TRECA Launchpad: Industrialization

Session 2

TRECA Launchpad

Industrialization to Progressivism

Description

What is this course about?

Today's focus will be on reviewing some of the key historical movements of the late 19th century and into the 20th century. We'll be looking at things like... - Industrialization- Urbanization- Unions- Progressivism

Session Reminders

Reminders

The main goal of this session is to help prepare you for your end-of-course American History test.

Ask Questions

Be Polite and Be Kind

Reach Out

Actively Participate

Thanks for being here today! Let's get started with today's topic.

The

Industrial Revolution

& cause and effect relationships

The Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution

New opportunities and new inequality

The Industrial Revolution

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, a technological shift occurred that changed the U.S. forever.

The Industrial Revolution was a period in human history that transformed the way that people lived, worked, and functioned in society. This time period marked a major departure from an agrarian way of life and ushered in a new era of industrialization, urbanization, and technological advancements. This shift marks a critical turning point in American History, as it shaped the way the U.S. addressed domestic and international issues.

Cause and Effect Relationships

This lesson will place a large emphasis on identifying cause-and-effect relationships

• Cause-and-effect describes the relationship between events, where one action directly leads to another. This is a historical thinking skill that we'll see throughout each Launchpad session, as many of the events we'll study are connected to the events that came before it.
• Causes don't always have a singular effect. In history, especially, there are often multiple impacts.

Like dominoes, industrialization is the event that causes a series of both positive and negative impacts that have forever changed our society.

Cause and Effect - Industrialization

Industrial Revolution

Industrialization

Urbanization

Corporations

Unionization

Colonization

Migration/Immigration

Progressivism

The Industrial Revolution

Industrialization

and all of the other -ation ideas

Industrialization

Industrialization is the process of transforming a society from an agrarian (farming) economy to an economy focused on manufacturing, often through mechanization, which is the process of replacing human and animal labor with machines. This shift had more than an economic impact. As we move through the lesson, there are a few other -ation words that came as a result of industrialization: unionization, migration, immigration, and urbanization are all effects of industrialization.

• Unionization - the process of forming a union to negotiate for better working conditions
• Migration - the movement of people within a specific place
• Immigration - the movement of people from one place to another
• Urbanization - the population shift from rural to city areas driven by industrialization.

Mechanization

New advancements in farming led to many of the shifts we see today.

Beginning with inventions like the steel plow, the reaping machine, and the cotton gin, farmers no longer relied on human labor to plant and harvest their crops. While some human labor was still required, many found themselves out of work and looking for new opportunities. These inventions also led to a shift in what farmers produced. Previously, farmers focused on subsistence farming, meaning they grew food to eat, but these tools allowed farmers to move towards more commercial farming, which allowed them to profit from the crops they grew.

Internal Migration

This led to a population shift, known as urbanization, from the rural parts of the country to the growing city centers. This shift is an example of the different factors that cause population shifts. We refer to these as push and pull factors.

As fewer workers were needed on farms, many were looking for new opportunities. This was happening around the same time as factories were starting to grow in city areas.

Internal Migration

What causes people to move to new places?

People move for a variety of reasons, but often they are due to push and pull factors. Push factors are things that cause people to leave a place. These are typically negative factors such as discrimination, famine, or a lack of opportunity. Pull factors are things that draw people to a new place. These are usually positive things, like better working or living conditions, or new job opportunities.

The Industrial Revolution

The Rise of Corporations

and monopolies

Corporations

We use this word a lot, but what does it actually mean?

A corporation is a group of men or businesses that combine their wealth into one business. At this time, and still today, these corporations grow by continuing to buy other businesses until they form a monopoly, which is a corporation that has near total control over a specific industry. At this time, we saw monopolies in industries like steel, sugar, and oil, while today we can see monopolies in the tech and media industries.

Working Conditions

It's also important to remember that children as young as 5 worked in these conditions. They worked in the same, and at times more dangerous, conditions as the adults, but for far less money. Their small size made them useful for some tasks, like crawling behind or under machinery.

For corporations to make as much money as possible, they needed to invest as little as possible into their business. This meant that workers often worked in harsh and unsafe conditions, for long hours, and for very little pay. The lack of safety measures, especially, led to machinery accidents, fires, and other hazards that resulted in injury or death.

Unionization

Unionization

Laissez-Faire Policy

• Workers realized they needed to come together to fight for fair working conditions by forming unions.
• They wanted three things:

• Lack of government oversight in business practices
• This allowed corporations to abuse their workers, leading workers to stand up for themselves.

• Limit the workday to 8-hours
• Higher wages
• Safer working conditions

Unionization

Strikes and unions were often met with violence by corporations that refused to meet workers' demands. These demands would cut into their profits, which caused corporations to utilize militias to break up and intimidate unions. Some notable examples of this are the Pullman Strike and Haymarket Affair, which both experienced deaths and injuries from the fighting that occurred.

