The Modern City Discussion 

Link (Links to an external site.)Your discussion assignment involves the conditions of the modern city in the late 1800s. In this assignment you are to become a city dweller in the east cost cities at this time. You are going to describe the conditions of living in the city at this time. You are to read Chapter 5 section on the modern city and the lecture on the modern city and the Baydo essay in the Reader- Birth of Urban America. Finally you are to read:https://www.gutenberg.org/files/45502/45502-h/45502-h.htm (Links to an external site.) (Links to an external site.) for conditions in the city at this time through the eyes of reformer Jacob Riis. You will use some of this Riis material in your description of life in the east coast city of the late 1800s. 

Finally you are going to tell which city problem today do you find to be the # 1 problem of modern city living. You are going to agree or disagree or comment on TWO student choices for this problem.

Enjoy life in the city of the late 1800s and there are obviously many modern city problems to choose from.

Peers:

1st student to reply Salma Issa Between 1880 and 1900, cities in the United States grew at a dramatic rate. The United States cities expanded by around 15 million inhabitants in the two decades prior to 1900, leading to growth most of their population due to the expansion of manufacturing. Many of those, who helped to compensate for the cities ‘ population growth, were immigrants coming from all over the world. During this time, many people have moved continuously from rural areas to urban cities. Industrial expansion and population growth have dramatically changed the face of the cities across the country. Noise, traffic jams, slums, air pollution, and issues surrounding sanitation and safety became commonplace. Mass transit was developed in the form of trolleys, cable cars, and subways, and skyscrapers began to dominate the skylines in town. Many immigrant groups sought to persevere and uphold important customs and traditions. Today, several communities or parts of some of the United States ‘ major cities reflect that ethnic heritages.Industrial cities held a special place in the United States history during the final years of the 1800s, with all the problems brought about by rapid population growth and lack of infrastructure to support the growth. The cities created a special bond between people for all of the issues, and there were many, and laid the foundation for the multiethnic, multicultural society that we cherish today. Also, Living conditions were atrocious for most urban working class dwellers. They lived in crowded tenement houses with poor ventilation and substandard plumbing and sanitation, and cramped quarters. As a result, sickness ran rampant, with widespread typhoid and cholera. All this was beginning to change by the end of the 1800s. Far more people were living in the towns and working in factories or offices. Most citizens had electric lights or gas lamps. The factories were dangerous and unhealthy, bringing very long hours of work to people. The cities expanded primarily through immigration in the late 1800s. The influx of immigrants (many or most of them poor) created all sorts of city problems. Principal among these were issues like unsafe housing, violence (including organized crime), and city government corruption.Some of the main factors that have led to grow of cities are: Surplus Resources, Industrialization and Commercialization, Development of Transport and Communication Economic Pull of the City, and Educational and Recreational Facilities.  Urbanization factors include the following: The industrial growth that led to the proliferation of manufacturing and industrial industries within a particular urban area to provide more job opportunities. Another urbanization factor is employment, where the rural areas are usually the agricultural areas.Jacob Riis was a prominent American newspaper reporter, photographer and social reformer. Riis focuses on quality of life in the slums where he has tried to reduce the poor living conditions of the poor by introducing their living conditions to the middle and upper classes. He suffered from deprivation while living in New York and became a reporter for the police. Jacob Riis has been very worried about the care that refugees got when they arrived in America. He has done a lot of research and reporting on the issues faced by immigrants, such as work problems and living conditions. He wanted to improve the living conditions these people had and to tackle the problems of working. Riis ‘ aim was to raise awareness of the poor living in New York City’s tenements and slums.As a result, a modern city problems today are, population growth and the increase in the number of immigrants led to higher prices, especially for housing and food, in addition to environmental pollution as a result of the increases in factories.

2nd student Afaf Al Juboori Beginning of the nineteenth century, Cities had still not fully evolved into what we know today. Cities were an additional place to gather and trade, rather than a working and resident area as we see it now. Much of this has been changed as workers become more domesticated with the advent of plant and office jobs in manufacturing. Industrial cities occupied a special place in U.S. history. During the final years of the 1800s, with all the problems brought about by rapid population growth and lack of infrastructure to support the growth. The cities encouraged a special bond between people for all of the issues, and there were many, and laid the foundation for the multiethnic, multicultural society that we cherish today. In the decades that followed the Civil War, many Americans migrated to the growing cities from farms and small country towns. Immigrants from several nations, including Germany, Ireland, Italy and Poland, journeyed to America in search of better working and living conditions for themselves and their families. Nativism was the ideology of promoting the interests of native inhabitants against those of foreigners, including by advocating measures to restrict immigration. Between 1870 and 1900, U.S. cities tripled in population. By 1890, New York became the world’s second-largest city with 3.5 million inhabitants, while Chicago and Philadelphia had more than one million inhabitants each. The complex demands of the growing population have caused drastic changes to the American city’s physical and social structure.Historically, industrialization has led to urbanization by creating economic growth and employment opportunities that attract people to the cities. Urbanization typically begins with the establishment of a factory or multiple factories within a region, creating a high demand for factory labor. Industrial expansion and population growth radically changed the face of the nation’s cities. Noise, traffic jams, slums, air pollution, and sanitation and health problems became commonplace. Mass transit, in the form of trolleys, cable cars, and subways, was built, and skyscrapers began to dominate city skylines. The cutting-edge late 1800s town consisted of a few key components. First was better pressure on the police as new technology made it easier to talk and gave them more effective tools to implement the law. Additionally, the firefighters had higher telegraph alarms as an alternative to the regular bell alarms. Once more water was furnished through municipal and private organizations, the first-rate and the volume available was enlarged. The post-civil development of factories and assembly lines made business lots more formal, and improved pay and working conditions. Americans became more inclined to accept urban metropolis life as a substitute for rural lifestyles and the psychology actually began to change at the turn of the century.Jacob Riis was an American newspaper reporter, social reformer, and photographer. Shocked his readers’ consciences with factual descriptions of the New York City slum conditions. Jacob Riis focus on the issue of poverty and becoming a police reporter writing on slum quality of life. He sought to mitigate the poor living conditions of poor people by introducing the middle and upper classes to their living conditions. He is known for using his artistic and journalistic skills to help the poor in New York City; most of his prolific writings and photos were about such marginalized New Yorkers. Jacob Riis has been very worried about the care that refugees got when they arrived in America. He has done a lot of research and reporting on the issues faced by immigrants, such as work problems and living conditions. He wanted to improve the living conditions these people had and to tackle the problems of working.Finally, the main problems of living in the modern cities is the increasing population momentum and living expenses.