million.» 17,500 buildings were destroyed.

» Social Gospel movement - Early reform program

» Leaders preached that people reached salvation by helping the poor

» They established Settlement Houses -

» Community centers located in slums that helped & friendship for poor & immigrants.

» By the end of this lesson, I will be able to:» 1. Explain the role of political machines and

political bosses.» 2. Describe how some politicians’ greed and

fraud cost taxpayers millions of dollars.» 3. Describe the measures taken by presidents

Hayes, Garfield, and Arthur to reform the spoils system.

» 4. Explain the positions taken by presidents Cleveland, Harrison, and McKinley on the tariff issue.

» Main Idea: Local and national political corruption in the 19th Century led to calls for reform.

» Why it Matters Now: Political reforms paved the way for a more honest and efficient government in the 20th Century and beyond.

» Key Terms:» Political Machine» Graft» Patronage» Civil Service» Pendleton Civil Service Act

» Key Names:» Boss Tweed» Rutherford B. Hayes» James A. Garfield» Chester A. Arthur» Grover Cleveland» Benjamin Harrison

» Since cities were so crowded, the local government couldn’t control everything

» During late 1800’s, many cities were run by a Political Machine - an organized group, headed by a city boss, that controlled activities in a city.

» Offered services to voters & businesses in exchange for political or financial support.

» What else did the bosses do:

» 1. Controlled access to jobs

» 2. Built parks, sewer systems, and waterworks.

» 3. Gave money to hospitals, schools, and orphanages.

» So that…..people would vote for them!!

» The immigrants liked the idea of political machines and bosses. Why?

» 1. Many of the bosses were immigrants themselves– they spoke their language and battled the same hardships.

» 2. They helped the immigrants with Naturalization – full American citizenship.

» 3. Helped them get jobs and houses

» And in return – VOTES!!!

» Many Bosses got rich through GRAFT-the illegal use of political influence for personal gain.

» Example: By helping a person find work on a construction project for the city, a political machine could ask the worker to bill the city for more than the actual cost of materials and labor.

» The worker then “kicked back” a portion of the earnings to the machine.

The NY City Courthouse was built using Graft money

» Boss Tweed (William M. Tweed) became the head of Tammany Hall- NYC’s powerful Democratic political machine.

» Between 1869-1871 Boss Tweed led a group of people (Tweed Ring) in defrauding the city for millions of dollars.

» The NYC Courthouse was being built. The project cost tax payers $13 million, while the actual cost was only $3 million! The difference went to the Tweed Ring. It is estimated that the Tweed Ring stole between $30-$200 million dollars from NYC.

» In 1871 the ring was broken.

» Tweed was indicted on 120 counts of fraud and extortion and was sentenced to 12 years in jail.

» His sentence got reduced to 1 year but he got in trouble again and was arrested.

» While serving this sentence, he escaped to went to Spain.

1. What is the significance of the word LAW on the torn piece of paper?

2. What affect do you think Nast wanted to have on his audience?

» National politics were also corrupt – It’s all about who you know.

» Patronage: giving of government jobs to people of the same party who had helped a candidate get elected.

» Shouldn’t the job go to the most qualified?

» Civil Service- Government jobs

» Reformers proposed that civil service jobs would go to the most qualified, regardless of political views.

» President Rutherford B. Hayes attempted to reform civil service

» Some members of Republican party objected

» He decides not to run for re-election (no support)

» Stalwarts opposed change in patronage system.

» Reformers supported changing the system

» New President James Garfield attempts to reform the patronage system and is assassinated

» Chester A. Arthur Garfield’s VP - Becomes the new President

» Arthur’s first message to the Congress was to pass the Pendleton Civil Service Act - Created a civil service commission to give government jobs based on merit, not politics

» This caused politicians to turn to big businesses for money