Themes in American History

By the 1850s, more than half the residents of Boston and New York City were foreign born, and Philadelphia 30 percent of household heads were born in Europe. Major concentration of Irish immigrants cound be found in New York, Boston Philadelphia and San Francisco, and strong German communities emerged in Cincinnati, Louisville, St. Louis and Milwaukee (P.65)

New York and Boston are both city of seaside, they are the fastest growing cities during 18^th century, and attract new immigrant from European country, like Irish, German. By 1850s, more than half of the residents of Boston and New York City were born in Europe.  The huge number of European immigration makes changes to society, like religion.  One of the differences between New York City and Boston is the density in urban side. The Populations of New York grow from 202,589 to 515,500 and Boston growth from 61392 to 136880 in 1830 to 1850. By 1850, there were 135.6 persons per acre in New York, 82.7 in Boston.  New York has much higher immigration population and density in urban area than Boston.

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A characterization of a dichotomy between an urban-industrial North and a rural-plantation South before civil war would exaggerate actual conditions. But the southern city like Savannah was neither nonurban nor antiurban, which resembled northern city, especially, New York City in their commercial functions and social complexity . Savannah businesspeople did, however, depend on northern cities, especially New York City’s capital and markets. (Chudacoff, pg78, 6th Ed)

Comparing with New York City, Savannah suffered more damage from the civil war. The union army’s blockade ports, the breakdown of transportation system as a result of military activity, and wartime inflation exacerbated patterns of urban hardship, especially food shortages. All of these slowed down the development of economic in Savannah. But New York City’s economic was rapid develop in the 1850s (Chudacoff, pg80, 6th Ed).

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Immigrants had an important impact on many cities of the Untied State. For example, New York is a diversity city

which accepted many immigrants from over the world; especially people from Europe, Germany and Ireland, and so on

in 1820-1860. Immigrants contributed labor force for the development of New York City. They were used to work at

factory and port for delivering goods.

The first purpose was getting rich fast for people ,who went to  California in 1845-1863. Because of gold rush, many

immigrants moved into California, therefore it became a bigger and wealth city gradually. At the time, most immigrants

were from China. They were in order to get rich and have a better life, most people abandoned their families and moved

to California. However, later on, they became a particular force which built railroad from west to central of the

Untied State with gold rushed up.

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New York state was one of the most populated states pre-Constitution, which is why she had such an influence in the development of America. Since the days of Hamilton, New York was seen as a symbol of capitalism and the “American dream” through a vibrant economy. Hamilton was an inspirational lawyer with the mind of a true businessman. Wall Street was established when President George Washington was inaugurated. The path of NYC seemed to be one of entreprenural, investing, and trading. With this came manufacturing and small sweatshops (nothing like the high rises we see today). I think it was part of New Yorkers destiny to “keep up with the Jones’” because already by 1845, the upper 4% of owned 49% of the cities wealth (Chudacoff, pg. 48). This monetary difference caused the beginnings of the division between the upper and lower classes and the establishment of a middle class. “Housed in mansion, transported in private carriages, clothed in the finest fabrics, fed the choicest delicacies, waited on by servants…the wealthiest residents could remove themselves from contact with the new urban masses (pg. 48). This lifestyle and urbanization contrasted greatly with those cities Out West mainly because of geography and also because of the identity of the settlers.

“Many an optimistic urban speculator from the East came West holding a deed only to find his property located in a mosquito invested swamp (Chudacoff, 42). This explains how the successes of the few still inspired risk takers to make it big in a new and foreign city with lots of rising opportunity. Like New York, the wealth individuals had affected their style of living. And in cities Out West money paid for property and land improvements (Chudacoff, 43). This is an example of a privatized system that had no issue providing special treatments for the people that could afford, while in other cities, like New York, local governments paid for water supplies, firefighting equipment, canals and turnpikes. The beginning of Westward expansion was after the War of 1812 and the construction of an intercontinental railroad. New York and the original thirteen colonies already had an economic advantage, so the Western Territories had to catch up quickly in population and wealth. Geographically, the West had all of these great rivers and waterways that would be of value to them with the introduction of steamships.

