Themes in American History

After work this Friday, I decided to go to the MCNY, which is located at 1220 Fifth Avenue. I was accompanied by my girlfriend, who I had decided to impress with my (extensive, yes I said extensive) knowledge of NYC history. When we were approaching the building, from a distance of about 100 yards, I noticed a statue outside the museum, and excitedly and confidently declared that it was the statue of Alexander Hamilton. To her surprise (and to be honest, mine as well) I was absolutely right. After such an auspicious start, I was looking forward to entering the museum.

When we paid and went in ad looked around, I felt like a historian watching “Gangs of New York”. I was terribly disappointed. Maybe we just chose the wrong time to go but half the museum was closed for renovations. There were some beautiful pictures on the first floor on one side and The American Style: Colonial Revival and the Modern Metropolis exhibition on the other. The pictures were modern and so its placement in this museum was lost on me.

At the other end, The American Style exhibition was a lot more fascinating and interesting. There were many interesting exhibits – and what I liked most about it was trying to figure out which era it belonged to and what historical significance it had. Unfortunately, most of my guesses ranged from way off to pathetically way off. But as they say, alls well that ends well. Just as we were about to leave the room, the last exhibit was depicting George Washington’s inauguration. At this my girlfriend said, “Ohh I didnt know this happened in NY”. I realized it was another opportunity to show off – I went into a lengthy narration starting with the British coming thru NYC and George Washington’s army fighting well but having to retreat in the night to the French assisting America win the revolutionary war and George Washington declaring independence in NYC. How I would love to say at this moment that my girlfriend was very impressed with my knowledge – all I got was “Good for him! Is this enough for your extra credit?”

We then moved to the second floor which was filled with an exhibition about the life of Joel Gray. Joel Gray was a performer and photographer of whom I had never heard. They had some fascinating information, pictures and other exhibits from his life. All I can say is that I wish it was from either Alexander Hamilton, Robert Moses or someone we had studied about. Around the corner, was a room which showed the interior decoration of the nineteenth century, which was really amazing!! Right between Joel Gray and the old but amazing furniture was the  Timescapes!! Timescapes is a 22 minute documentary on NYC by PBS!! For those of you, who cannot understand all the exclamations and the excitement, PBS also made the documentary which we watch in class. I thought it would serve 3 purposes – (1) give me enough material to write in this blog, (2) be like a quick recap of everything we learned just before the exam, and (3) give me another opportunity to show off and impress my girlfriend with my knowledge about NYC history (Yes some guys never quit).

Timescapes left me happy but even unsatisfied. As you can imagine, getting the history right from Hudson landing in Manhattan in the early 1600s to 9/11, 2001 within 22 minutes is an impossible task. When they skimmed over the revolutionary war and Alexander Hamilton, it was saddening but to not mention the Draft Riots, Tweed, or Amsterdam Vallon (kidding) did make me feel like I was being robbed. Overall, in the limited time available they did do a pretty good job – I can attest to that as my girlfriend with a nice big smile said, “now that was interesting”.

Overall, it was a very fascinating trip, which reiterated the fact that I do have a passion and liking for history – something that I did not realize before this class. Just as we stepped out of the museum into the pouring rain (I swear I am not making this up) and took a left to go towards the subway on 103rd st, we realized that we were standing at the statue of DeWitt Jackson. I felt like this was the perfect ending for a trip to the NYC Museum, as I strongly believe that DeWitt Jackson played the most important role, with the grid and the Erie Canal, in the modernization of NYC.

Tags: Alexander Hamilton, Declaration of Independance, DeWitt Jackson, George Washington, history, Joel Gray, Museum of the City of New York, PBS. NYC Documentary

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Taking the trip to Ellis Island was a great adventure. Waiting through the long lines, and taking the ferry to the island, gave me just a taste of what it felt like for the immigrants that came to New York City in the 1892 to 1924. This was my first visit to Ellis Island, and seeing this gorgeous building was an amazing site to see in person. Walking through the museum i saw old luggage that some immigrants carried with them to Ellis Island. This really gave me a sense of how much they could carry with them to NYC at the time. Over 100 million Americans, today can trace back to the immigrants that crossed Ellis Island before settling in other regions of the country.

