2nd Industrial Revolution
Lives of the poor vs lives of the rich--Cori Quesenberry
Work Life
Working life for the poor: Children working in factories
Working life for the rich: Andrew Carnegie
The first image shown is a reflection of the working conditions that people of lower class were faced with. These are young boys working in factories with heavy machinery. As you can see, they are barefoot and not wearing any sort of protective gear. Children, immigrants and women were preferred as workers by factory owners, such as Andrew Carnegie (second picture), because they could get away with giving them lower wages than white men of a higher class. Andrew Carnegie was considered the father of the steel industry during this time. As shown in the picture, he is well dressed which reflects his wealth. His idea of "working" is sitting at his comfortable desk with some paperwork, in awe over his great success as a captain of industry. These are two prime examples of the contrast in social classes and how they were applied to working styles during the second industrial revolution.
Housing
Housing for poor: Tenant housing in New York City
Housing for the rich: J.P Morgan
The first picture is an example of tenants during the second industrial revolution. This was taken in 1889 in NYC. As you can see, too many people are living in one small space for it to be healthy. It is highly noticeable how dirty and unhealthy the residents look, and how tightly enclosed and crowded they are. The second picture is J.P Morgan's house, on a nice corner of Madison Ave. in NYC. J.P Morgan, along with Carnegie, is a captain of industry. He set up banks all over, and his business excelled after he died, and his work is still seen in today's world as his company owns Chase Bank. Around this time leisure aspects were starting to be incorporated into homes, such as indoor plumbing and telephones. The small apartments that the lower class had to share with others did not have these luxuries, but the gentry of society at the time could afford them.
Lives of Children
Lives of Poor Children: Lowell Mills
Lives of Rich Children: Healthier and Neater Appearences
The first picture is a little girl that looks to be about 6-8 years old. She is obviously dressed poorly, in her rags of clothes and lack of shoes. She is also very dirty, and her hair isn't well-kept. This is all because she is working in a very popular and successful factory called the Lowell Mills. They were one of the first mass-producing factories so they needed to hire a lot of workers, but didn't want to pay as much as they would for an adult white man. The factory was known for hiring girls, ("Lowell Girls") but also hired children and immigrants because they didn't have equal rights, allowing the owner of factories to get away with paying them less. Poor families could not survive on the small amount of pay they would make if both the mother and father had jobs, so they were forced to send their kids to families to make extra money for the family. Families that had more money, however, could supply their kids with nice clothes, a nice home, and an overall nicer life because they could focus on school and leisure activities. The second picture is an example of a kid who comes from a richer family, shown by the way he is dressed and kept and posing for professional pictures.
Leisure Activities
Leisure Activities for the Poor:
Leisure Activities for the Rich:
Leisure activities for the poor varied on what class they were on. Some poor people and some non-poor people (but not rich) worked in the Lowell Mills. Some of the young farm girls were supplied with housing and were given activities they could attend. Most everyone attended church weekly, but some other opportunities were libraries, lectures, and recitals. They were given these opportunities so that their mental health would be better and they would work harder during the week days. The rich had these same opportunities if so desired, but had other options as well. Outdoor recreation in schools for children became very popular around the late 1800s-early 1900s. Team sports for the rich also became very popular. Some of these were what we still use for recreation today: baseball, basketball, and football.