7) Urbanisation and Immigration

The statue of liberty has become a symbol to welcome immigrants into the country. It was erected in 1866 and was a gift from France. They intended it to symbolise republicanism around the world and as a symbol to enlighten the rest of the world. But, it was the first thing that boats full of people arriving in New York after weeks of being at sea saw. It was a symbol of their new hope.

Emma Lazarus, who was working in New York, heard of the treatment of Jewish people in Russia who were coming to the US and decided she wanted to help them. So, she wrote a poem called 'The New Colossus' in 1833 which included the words 'lines of world-wide welcome'. After she died, her friends raised enough money to have her poem inscribed on a plaque that became fixed at the base of the statue of liberty. This transformed the meaning of the statue which led to it symbolising hope and welcome to the US.

'Curtain wall construction' was used to build the statue, the same thing that was used to build the skyscrapers.

• Through the 19th century, cities were continually developing. In 1920, the urban population reached 51.4% exceeding the rural population thus meaning America had become an urban country.
• American cities during the Civil War were centred around sea ports and were considered 'walking cities' where information only travelled as fast as people did. But, in the middle of the 19th century, this changed as there were developments in transportation, like the railroad. The development of horse-drawn streetcars and omnibuses also improved life in the city and so drew more people in.
• Cities soon began attracting native migrants and immigrants.
• Work and residence was separated in the cities, both in location and social experience.
• The apprenticeship system broke down and people tended to stay in decent positions for the rest of their lives. This created the working class and highlighted the different gender spheres.
• But, there was still limited technology, like water couldn't get higher than the 5th floor in a building, so heights of buildings were limited. But, cities were soon growing both upwards and outwards. The first lift was created in the equitable life assurance building which increased land values as the top floors used to be cheaper due to more stairs. Now each room was worth the same and therefore, land value and productivity of space increased.

• Steel frame construction marked a new type of construction. It was used on the Flatiron Building. Previously, more bricks had been used at the bottom to support the weight of the height and it meant few windows could be installed so buildings had been very dark. Steel frame construction ended this.
• Central business districts started to appear with dense clusters of big buildings which created a new skyline. Slums were soon surrounded by these big prosperous business men and buildings. The US became the fastest urbanising city in the world.
• Suburbs and towns were incorporated into the cities, there was an increase in childbirth and an increase in immigration which led to the vast population growth in the US.

The mass influx of immigrants was largely caused by the conditions in Europe and the economic changes in the 1880s that pushed many off their land. After 1815, there was also a dramatic population increase in Europe due to fewer wars and the younger generation marrying earlier and so having children earlier. The spread of commerical agriculture and the price of land increasing led to much competition for the small landowner making it difficult to survive. The rise of the factory system and the resulting need for unskilled workers in the US enticed the Europeans and African Americans. The proliferation of inexpensive means of transportation like steamships and railroads also allowed for easier travel to the US for the Europeans. Factory work produced far cheaper products than those that were hand-crafted which further encouraged people to emigrate to the US.

The immigrants started arriving in the 1880s and it was unmissable in the 1890s. North West Europe had been the main source of immigration up until this point, but now immigrants were also coming from elsewhere including Russians, Slavs and Greeks . But it also meant they were looking more foreign to the Americans. There was a huge change in the types of immigrants arriving and the numbers coming in.

The immigrants wanted work, money and opportunity. They were usually very pragmatic people who had got to know America before arriving. Either they already had family there or they used the pamphlets that advertised the country.

Certain Europeans were clustered in certain areas doing the same jobs. For example, the Swedish were in Midwest farming, the Italians worked outside as they had heard of the harsh conditions in the meat packing industry, Jewish women were concentrated in textiles in New York, and 69% of Slovak males were coal miners.

The adjustment to the new society wasn't always smooth though. There were high rates in infant mortality due to women being overworked, deaths on the job, and some contracted pneumonia. Most were also malnourished.

Americans reacted to immigrants in different ways, e.g. Jane Addams tried to help the immigrants with their land, but others believed they would take the jobs away from the Americans so they tried to decrease their rights. Protestants were upset about the number of Catholics arriving. Soon, things like the 10-year ban on Chinese immigrants were introduced. In 1940, Japanese immigrants weren't allowed to own land, and Italians were beaten and removed from their homes. The Immigration Act in 1924 tried to curb the types of immigrants arriving giving plenty of room to North and West Europeans even though there were few now arriving, and cut down on the number of East and South Europeans. No Asians were allowed at all.

The Great Depression and WWII kept immigration down, but it picked up again in the 1970s.