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Until the 1850’s many American cities were called “walking cities”. Boston and New York were called “walking cities” because of its size.  Those cities extended about 2 miles from the city’s core. A regular person could walk 2 miles in 30 minutes and that’s why New York and Boston were called walking cities. People in those cities walked to work, shops and schools. Walking was the most common mode of transportation back then. (  Chudacoff, pg. 57-58)

One difference between New York and Boston was their number of people per acre. New York had almost double population than Boston by 1850. In New York there were 135.6 persons per acre and in Boston 82.7 persons per acre. People from all over the world were coming to New Nation trying to find a better job or living. New York draw in much more people than Boston did. Over the time density of people was much higher in New York than in Boston and more families or single people occupied a single apartment or house. (Chudacoff, pg. 59)

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In the 1800s, the cities located nearby river and ocean were growing rapidly. Cincinnati in Ohio state and New York City were also the cities that were growing economically at the time period. Because of the Ohio River, there were lots of business opportunities for the residents such as hotels and shops in Cincinnati (Chudacoff, 5th ed., pg. 65). New York City had grown as one of the bigest port in the United States by trading with other countries. The similarities between these cities were that the cities were labeled as “the walking city” because of its size and major mode of conveyance; the cities rarely extended beyond two miles from the city center (Chudacoff, 5th ed., pg.66). The population of the two cities grew fast also, however there was difference between them. The Irish started to immigrate in New York mainly, however, in Cincinnati, the main immigrants at the time period was the German (Ohio History Central, http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/entry.php?rec=681).

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By early 1800s, after the revolution, large number of slaves acquired freedom. Most of them moved into the cities such as New York and Philadelphia.  There are two main reasons why many ex-slaves left for major cities. First of all, there are several job opportunities so that they can earn their own money for living. Second, at that time, ex-slaves get a chance to get married and live with their families. Moreover, free African Americans could establish schools, churches, benevolent organizations and so forth (Chudacoff pg.60).

Free African American

However, compare to philadelphia, more than twice number of freed African American in New York City are skilled workers. It is because white New York craftsman used to rely on slave worker during 18th century. The other main reason is many cities’ mulato emigres from the South had skilled trades (Chudacoff pg.61).

In conclusion, whether free African American labors were skilled or not, the main point of their life is they can establish their own society, community, family and enjoy their culture.

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During the period of 1800 and 1865, the Erie Canal was built because of the in need of the trading in west coast. That was the first transportation system between New York City and the west coast. It made transportation much easier at that time. As the result, the Central Pacific Railroad Company was established in San Francisco in 1863 and they would like to construct the Pacific Railroad from Council Bluffs, Iowa to Oakland, California to increase trading. These two projects both faced one problem: the lack of labors. In the case of New York City, as the increase of the immigrants, more and more immigrants were hired to do the work. Almost the same as the case of San Francisco, however, the company hired labors from China. In both cases, many workers died during the construction because of the harsh and dangerous working condition. At last, the Erie Canal was not supported by the federal government. President Jefferson rejected the project and called this “a little short of madness”, but the New York governor, Dewitt Clinton, supported this idea. The Pacific Railroad was supported and funded by the Congress.

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New York: Slavery has been a key element in the development of New York City since its former time and it has served as the capital of American slavery for more than two centuries. Slavery was not fully abolished in New York until 1827 however the gradual abolishment process began in 1799.  By the 1800s slave trade proved to be a profitable business for the merchants in New York City. Almost every merchants and business man had a stake in the slave trade. By 1850s the owners of slaves would hire out or rent their slaves to nearby employers thus making it profitable for both slaves and masters. The slaves would have the opportunity to food, drink and entertainment. They had time to run their own churches and enjoyed a great mobility and cultural autonomy. They not only got the opportunity to social with their own race but also with poor whites. However it was not possible to supervise for the masters to supervise their slaves each and every minute especially if they were hired out. Slave codes then came into the picture resulting into a formal segregation which excluded slaves from most public accommodations. The law required the slaves to have license for certain jobs and they were forbidden to learn how to read and write.

Nashville: Slaves where one of the most valuable assets for Nashville. It served as a market for both the purchasing and selling of slaves. It had a large population of skilled slaves and by 1800 forty five percent of Nashville inhabitants were slaves. However by 1860 this number started gradually declining to the immigrants from Europe. Living in the city provided the slaves with great opportunity to read and write and experience quasi-independence that was unknown to those who were still living in the plantation. Most of them were skilled worker, had family and maintained a social life and religion.

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New Orleans and New York have their share of differences and similarities. The most obvious difference is that one is a city from the North while the other is a city from the South.  Each has it’s own different lifestyle. With the North being more notable for freedom for slaves and industrial services, the South was none for its intolerance towards slave freedom and their agriculturalist lifestyle. For New Orleans, this wasn’t held completely true. New Orleans “resembled northern counterparts in their commercial functions and social complexity” ( Chudacoff and Smith page 72) Although they were one of the few cities that had commercial functions, the business people relied heavily on the Northern capital and markets. This big one similarity, one difference between New Orleans and New York was that in New York diversity was well known and in a sense accepted. In New Orleans the French speaking people and the English speaking people had to be divided in the city “between a French quarter and an American Quarter, separated by a street with a broad medican called the Neutral Zone” (Chudacoff and Smith page 67) The diverse population in New York was in a sense mixed weren’t living in their own sections as was the case in New Orleans.

