Rise of American Industrialization,

Transcription

1 Rise of American Industrialization, Thesis: Between 1861 and 1900, manufacturing replaced agriculture as the country s leading source of economic growth and gave rise to large cities, immigration, and important changes in American life. Overview A. Post-Civil War manufacturing grows in size and importance B. Manufacturing promotes regionalization in U.S. I. The Rise of Heavy Industry, A. The growth of producer s goods B. The importance of technology 1. Pre-Civil War soft iron 2. Post-Civil War hard steel 3. Important changes result i. improved organization ii. production rises, prices fall 4. growth begets more growth 5. power and mass production (from water to steam to electricity) C. National transportation and communications network 1. Building a national railroad i. railroads before 1860 ii. railroads after 1860 iii. transcontinental railroad completed, Building a national telegraph II. Who paid for postwar growth? A. The need for capital and risk-taking

2 B. The role of investment bankers 1. economic match-makers 2. creators of financial markets III. Methods for Making Business Big A. Big business here to stay B. Vertical integration (controlling all stages of production) C. Horizontal integration (gaining a market monopoly by eliminating competitors) D. Incorporation 1. Growth of incorporation 2. Advantages of incorporation i. stock sales ii. limited liability iii. corporate identity or personhood IV. The Uncertainty of Economic Cycles A. Dealing with depressions B. Dealing with expansions 1. falling prices and competition encourage overproduction 2. overproduction reduces sales and profits V. Urbanization A. Industry fuels urban expansion B. All of America becomes urbanized

3 C. Why did cities grow so rapidly? 1. Not higher birthrates 2. Domestic and foreign immigration 3. pushed out of agricultural life 4. pulled into city life i. by work and higher wages ii. by the glamour of city life iii. but, not all that glitters is gold VI. The New Immigrants, A. Their numbers increase B. Their national origins change 1. Old immigrants before New Immigrants after 1880 C. Push factors in the new immigration 1. transportation 2. dissatisfaction with life at home 3. changes in European agriculture 4. outdated skills 5. government persecution of religious and ethnic minorities D. Pull factors in the new immigration 1. Recruitment by companies 2. Recruitment by families and friends 3. Chain migration 4. Desire to work

4 E. Other immigrants 1. Mexicans 2. Chinese VII. Life in the Industrial City, A. Stark inequalities side-by-side B. Modern cites replace walking cities 1. what was a walking city in early-19c US? 2. what was a modern city in late-19c US? i. a combination of three factors ii. a city of districts 3. The downtown poor 4. living with your own kind (rich and poor hoods ) C. Improvements in urban transportation 1. Living away from industrial districts 2. urban transportation before 1880 i. horse-drawn omnibus ii. horse-drawn railways 3. urban transportation after 1880 i. cable cars, trolley cars, and subways VIII. A closer look at urban life, A. Working-class neighborhoods B. Conditions in working-class neighborhoods 1. Crowded conditions 2. Unsanitary conditions

5 C. Community life in working-class neighborhoods 1. A contrast to often dreary surroundings 2. community institutions and associations IX. The Middle Class A. Life in the Streetcar Suburbs 1. on the fringes of the city 2. how the other half lived B. Looking at life from the top down C. The amenities of middle-class life 1. greater income 2. greater purchasing power 3. greater recreation time 4. purchasing what we want, not what we need (consumerism as lifestyle) D. New freedoms for middle-class women 1. property rights and fashion freedom 2. Becoming active outside the home 3. Working in female occupations E. Post-war educational opportunities for women 1. New colleges for women 2. State schools open doors 3. Entering the professions F. Reasons for (and against) women s greater independence 1. decreasing family size 2. growing acceptability of divorce 3. fueling men s fears

6 4. arguments intensify against new woman i. woman s sphere (or, place) ii. women as emotional iii. women as threats to men s masculinity iv. men s intense opposition to the new woman limit her emerging freedoms