This museum told the story of many immigrant families that came to the US. Each person had a different story to tell. When i saw the Registry Room in person, it was an amazing site to see. In the years of 1900- 1924 the Registry Room was filled with immigrants, upto 5,000 people a day would walk through this room. The Registry Room was used to determine whether or not the incoming immigrants can pass through or deny their entrance to the US. Manuals where also given to immigrants who just arrived, to show them where they can get jobs and find housing. Manuals where given in many different languages so anyone can find a job and housing.

Walking through the museum, i visited an area where there were images of children and how they lived. The schools and living conditions were in really poor shape. Most children where news boys and many had to learn English. Many children learned English because they were young, and it was easier for them than their parents.Children were mostly translators for their parents, that is why they were called the “Go- Betweens”. Children were also used as cheap labor for many factories across the US. Many families depended on their children to either work in a textile factory, or pick up the chores at home so the parents can work. The conditions that the children worked in were worse than the adults and many worked 10-12 hours a day. The rate for accidents with children was three times higher than adults. Soon in 1904, the National Child Labor Committee, formed labor laws for children by exposing the cruel conditions that they work in. By 1914, 35 states didn’t allow children under 14 to work and required minors to go to school. They also lowered their work days to 8 hours a day.

Reading through some stories, and seeing these pictures in person made me get a closer look on how immigrants lived and worked. I also saw posters of Public schools giving out free textbooks for immigrants. These textbooks were to help them get an American Citizenship, and to learn the language and laws of the government. Also when America entered World War I, they encouraged immigrants to serve in the army, and be more American to show their loyalty to America. So not only did they have to learn the language, and dress American, they were encouraged to join the army to show their true loyalty, and if they didn’t join, immigrants would be harassed by jingoists. Jingoists are extreme nationalists who use extreme foreign policy.

My visit to the museum on Ellis Island was really interesting. It gave me an inside view of the lives of many immigrants that make up the US today. I wish i had more time to stay and see all the exhibits. But for the time spent in the museum I’ve come to appreciate my family’s’ journey to the US even more, and also how many other families left their homes in other countries to start a new life in a new unfamiliar land.

Tags: Ellis Island, extra credit

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Let’s first describe the word “Gang”. It comes from “gonge,” a term originally meaning a journey, but later referring to a “gonge” of sailors in the fifteenth century. The “Father of Gang Research,” Frederic Thrasher gave the word its industrial-era meaning in the 1920s and made “gang” into a term which meant kids of the street. But the US gangs had other predecessors than unsupervised street urchins.There are four kinds of “gangs” which were predecessors of the gangs of today.

1. Secret Societies;

2. Gangs of Outlaws in the Wild West;

3.Racist gangs like the Klu Klux Klan; and

"Draft" rioters lynch a Negro in 1863. New York Public Library Picture Collections

4. “Voting Gangs” tied mainly to the Democratic Party in large cities.

Voting Gangs in New York City New York Public Library Picture Collections

Number three and four characterize New York and Chicago.

The final predecossor of gangs were what Eric Monkkonen calls “voting gangs” in New York City and most of the east. This was an Irish invention, using the pub culture of males to help the Irish become politically dominant. Gangs of roughs, were encouraged, organized, paid by politicians to “help” in elections. Opponents were beaten up, voters intimidated, and voting booths destroyed (see left) and votes stolen.

It was these mainly Irish“ gangs” which were the core of the draft riots of 1863. Chicago’s Democratic Party formed “Social Athletic Clubs” modelled after New York’s Tammany Hall thugs. In Chicago, the Democratic Party borrowed the New York “Voting Gangs” custom and took them to new heights, or lows. “Social Athletic Clubs” were groups of young men, oftened organized in sports and sometimes had clubhouses. Politicians used the SACs as they had in New York, to make sure the favored candidate won.