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After the American Revolution many cities started to develop, this allowed man y business enterprise to form. Some of those cities that grew because a strong national government was formed were Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee, and Cleveland.  Before they became cities they were small towns trying to foster growth, this motive for growth allowed small towns to become cities. They competed against each other by creating incentives lure many merchants. Chicago, Cleveland, and Detroit were small cities that had no direction but to become megacities. They looked to other cities like New York, Baltimore, and Boston for consult. The main cities they looked for help were Boston and New York.

Boston and New York were the main cities that many small towns looked at for help to grow. Both cities were similar in many ways. New York and Boston were formed during the colonial era before   the American Revolution. New York City and Boston were located near the port because their access to the ocean was vital to many merchants. What is really amazing is that their origins started because merchants wanted to have an area that allowed business to operate. Because of their business friendly atmosphere the British Empire saw how economically important they are to the crown. But there to response to the Crown activity in their daily affairs makes them different.

Even though Homberger focused on how important New York is to America history, Chaudacoff sees Boston played the most important role to America history. After the crown repealed the Townshend Act many cities stop protesting except Boston, Boston sought that welfare of its people were treated appropriately. In New York City, merchants had the final decision while in Boston it was the collective decision of townspeople. That is why Chaudacoff writes that many people lost interest in Boston due to its expensive taxes. That is why many people did not stop the protest. They were given taxes that they did not like or voted on. Boston became the center where hatred and resistance toward the crown was persistent. They also became center of the crown punishment on spread fear among the colonist if they provoked the king. But what really separate Boston from New York or any other city was that it can became center of change.

After the revolution Boston became an experiment city. Well every city was an experiment but in Boston the most social experiment was formed.  They were the first to have base salary policemen to encourage public safety. Even though Boston did not have a large population compared to Baltimore and New York, it was a city that resembled more of our present day European welfare cities. Where the public welfare and quality of life is the most important.

Boston

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Slavery existed both in New York and in Delaware. Both of these places turned to Africa to get hold of slaves but Delaware was pushed out by the more aggressive Europeans. Delaware eventually turned to Indian slaves, but did not have much success due to diseases and migration that left the land free of Indians. African slavery was not big until Peter Stuyvesant took over. By reclaiming the Delaware Bay, African slaves were brought across the Atlantic to work on the new colony, Delaware.  By 1776, the Revolutionary War disrupted the economy, so slaves were not as important anymore, and made slave trading and slave owning unprofitable. By 1810, 78 percent of Delaware’s blacks were free while only 63 percent was free in New York. In Delaware, slaves sold out of the states were automatically declared freed, and slave ships were barred from its ports. The Revolutionary War had an impact on slavery on both of these colonies. There was a huge decrease in the amount of slaves after the war. Unlike the other northern states such as New York, the freeing of black slaves have been done voluntarily and not with legal requirements (www.slavenorth.com).

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Commercialization and Urban expansion made a huge impact to American cities, such as New York City and Philadelphia. All American cities could be characterized by their compactness (Chudacoff 65). After 1810 slaves that were freed by the Gradual Manumission act began to increase the free African-American population in the city. The city became the center of free African-American life. They were drawn to cities because of higher chance of employment and a higher concentration of free African Americans. There is a greater chance to find an acceptable marriage partner to establish a family, and participate in activities of African churches, schools, Fraternal societies, and organizations (Chudacoff 69).

Afican-American Scubwoman

In New York City, freed slaves were more likely to have a better skill than freed slaves in Philadelphia, because  New York artisans had relied heavily on slave labor throughout the eighteenth century and because many of the mulatto had skills trades (Chudacoff 70). However, in both cities, the majority of free African-American Population were women and main jobs were a domestic servants, laundresses, produce sellers, and prostitutes.

Domestic work was the most common form of job done by urban black woman.

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New York City

When looking at New York and New Orleans during the 1800’s both are on opposite ends of the map. They seem like complete opposites in comparison, but they do contain similarities between them. New York is well known for its diversity, for example “by the 1850s, more than half the residents of  Boston and New York City were foreign born” (Chudacoff & Smith 72). This isnt’ a surprise as New York is well known for this, however, New Orleans is actually very diverse as well. “By 1860, 40 percent of New Orleans’s population was foreign born” (Chudacoff & Smith 72). In comparison, the ratio’s are similar, but when comparing this in number of people it isn’t as close. The foreign born population of New York in the 1850s was about  257750 (Chudacoff & Smith 60). While in the 1860s the foreign born population of New Orleans was about 67470 (Chudacoff & Smith 60).  This shows that even after ten years the New Orleans foreign born population was no where close in number the New York foreign born population was about 3.8 times the foreign population of New Orleans. This leads us to the big difference between both cities which is the size of them. New York was more greatly populated and more larger than New Orleans. For example in 1860 the New York population was 813,600 while the New Orleans population was 168,675 (Chudacoff & Smith 60).  The total New York population in 1860 is about 5 times more than the population of New Orleans. Overall, the two cities of New York City and New Orleans are both similar and different in certain aspects.