The Industrial Revolution

Urbanization and Immigration

Cities grew, but so did urbanization issues

Immigration

Industrialization, along with other push factors, caused an increase in immigration.

Immigrants came to the United States through two entry points. Europeans mostly settled along the East Coast and came through Ellis Island. Many left due to a lack of job opportunities, famine, and persecution in parts of Europe. Immigrants from Asia mostly settled along the West Coast and came through Angel Bay in San Francisco. Many left due to environmental disasters, famine, disease, and the Taiping Rebellion.

Immigration Impacts

Immigrant Solutions

Immigrant Challenges

• Immigrant Communities: To combat some of the challenges immigrants experienced, they often formed communities with other immigrants in urban areas, which provided social and economic assistance to those living there. This allowed immigrants to preserve their traditions and find solidarity among other immigrants.
• Assimilation: Not all immigrants chose to keep their cultural traditions. Some chose to assimilate into mainstream American culture by learning the English language, eating food that was considered "American," and practicing the same social customs.

• Economic Challenges: Competition for jobs was fierce, with immigrants typically being the last to be offered a job. They often worked longer hours for less pay.
• Cultural and Language Barriers: Many struggled with communication as they had a limited understanding of the English language.
• Nativism: The preference for native-born individuals and the desire to protect their interests. This belief led to immigrants experiencing discrimination and conflict in their new lives.

Urbanization

Cities weren't prepared for the population shift caused by mechanized farming and immigration.

As more people moved to cities in search of work, housing became harder to find. This led to the development of tenement housing, which proved to be unsafe for many reasons. These homes were single-family units, often only the size of a bedroom, arranged side-by-side and several stories high. They lacked proper sanitation and ventilation, leading to the spread of disease. Fires were also a major threat, as one fire could quickly destroy several buildings because of how close they were to each other.

The Industrial Revolution

Colonization

and legalized discrimination

Colonization

Manifest Destiny

This is the belief that America was destined to expand from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. This, though, was only a small piece of the expansion puzzle. Industrialization fueled expansion in a few ways.

Infrastructure

Agricultural Growth

Economic Growth

Forced Assimilation

Conflict with Native Americans went beyond land claims. They were viewed as "savages" who needed to be saved

Along with some of the legal changes we've already discussed, Native Americans were also facing cultural loss. They experienced forced assimilation. This happened in different ways, but the most controversial was through Indian Boarding Schools. Under the belief of "Kill the Indian, save the man," schools like the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania worked to assimilate Native children by changing their physical appearances, giving them mainstream names, and pushing them to abandon their cultural customs. In these images, you'll see a boy named White Buffalo when he first arrived as the Carlisle School and after he was assimilated.

Reconstruction

Native Americans were not the only people who faced discrimination at this time.

During this time of industrialization, the South was in its Reconstruction period. This period was focused on rebuilding after the Civil War and navigating social changes in the post-war South. To address some of these changes, we saw the addition of three new amendments to the Constitution.

• 13th Amendment: Abolished (got rid of) the practice of slavery in the US.
• 14th Amendment: Guarantees citizenship to all born or naturalized in the US, including equal protection under the law.
• 15th Amendment: Protects the rights of (male) citizens to vote

Backlash Against Reconstruction

Black Codes

The KKK

Jim Crow Laws

Segregation

Status Quo

The Industrial Revolution

Progressivism

Fixing the problems of industrialization

Progressivism

Reforms to Industrial Problems

The Progressive era was a period aimed at addressing the problems created or worsened by industrialization. As regular Americans struggled with unsafe working conditions, labor conflicts, poverty, and urbanization, a new type of journalist emerged, playing a major role in pushing for progressive reforms. Muckrakers were investigative journalists who were responsible for exposing corruption in corporations and the government at the time. Their work heavily influenced public opinion, leading to political, social, and economic reforms.

Reforms to Industrialization

Key Concepts

Click on each concept to learn about the reforms to industrialization.

Antitrust Legislation

Natural Resources

State Laws

Reforms in Response to Social Issues

Key Concepts

Click on each concept to learn about the reforms in response to social issues

Prohibition

Urbanization

Suffrage

Reforms in Response to Political Issues

Key Concepts

Click on each concept to learn about the reforms in response to political issues

Political Machines -Impact

Political Machines

Reforms

Do you have questions?

We are here to help you. If anything was unclear or you want to explore a topic further, feel free to contact us. Your curiosity is also part of the learning process.

Session Code: LP398

Reach Out

Even after the session is over, or if you're completing this outside the Launchpad session, reach out if you have any questions or need clarification on a topic.

Antitrust Legislation

Antitrust legislation, like the Sherman Antitrust Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act, focused on breaking up the massive monopolies that dominated specific industries. This included monopolies like Rockefeller's Standard Oil and J.P. Morgan's Northern Securities Company.