In the 20’s, New York and Chicago were the major capitalist urban hubs of American society and organized crime. Both were cities of stark contrasts between extreme wealth and abject poverty. For many in the early 1920’s business was booming, and Al Capone and other famous gangsters and bootleggers ran their respective cities like puppet masters.

Well Dressed: Al Capone Laughing

Capone was the poster-boy of the media and he loved the attention. He was born in New York and moved to Chicago in 1920 to join Johnny Torrio’s gang. In 1925, he took over when Torrio retired after an assassination attempt. The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre on February 14, 1929, might be regarded as the culminating violence of the Chicago gang era, as seven members or associates of the “Bugs” Moran mob were machine-gunned against a garage wall by rivals posing as police. The massacre was generally ascribed to the Capone mob, although Al himself was in Florida. was the true rags to riches story that has been the plotline in one too many gangster movies throughout the years. In his time, however, Capone’s fame was still a novelty.  The Bureau’s investigation of Al Capone arose from his reluctance to appear before a federal grand jury on March 12, 1929 in response to a subpoena. On March 11, his lawyers formally filed for postponement of his appearance, submitting a physician’s affidavit dated March 5, which attested that Capone had been suffering from bronchial pneumonia in Miami, had been confined to bed from January 13 to February 23, and that it would be dangerous to Capone’s health to travel to Chicago. His appearance date before the grand jury was re-set for March 20.

On October 18, 1931, Capone was convicted after trial and on November 24, was sentenced to eleven years in federal prison, fined $50,000 and charged $7,692 for court costs, in addition to $215,000 plusinterest due on back taxes. The six-month contempt of court sentence was to be served concurrently.

Al Capone's criminal record and fingerprint card

Tags: 1920s, al capone, gangs, New York vs Chicago

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When the Dutch arrived in Manhattan in the early 1600s, they had envisioned it to be one of the more popular and prominent ports in America. This was always the case thru the 17th and 18th century, but with the completion of the Eerie Canal, the ports in NYC was taken into a completely different level. Trade was such an integral  and wide spreading part of NYC at that moment, that it could not restrict itself to Manhattan and soon started spreading out into Brooklyn. Merchants started building warehouses and counting houses in Brooklyn along the East River. Building of the Erie Canal reduced the prices of transportation of goods from places like Chicago by 90 percent and reduced the time by 50 percent.

Almost around this same period the Erie Canal was completed , there were a couple of canals build in Pennsylvania  as well. Canals extending the use of the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers were chartered before 1815, and the Lehigh Canal was completed in 1838. But these canals did not do the same wonders that Erie Canal did for NYC. Although this system linked the east to the west, its expense made the state nearly bankrupt.

Tags: bankrupt, Brooklyn, erie canal, Lehigh Canal, NYC, Pennsylvania, Ports

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Governors Island, in the heart of New York Harbor, is only 800 yards from Lower Manhattan, and even closer to Brooklyn. It is one of the longest continuously active military posts in the United States. Since the late 1700s the island has served as a major Army headquarters and later as the largest Coast Guard base in the nation. Its military role ended n 1996 after over 200 years of service.

The island was the first place settled by the Dutch West India Company in New York Harbor in 1624. The British officially acquired the Island in 1698 and named it “Governors Island,” for the benefit and accommodation of His Majesty’s Governors. In 1776 Gen. George Washington’s colonial army made a valiant attempt to fend off the British siege of New York. Patriot cannons on Governors Island fired some of the first shots of the Battle of Brooklyn. The British prevailed and held New York for the duration of the Revolutionary War, but the experience steeled the resolve of the young nation to protect its harbors. In one of its first initiatives that was truly national in scope, the United States began in the 1790s to fortify important harbors with a series of coastal defenses. Fort Jay and Castle Williams represent this early national effort. Castle Williams was one of a series of fortifications built in the early 19th century to defend New York Harbor. The circular red sandstone fort was built between 1807 and 1811 and named after its designer, Jonathan Williams.  Fort Jay was completed in 1798 and deterred the British from attacking the city during the War of 1812. The Army established a major arsenal on the island in 1833 and although advances in naval armaments reduced its tactical importance, the island remained an important military base through the second World War. In 1966 the Army left the island and the U.S. the base was transferred to the Coast Guard.