New Orleans

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Compare Richmond to New York City, one difference is that the population of free black increased fourfold between 1790 and 1810. However, for New York City, the population of free black increasing started by 1810, increased even more after the Gradual Manumission Act (Chudacoff 60).

On the other hand, both cities remained a larger proportion of slaves in 1860. Because of the increasing of unskilled white laborers and selling slaves to the plantations. The number of slaves in the southern cities decreased largely. Only in Richmond, the slave manpower demand of processing iron and tobacco kept the population of slaves basically unchanged in 1860 (Chudacoff 64). 

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Immigration had important effects on the economic life, housing and culture of cities. One of the similarities between New York City and Boston is by the 1850s, more than half of the residents were foreign born(Chudacoff 64). On the other hand, in the 1820s and 1830s, Boston established free elementary schools in 1818, New York followed in 1832(Chudacoff 52).

Another similarities of these two cities are until the 1850s, the settled areas of even the largest cities, such as New York and Boston, rarely extended beyond the two miles from the city center—the average distance a person can walk in half an hour. Thus historians have labeled this early urban configuration the “walking city” because of its size and major mode of conveyance(Chudacoff 57-58). Moreover, an almost annual excess of new arrivals over those departing doubled and tripled populations of most established cities between 1840 and 1850. Crowding in settled areas swelled. By 1850 there were 135.6 persons per acre in New York, while 82.7 in Boston(Chudacoff 59).

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I would like to compare New York City with Charleston, South Carolina because it was the only city which had higher number of slaves in proportion to urban population than New York at the end of 18^th century. The great number of slaves in Charleston was caused by expansion of cotton production, during the Antebellum period, which relied heavily on slave labor.

Both cities were seaports, so in most cases that was the first stop for the enslaved people who arrived to the United States. Life of the busy Charleston seaport provide unique opportunists, which were not available to people who worked on plantations. In New York as well as Charleston, slaves could “enjoy” urban life mostly because they live away from their masters supervision. They had obligation only to bring certain amount of money they made.

While slavery in New York starts to decreasing in early 1800s due to Gradual Emancipation Law, Charleston kept people enslaved for much longer period. According to New York Historical Society in 1828 “most New York slaves had already been freed.” In contrary, in 1856, Charleston’s city ordinance prohibited the practice of public auctions of slaves which initiated opening of special sales room, yards and marts. One of them was called The Old Slave Mart and “when sales were held in the shed, slaves stood on auction tables, three feet high and ten feet long, placed lengthwise so slave owners could pass by them during the auction” (nps.gov.) Slaves auction at the Old Slave Marts ends in 1862. This huge time disproportion, shows how slavery institution were approached differently in different parts in the county.

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Fire lecture film ironic since museum was burnt down

When I first visited “The Lost Museum” I got bored and I was not interested. Truthfully, the ground floor did not really capture my attention. So, I decided to move up to the second floor and check out if there was something more entertaining. I was impressed based on what I saw on the second and third floor. I was also surprised to see that this museum was different. It actually had a wide variety of exhibits ranging from those that dealt with history, science, and entertainment. The lecture film about fire caught my attention. I thought it was a little funny and ironic that this museum included a lecture film about fire as both Iranistan (Barnum’s mansion) and Barnum’s American Museum burned down. It was also interesting to see the amounts of fires that destroyed New York City and how fires were such a big problem for the city of New York.

“The Lost Museum” showed me something very important about entertainment in 19th century NYC; that it is not much different than entertainment today. The “freak show” aspect of the museum reminded me of the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museum in Manhattan. The wax figures in the waxworks room on the second floor were similar to Madame Tussauds wax museum also in Manhattan. Many people in New York City visit both of these museums for entertainment purposes probably the same way others visited The Barnum Museum in New York City in the 19th century.

I thought the interactive aspect of this website was a very effective tool to choose to include. It makes the visitors feel like they are in a actual museum. It is as if they are able to walk through it, move up levels and it keeps your attention and interest. The strength of this website is its ability to depict a form of entertainment in the 19th century and show how similar it is to forms of entertainment today. It also informs the visitors of the website about several different historical facts such as the assault on Charles Sumner by Preston S. Brooks (which actually happened). In my opinion, I feel they should have attempted to make the ground floor more interesting or for it to contain more interesting facts as it would impress the viewers and keep  them in the website to continue o to the other floors so they could learn more.

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