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Start of urbanization
Because of the inventions, factories, and bigger cities, people wanted to move into the new capital cities to have a try at a good life. People came from the west to the east into the big cities and thats when urbaniztion started. -
Creation of the elevator
Because of a the need for bigger and taller buildings, they needed a way to get upward quicker. Land was also very expensive at that time, some they built up and the need for the elevator was born. It was created by Elisha Otis. -
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Boss Tweed's Rule
William"Boss"Tweed of New York was the most notorious political boss in that time era. He rule New York for 12 years. He helped the poor and authorized the handout of Christmas turkeys and coal to the prospective supporters. Thomas Nast used political cartoons to show the public Tweed's corruption. Tweed's rule came to an end in 1876, he died later in prison in 1878 -
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The Great Fire of Chicago
The fire destroyed thousands of buildings, killed an estimated 300 people, and caused an estimated $200 million in damage. The biggest guess for the cause of the fire was that a cow kicked over a lantern in a barn and started the fire. Other theories say that people or a meteor might have been responsible for the fire that left an area of about four miles long and almost a mile wide, including its business district, in ruins. -
The telephone
As the cities grew, so did the need for better communication. Alexander Graham Bell created the telephone, leading to a staggering boom in trade and business. -
Electricity
We decided that we needed a better way to light our homes than candles or oil lamps. When Thomas Edison invented electricity it opened the doors to a great new world of inventions like the light bulb. Urban areas consumed them at a very staggering rate. -
Chinese Exclusion Act
Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, barring the ethnic group in an entirety. 25 years later Japanese immigration was restricted by executive agreement. These were the only two groups that were completely excluded from America. Criminals, contract workers, the mentally ill, anarchists, and alcoholics were all excluded for entry by Congress. -
Wainwright Building
The Wainwright Building of St. Louis was the steel-framed colossus design that set the standard for American skyscrapers for the next 20 years. Chicago was a perfect site because the great fire in 1871. -
The creation of "Sister Carrrie"
The novel "Sister Carrie" was made to convey the horrors and evil effects of living in the city. Things like the bad working conditions and poverty that happens in the city. -
Subway Systems and Cable Cars
Boston completed the nation's first subway system. Middle-class citizens couldn't afford to live far way from the cities center. Cable cars were operational in cities like San Francisco and Chicago. Bridges helped to improve regional transit lines.