As time pass, the role of Governors Island has changed. Today, the island is open for public, it is not only a good place for people to have fun and relax, but also it is a valuable resource for people to learn about the American history. Whatever the past or the present, the Governors Island is always important for the city development.

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New York City is one of the biggest metropolises in the U.S.A and has a rich and diverse history of
growth. It was first discovered by the Dutch in 1625 then taken over by the British in 1664. Since its earliest
formation New York City has always been the center of economical, cultural, and social development. Its
concentrated power was brought created by those who came to this great land to work hard and contribute to
its prosperity. The city that never sleeps soon became the original city, dominating over the other cities in the
U.S.A. The Museum of the City of New York is one of the most intimate museums in the city. It is a great source
of education and learning about the history,culture and the personal struggles the people had to contend with ,in
order to make a new land their home. The Museum of the City of New York  is a large museum with five floors of
exhibits. At the moment only the first two floors are open for visitors, the rest of the exhibits are closed for
renovation.I was fortunate enough to visit the museum myself, and would like to talk about what is so interesting
about the Museum of the City of New York and why we should all visit it.

The very first exhibit I have discovered was “New York Interiors (1690-1906)”. This exhibition views New
York City in chronological order starting from the city as a Dutch colony onwards until the 20th century.
What I noticed after studying the Dutch Alcove, which is represented by the example of the early colonial New
York settlement, was that the room seems to contain only basic necessary items, such as bed, table and chairs,
and some other furniture. There is no decorations or fancy accessories here. As discussed in class, the Dutch
colony of New Amsterdam was a leading commercial center of trade. However,The Dutch colonizers were not
interested in the well being of New Amsterdam’s immigrant inhabitants. They didn’t contribute much to the city’s
economic growth. Thus, the Dutch political approach in ruling over the city resulted into a poor social growth.

Museum of the City of New York, second floor, New York Interiors exhibit / Dutch Alcove

The second alcove replicates New York’s desire to imitate the Democratic ideas of ancient Greece with
the Republican virtues of the ancient Rome. This time range coexists with the Classical era (1750-1820) and is
famous for the cultural enlightenment in art and music. Affluent New Yorkers soon enough picked up some of
the basic themes of Classical style, which is depicted by the different type of furniture, center tables, sofas,
decorated by a beautiful painting on the wall, and the statue of ,most likely, one of the Greek mythological
goddess. It is also interesting to note the “roundness” of everything ,especially the table,,this is due to the idea
that corners would force people to sit on either side signifying division. Much like the round table in king Arthur’s
court ,round tables were adopted in the classical era to show an equality among those who sat.

Museum of the City of New York, second floor, New York Interiors exhibit / Cherry Street Alcove

The third alcove and the last one that I am going to discuss in my paper is called Pierrepont Alcove. The
window wall and the ceiling of this alcove came from Pierrepont Place in Brooklyn, named after the gentleman
Henry E. Pierrepont (1808-1888). It was designed by the English immigrant R. Upjohn who was also famous for
his design of the Trinity Church (1839-1846) in lower Manhattan. Looking at this room I was thinking on how
much English culture still shaped the development of interior design in one of its former colony. This room was
dominated by sophisticated ornaments covering the walls, the floor and the top of the chimney. The wooden
chairs accompanied by the sofa underlined the comfort and elegant style of the middle class society of New
York.

