Life at the Turn of the Twentieth Century (1870-1915)Chapter 9

THE EXPANSION OF EDUCATION

Section 1

The Growth of Public Schools1870- only 2% of all 17 year-olds

graduated from high schoolBy 1900- 31 states had laws

requiring children between the ages of 8-14 to attend school

Early 1900s- about ½ of nation’s children attended 1 room schools (like Little House on the Prairie)

Immigrants and EducationLiteracyAssimilation

◦ American standards Thrift Patriotism Hard work Cook traditional American foods American games- i.e. baseball

Some immigrants sent children to religious schools where they could learn their own cultural traditions in their own languages so children would not forget their cultural heritage

Uneven Support for SchoolsWhites and Af. Am. Attended diff.

schoolsSchools of Af. Am., Mexicans, and

Asians received less funding

Higher Education Expands1880-1910- more American colleges and

universities opened allowing college enrollment to increase

By 1915- some middle-income families were beginning to send their children to college

Few colleges admitted Af. Am.- many attended all Af. Am. institutes

After Civil War, there was a call for greater educational opportunities for women resulting in the establishment of private women’s colleges◦ Faced social prejudice◦ Fewer scholarships available◦ Unequal treatment in coeducational colleges

Perspectives on Af. Am. Ed.Booker T. Washington- founded Tuskegee

Institute◦ Told Af. Am. To put aside their desire for political

equality for now and instead focus on building economic security by gaining vocational skills

◦ Up from SlaveryW.E.B. Du Bois- black leader/part of NAACP

◦ Argued that the brightest Af.Am. Had to step forward to lead their people in their quest for political and social equality and civil rights

◦ Helped found the Niagara Movement- a group of Af. Am. That called for full civil liberties, an end to racial discrimination, and recognition of human brotherhood

NEW FORMS OF ENTERTAINMENT

Section 2

Vaudeville Inexpensive variety showBased on ethnic/racial humor;

song and dance routines; magic acts; and performances by ventriloquists, jugglers, and animals

http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma02/easton/vaudeville/movies.html

MoviesSilent and often accompanied by

a live piano playerStarted as short slapstick

comedies and grew in length with popularity

The Great Train Robberyhttp://archive.org/details/the-gre

at-trainrobbery

Other forms of Performance and RecreationThe CircusSports

◦Boxing◦Horse Racing◦*Baseball *◦Football – adapted from European Rugby◦Basketball – only major sport of exclusively

American OriginAmusement Parks

◦Mechanical rides developed from trolley technology

◦Coney Island’s Luna Park

PrintMagazinesPopular FictionNewspapers

◦ Publishers created larger and more interesting publications with features such as Comics Sports sections Sunday editions Women’s pages Stories “hot of the wires” Graphic pictures

◦ Yellow journalism- sensational news coverage (refers to the yellow ink used in a popular comic strip of the era)

Yellow JournalismThe term yellow journalism came from a popular

New York World comic called "Hogan's Alley," which featured a yellow-dressed character named the "the yellow kid." Determined to compete with Pulitzer's World in every way, rival New York Journal owner William Randolph Hearst copied Pulitzer's sensationalist style and even hired "Hogan's Alley" artist R.F. Outcault away from the World. In response, Pulitzer commissioned another cartoonist to create a second yellow kid. Soon, the sensationalist press of the 1890s became a competition between the "yellow kids," and the journalistic style was coined "yellow journalism."

MusicThe Negro Spiritual- Fisk Jubilee Singers

introduced spirituals to white audiences and earned enough money to save Fisk University

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JtD_YpyXYU

Ragtime- music originating among black musicians in the South and Midwest in the 1880s featuring melodies with shifting accents over a steady, marching-band beat

Jazz originated in New Orleans

Jubilee Singers

THE WORLD OF JIM CROW

Section 3

Jim Crow Laws Overview1st appeared in Mass. In the 1830sBecame firmly est. in southern states

after ReconstructionRequired the separation of blacks and

whites in schools, parks, public buildings, and public transportation

Declared legal by Supreme Court in Plessy v. Ferguson decision

Battled against by the Nation Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