Agricultural Growth

Industrialization had a transformative impact on agriculture. The development of new farming technologies and machinery revolutionized agricultural productivity. This allowed farmers to produce more and contribute to the growth of commercial agriculture. The fertile lands in the West, which were made accessible through improved transportation, became prime areas for the expansion of agricultural operations.

Economic Growth

Industrialization brought about a rapid expansion of the American economy. As factories and industries grew, the demand for raw materials increased. The West, with its abundant natural resources, became a vital source of these materials, including timber, minerals, and agricultural products. The availability of these resources fueled economic growth and attracted settlers, encouraging further westward expansion.

Reforms

New laws were passed that introduced new reforms like referendums, initiatives, recalls, and direct primaries, which gave power back to the voter. Two new amendments were also added. The 16th Amendment gave Congress the power to collect income taxes, and the 17th Amendment made U.S. senators elected officials.

Actively Participate

Participation is key to getting the most out of these sessions. Do your best to participate during today's session.

Remember: You must complete each survey to earn attendance credit for the session.

The Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan is a white supremacist terrorist group that began in the South during the Reconstruction era. It began as a "social club" but quickly escalated to a violent group that targeted African Americans and white Americans who sympathized with African Americans. There were federal attempts at dismantling the KKK, but the laws were difficult to enforce as they relied on witness testimony and people were scared of testifying against Klansmen.

Ask Questions

Remember, we're here to review and learn. It's okay (and expected!) to not know something. Feel free to ask questions in the chat or during the session.

Urbanization

Following issues with fires and disease, the Tenement House Act of 1867 was passed, which established rules for construction. Along with Jacob Riis and his work "How the Other Half Lives," new attention was given to urban issues, leading to changes for many cities.

Be Polite and Kind

Remember, we're all here to learn, help each other, and have fun! Let's remember to be kind to our fellow classmates and teachers in today's session.

Natural Resources

Another area that the federal government focused on when it came to industrialization was the protection of our natural resources. Natural resources are limited, and in 1901, President Teddy Roosevelt used his authority to create the US Forest and National Park Service to help conserve the resources in America.

Segregation Under the 14th Amendment, African Americans were now considered citizens of the United States. While this was now the law, a case appeared before the Supreme Court that set the precedent for legal segregation and racism. Plessy v. Ferguson established the concept of "seperate but equal." This meant that in states where segregation existed, African Americans would not be able to use the same facilities as white Americans as long as the separate facilities were "equal." More often than not, though, these facilities were not equal.

Political Machines

Political machines are political groups or parties run by a single “boss” or by an autocratic (absolute power) group that has enough votes to maintain political control of a city, county, or state. The machine often utilized tactics such as bribery, voter fraud, and patronage to maintain its influence.

Prohibition

The prohibition movement came about because of the excessive consumption of alcohol by Americans at the time. Led by temperance movements, which advocated for the reduction or elimination of alcohol consumption, the push for alcohol regulation gained significant momentum. The culmination of these efforts was the passage of the 18th Amendment in 1919, which prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages throughout the United States.

State Laws

States initially led the charge on labor laws in response to the calls for reform. States passed laws that limited the workday for children (eventually banning child labor), pushed companies to provide workers' compensation for work-related injuries, a minimum wage, and safer working conditions. As more states passed these laws, the federal government passed their own set of labor laws.

Suffrage

Although voting laws had been passed previously, women were still denied the right to vote until the suffrage movement. Led by female activists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, women were granted the right to vote under the 19th Amendment.

Status Quo Although the Civil War ended and new amendments had been added to the Constitution, the social hierarchy in the South did not automatically shift. Southern landowners began looking for ways to maintain the status quo by suppressing the rights of the newly freed slaves.

Black Codes Before the 14th Amendment had been approved, Black Codes were institutionalized in some states, which put limitations on the rights of the newly freed African Americans. These laws limited where they could work and if they could leave a job if they chose. Many were encouraged to sign yearly contracts; those who refused faced hefty fines or arrest.

Infrastructure

Industrialization spurred the development of transportation infrastructure, most notably the expansion of railroads. The construction of railroads enabled faster and more efficient movement of people, goods, and resources across vast distances. This facilitated westward migration and the settlement of new territories, as it became easier for people and supplies to reach previously inaccessible areas.

Political Machine - Impact

Political machines garnered goodwill by providing services to immigrant communities, allowing them to maintain a strong voter base. This came at a price, though, as recipients were expected to vote for its political agenda. They also controlled the distribution of government jobs and contracts, leading to favoritism rather than fair representation.

Jim Crow Laws Jim Crow laws enforced segregation in order to maintain white supremacy in the South. These laws separated schools, transportation, restrooms, housing, and restricted interracial marriage. Around this time, states also passed series of laws that impacted African Americans ability to vote. States implemented poll taxes and literacy tests that limited the voting rights of African Americans and poor white Americans.