The inventions in public transportation

Another exhibit that grabbed my attention was presented by the public transportation of New York in
19th and 20th century. The Electric streetcar and the MTA bus of the late 20th century were examples of the
most commonly used types of transportation provided by the city. The nickname for the electric streetcar was
the”Trolley”; it was introduced in Brooklyn in the 1890s and until 1919 the railways expanded between all the
city’s boroughs. Power was provided by overhead electrical wires that each streetcar was connected to. Trolleys

were a quicker and more convenient option for public transportation and were highly appreciated by New York’s
population. This particular type of transportation had become quite popular in New York during this time and it
surpassed the subway by the end of 19th century. Motorized buses,however, replaced trolleys around the
1930’s as they were considered to be more practical in use.
Historically New York City has struggled with fires of different origins throughout the centuries. This led
to the prompt development of the fire truck, which where divided by three types: horse carriage, hook and ladder
trucks and fire wagons. Although being owned by separate companies, horse carriages and hook and ladder
trucks, worked together to fight fires.

Museum of the City of New York, first floor, The American Style: Colonial Revival and the Modern Metropolis / Transportation exhibit

Boss Tweed and the political machine

One of my favorite exhibits was a small exhibit on New York City’s political machine which was
represented by a little piggy bank in a shape of Boss Tweed, the leader of a political club known as Tammany
Hall, founded in 1789 in New York. The bank advised: ” Put a coin in his hand, and see how promptly he pockets
it, and how politely he bows his thanks.” In this way the historians highlighted the most corrupted time period of
the city of New York. Boss Tweed ,up until these days symbolizes a wealthy and powerful political figure, whose
goals were achieved by stealing and cheating people who did not vote for him and on contracts which he and
his “gang” would take a portion of the profits. This style of politics was notably called “the spoils system”. I
personally found it well illustrated by this one little bank.

The Museum of the City of New York is a masterpieces of architecture that communicates its purpose in
contrasting styles. It gives the viewer a sense of progress and the tribulations that NYC had gone through from
its very beginning. It is simply beautiful and worth visiting especially if you are a true New Yorker and wish to
know the history of, and future of this city.

Tags: Boss tweed, Cherry Street Alcove, Dutch Alcove, exhibits, New York Interiors, Pierrepont Alcove, The Museum of the City of New York, transportation of New York, trolleys

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Click here to download the final exam study guide.

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      Throughout the 20th century, New York educational system has undergone much transition in response to our changing society. Though there have been many problems raised throughout the years in regard to what our school systems should be teaching our children, there have also been many developments. 
      In the earlier part of the 20th century, African-Americans were segregated within schools. They were placed into lower-class school systems with little extra-curricular activities, limited resources, and lower quality teachers. 
However, education has continued to evolve in order to meet society’s demands in the final decades of the 20th century. The transformation of society has created numerous problems in the educational system. These problems consist of the segregation of races, religions, social classes, and politics. At this time, religion played a major role on the educational system in the sense that all types of religious groups were represented in the American school system, but they were challenged with how they could be loyal to their religions beliefs. With the ‘Pledge of Allegiance’ present, some people felt as though the values of Americans and the “Creators'” beliefs should be taught in the classrooms.
 
      Furthermore, Philadelphia has a rich history of transit and some of the best neighborhoods in the city.
The  mass production of automobiles and trucks, building a highway system. Spin-offs included motels and drive-in facilities. For example: Telecommunications-Creating systems ranging from the telephone and radio to television and satellite communications. A byproduct was navigation aids for ships and airplanes.  
Also, developing a system of research centers, hospitals, clinics, and special diagnostic and emergency services for virtually the entire population. This extended our life span by many years.

                                                                                 Philadelphia Architects and Buildings

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(Picture from the Franklin D. Roosevelt  library, courtesy of the National Archieves and Records Administration.)