Jim Crow A short video showing images of

Thomas Rice as "Jim Crow," minstrel inspired toys, and clips from minstrel performances. Video features the "Jump Jim Crow" tune.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5FpKAxQNKU&feature=youtu.be

Voting RestrictionsProperty or pay a poll tax- a special

fee that must be paid before a person was permitted to vote

Literacy tests (blacks were given much more difficult tests than whites)

Grandfather clauses exempted men from certain voting restrictions if they had already voted, or if they had ancestors who had voted prior to blacks being granted suffrage

SegregationSeparation of people by raceEnsured Af.Am were treated as

second-class citizensWhen this separation is the result

of custom, it is called de facto segregation (meaning the condition exists in fact, but not in law)

In the South, segregation was required by statutes called Jim Crow laws

Plessy v. Ferguson

Af. Am. Homer Plessy argued that his right to “equal protection of the laws” was violated by a Louisiana law that required separate seating for white and black citizens on public railroads

Court held that segregation was legal as long as the separate facilities provided for blacks were equal to those provided to whites◦The equal part of the decision was

difficult to enforce

Results of Plessy v. FergusonViolence could result if blacks did not follow

racial etiquette meant to keep blacks “in their place”◦ Always show deference to whites◦ Blacks had to remove their hats or step off the

curb to let whites passLynching- murder of an accused person by a

mob w/o a lawful trial◦ about 1,200 Af.Am. Were lynched between 1882-

1892Race riots erupted NYC in 1900 and

Springfield, IL in 1908 as a result of white’s fears of racial equality

Lynching

NAACPNational Association For the Advancement Of Colored PeopleFounded in 1909

Purpose was to abolish segregation and discrimination, to oppose racism, and to gain civil rights for Af. Am.

1st victory in 1914 when the Supreme Court declared grandfather clauses in voting laws unconstitutional

THE CHANGING ROLES OF WOMEN

Section 4

The Woman QuestionA wide-ranging debate about the

roles of women in societyEquality

◦Right to vote◦Right to control and own their own

property and income◦Access to higher education and

professional jobs

Reality of women’s lives at the turn of the centuryWomen worked in most sectors of the

economy and in many areas of public life

Work in the home was still essentialSmall number of women were earning

advanced degrees and entering professions

Others built volunteer organizations◦Reformed education◦Labor relations◦Public health

Women’s Work in the HomeTechnological revolution made housework

less physically taxing and time consuming◦ Washing machine◦ Electric vacuum◦ Carpet sweeper◦ Foods in tin cans◦ Ready-made clothing

1908 book The Cost of CleanlinessRemoving dust and tracked-in dirt from an

eight room house = 18 hours/weekFurnace, fireplaces, and oil lighting = 27

hours/week

Producer to ConsumerMore and more ready-made goods became

available commercially◦ Food, clothing, furnishings

Stores, catalogs, and advertising geared to attract women’s business

Department stores- large retail establishments that carried such a wide variety of goods they were divided into departments◦ Marshall Field; Macy’s

Chain Stores◦ F.W. Woolworth’s

Brand names became popular

Producer to ConsumerRural free delivery (RFD)-

free mail delivery in rural areas gave farm families access to manufactured items at a low price

Mail-order catalogs- printed materials advertising a wide range of goods that could be purchased by mail◦ Montgomery Ward ◦ Sears

Money-back guarantees earned customers’ trust

Working Outside the HomeMost working women were single between

the age of 16-24Earned 30-60% a week less than menCommon jobs- nurses, teachers, typists,

telephone operatorsMost of American society believed that

women did not have the mental capacity for professional training

Domestic work and important source of income- 1 in 15 households employed live-in servants (mostly immigrants and African Americans)

VolunteeringWomen formed hundreds of clubs and associations to facilitate their activities

◦studied subjects of common interest; gave talks; heard lectures; promoted specific causes like temperance and girls’ edu; established new libraries and playgrounds; etc.

Clubs gave women members invaluable experience in speaking, writing, and finance

Helped increase self-confidence and take first steps toward public life

Woman Question ExpandsLifestyle Changes

◦Dress and behavior◦Shorter hairstyles◦Raised hemlines◦Wear skirts and blouses suited to new jobs/activities

Courting and marriage customs◦Dated w/out supervision◦Rise in divorce◦Birth control

Increased support for suffrage