Just as prosperity was visible during 1920s in the city through construction and rapid growth of industrialization, the economic crisis in twentieth century brought the great depression  in the U.S.; causing through the Stock market crash of 1929 until 1939, and unemployment that resulted poverty throughout the nation. The working class people and upper class people were widely affected and failed them in terms of raising their life standard and led them into the depression. It was the period of both unemployment and poverty, and increased government involvement in the economy.The most serious problem was an unemployment that heavily fell on unskilled, the young, and color people. In Chudacoff’s book, he states that between 1929 and 1933, both Mayors of Detroit and New York City preferred spending available money and borrow for relief even by reducing other municipal services of the city. This decreased the expenditure on parks and recreation departments in 795 cities and towns by 50 percent. Likewise Chicago was one of the hardest hit cities in American by the Great Depression because of the city dependence on manufacturing and crisis that existed the stock market crash. An unemployment in Chicago was near 50 percent after the four years of crash which led thousands of people to move and gather for social protest.

Tags: 1930s, 20th Century, crowds, Great Depression, immigrants, NYC, politics, protest, Umemployed, urban, Women

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n the center of the Great Depression many families tried desperately to pull themselves together and rise above the hardship that was taking place in the city during the 1930’s. This period brought a lot of shame, embarrassment, and abandonment to many families as many people were forced to stand on bread lines and dumpster dive for food. The crisis affected everyone and there were no jobs to be had at this time. Big banks went out of business, the gap between the rich and the poor was shrinking, and resources were being depleted.

On the other side of the country, a different type of depression was taking place during the 1930’s. In many areas of Texas and surrounding states, a huge dust storm had covered a vast portion  of the residential areas. Crops belonging to farmers were ruined by mountains of dust covering them rendering them useless. Many families were affected by the storm and were forced to leave their homes to avoid starvation and malnutrition.

Tags: 1930s, dust bowl, Great Depression, NYC, Texas

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NYC had developed very quickly in the 20th century because of the development of steel, skyscrapers and the subway system was able to be built. Because of the density and diversity of NYC it was able to build more and quicker than other cities like Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania the focus was not as strong, thus skyscrapers were built here and there but they were not all organized in one area like they are in Manhattan.  

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In Savannah and the Low country of Georgia, a legacy of decorative art among African Americans, including carvings, canes, quilts, baskets, furniture, and grave decorations, continued into the early twentieth century. During the 1930s and early 1940s, a period in which regional cultures were emphasized in literature, music, and the arts, the less conventional works of southern, self-taught artists, especially African Americans, were exposed to a wider audience and received greater appreciation. Trained artists in the Savannah area often collected the work of self-taught artists. (http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org)

Street Scene, Savannah

Margaret Augusta Murphy, the daughter of Savannah artists Lucile Desbouillons and Christopher P. H. Murphy, painted the watercolor Street Scene, Savannah between 1930 and 1940.

 By 1914 New York City had become the center of Modernist art. Characteristically, modernist art has a tendency to abstraction, is innovative, aesthetic, futuristic and self-referential. It includes visual art, literature, music, film, design, architecture as well as life style. It reacts against historicism, artistic conventions and institutionalization of art. In this period, art was not only to be dealt with in academies, theaters or concert halls, but to be included in everyday life and accessible for everybody.( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_modernism)

http://www.chicagomaroon.com/2008/5/30/new-york-changes-before-sloans-eyes

Tags: 20th Century, art, New York City, Savannah

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NYC and Chicago’s subway system are two of the oldest transit systems in America.  Compared to NYC’s subway system, the Chicago ‘L’ is less complex, composed of eight lines and connecting the outer counties to the commercial center of downtown Chicago.  NYC in the 20th century utilized technology and innovation to create a massive underground network that connects all five boroughs, while Chicago limited it’s transit system to eight lines, an elevated rail, and one connecting center called The Loop. The first Chicago ‘L’ s  first locomotive operated on June 6, 1892 when it departed 39th Street Station and arrived at Congress St. Terminal.  It’s drawback during the early years of operation was that none of the lines entered the city center but instead dropped everyone off at a subterminal where the majority of workers still had to walk to their jobs.  State regulations impeded the expansion of the subway system because property owners had to approve the expansion of elevated rails directing going into their neighborhood and over public streets.  After the development of the Loop (a center that connected the eight lines) and the introduction of an express line in the 1940’s, ridership and the efficiency of the rail increased.

Tags: Chicago, CTA, MTA, transit system

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Perhaps the Great Depression helped NYC dodge yet another bullet on its journey to becoming the greatest city in the world. In the late 1700s Thomas Jefferson had decided that a swamp on the Potomac River was to be the capitol of the country. That had removed most political responsibility, NYC didn’t have to have monuments, the President’s home, or the meeting house of congress at its center. Instead, it devoted it’s space to making money, and the entities who owned the central locations simply had the most of it.The Great Depression had done the same, but in a slightly more specific manner. Instead of having Hollywood in Manhattan, various musicians, film companies and media companies moved west. At the start, in the 1910s, companies moved to escape licensing issues. Eventually, aided by the Great Depression, Los Angeles, and more specifically Hollywood, became the new Media center of the country. This allowed NYC to become a true financial center, instead of a jack-of-all trades.

Hollywood studios in 1922

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Collection of the New York Public Library, Maps of New York City and State

One aspect of New York City development during the twentieth century to another American city was passing zoning ordinance in 1916 (Chudacoff 214).  As stated on the NYC.GOV website, “In 1915, when the 42-story Equitable Building was erected in Lower Manhattan, the need for controls on the height and form of all buildings became clear setting the stage for the nation’s first comprehensive zoning resolution”. To deal with population density and growing Skyscrapers the concept was born. According to NYC.gov, “The concept of enacting a set of laws to govern land use and bulk was revolutionary, but the time had come for the city to regulate its surging physical growth. The groundbreaking Zoning Resolution of 1916, though a relatively simple document, established height and setback controls and designated residential districts that excluded what were seen as incompatible uses”. New York was the first city to pass this ordinance and became a model for other cities in the United States. It took additional eight years for other major cities to establish zoning regulations in order to control heights of buildings and fixed density limitations (Chudacoff 214).

. [Chicago : Chicago Zoning Commission, 1922]. maps : photocopies ; on sheets 80 x 100 cm. Blue line prints.”]In 1922, for example, the Chicago Zoning Commission, in order to facilitate the creation of Chicago’s first zoning law, compiled the first land-use map of Chicago. This picture is one of the  Government Maps of Chicago in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s

Tags: 20th Century, NYC, zoning 1916

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Prohibition took organized crime to astonishing levels during the 20th century when it was passed in 1918. NYC and Chicago saw the development of powerful mobsters in the 20th century. In NYC Many residents hoped that Prohibition (1920-1933) would reduce crime, improve health and safety, promote economic prosperity, and increase public morality. However it failed Mob-controlled liquor quickly replaced legitimate tax-paying alcohol producers and retailers. Gangster-owned speakeasies replaced neighborhood drinking establishments and within five years after Prohibition was imposed, there were over 100,000 speakeasies in New York City. Mobsters opened large nightclubs with elaborate floor shows and popular bands. Speakeasies and nightclubs flourished because law enforcement officers were usually bribed.

In Chicago, There was a great profit to be made in providing a forbidden product so people built their own stills and created networks of transportation and distribution through speakeasies. Chicago’s most notorious gangster, Al “Scarface” Capone, built an empire from the sale of prohibited liquor despite the efforts of the Chicago police in raiding warehouses and speakeasies and destroying contraband liquor. speakeasies often kept their illicit businesses going through bribery. Everyone from prominent politicians to cops on the street took cuts in the profits made from trafficking alcohol during prohibition. In Chicago, thousands of police and other officials were on the take, some of them getting over $1,000 a week.

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One of the major difference between NYC and the rest of the cities in America has always been the population, but this difference expanded in the 1900s. All throughout American History, NYC has been the land of opportunity for the “hard workers” as well as the “dreamers” – but none more so during the 1900s. In the 1920s, musicians and artists from all over the country came to NYC, to try and be successful. With the radio reaching into every American’s house, NYC was the right place to be. America was introduced to the jazz and the blues. NYC was already home to Broadway theater, but it was only in the early 1900s, that the rest of America started taking notice of it.

Music was only one reason a lot of people were driven to NYC.  Industrialization, the growth in Transportation, and the opportunities available due to the New York Stock Exchange are some of the other reasons, that a lot of people were attracted to NYC. According to the census, the population in NYC grew by more than 2 million from 1900 to 1920, and by almost 2 million from 1920 to 1940, while the second most populous city at that time – Chicago, grew by a little over 1 million from 1900 to 1920 and by merely 700,000 from 1920 to 1940. Immigration is another big reason why NYC has always had a higher population growth than the other countries. During this period, millions of immigrants entered the city from Ellis Islands, although most of them did not live in NYC.

P.S: This video was shot in July 1903 by Edison Studios

Tags: Ellis Islands, Immigration, music, NYC, NYSE, population, Transportation

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In the early twentieth century, during the Progressive Era, city government established city planning department in order to cope with everyday infrastructure problems, including traffic congestion, air pollution, and substandard housing. The problems of American cities were particularly acute, as much of the growth of those cities occurred with no comprehensive plan. In addition, the sudden quickness of that growth, especially with governments working with a laissez-faire economic policy that pretty much allowed business and industrial concerns free reign, led to many problems in both the physical and social environment.

America's First Garden City

In 1923, the Regional Planning Association of America (RPAA) was organized and offered grand vision for restructuring urban regions. They asserted that uncontrolled expansion was causing unnecessary congestion and that decentralization would relieve pressures of housing and traffic. Stein felt that “Dinosaur” cities like New York were outdated as a consequence of modern technology. These cities required vast amount of financial expenditures for transit and utility systems. They were overly congested and required intensive land utilization that resulted in highly inflated property values. An endless spiral of speculative real estate investments led to more intensive land use and even more congestion. On the other hand, the Garden City Movement in 1898 advocated the concept of “garden cities”. Those garden cities were surrounded by “greenbelts” of parks, farms and open land. The cities would contain enough business and industry to achieve a degree of economic self-sufficiency. They saw “garden cities” as a means to achieve a rational distribution of population and economic growth. In 1928, just prior the Great Depression, they tried to bring Howard’s garden city to the United States by creating Radburn, New Jersey.

Radburn was designed as a community for the affluent. In addition, restrictive covenants prohibited the selling of houses to Jews and to African Americans. Its advocates were bowing to the pressures for privacy, exclusivity, and safety and protection. It was also designed to minimize the requirement for automobiles. Automobiles were relegated to main arterial streets that were on the periphery, thus enabling the separation of pedestrian and vehicle traffic. People were able to wander through the local parks and pathways without worry of traffic, and underpasses were built under major streets. Radburn project represented the growing concern for minimizing the discomfort and dangers posed by the automobile. It became an inspiration for Resettlement Administration during the Great Depression.

Le Corbusierian "Radient City" from Plan Voisin of Paris designed in 1925

New city planning in the twentieth century has also been influenced by the modernist movement. In 1939, at the New York World’s Fair, General Motors had an exhibit that many consider the highlight of the fair. In its highways and horizons building, General Motors constructed a miniaturized scale model of a United States of the future – Futurama. The scale model consisted of a half-million individually designed buildings and thousands of miles of multilane highways. It was the future city of towers and highways, highly influenced by Le Corbusierian “Radient City”. Futurama articulated the view that the success of future city rests on the development of better and more efficient transportation. It was an illustration of the continued progress in high way design and construction, the expanded use of automobiles and the increased contributions of industry. This model greatly influenced in the building of post-World War II America and in urban renewal, interstate highways, and suburbia. Robert Moses, who was New York’s Park Commissioner and urban planner. He was influenced by “trafficgenerating” capacity of highways and driven the building of highway systems that served the city, for example the Long Island Expressway, the Triborough and Verrazano Bridges. Futurama became the prototype for the urban reconstruction of New York.

General Motor’s Futurama model of the city of the future, images from the New York World’s Fair’s brochure of 1939-1940

Tags: City Planning, Futurama, Garden City, Highway, new jersey

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