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Description
In the 19th Century, more and more people began crowding into America's cities, including thousands of newly arrived immigrants seeking a better life than the one they had left behind. In New York City, where the population doubled every decade from 1800 to 1880, buildings that had once been single-family spaces were divided into multiple living spaces to accommodate this growing population. By 1900, some 2.3 million people, a full two-thirds of New York City’s population, were living in tenement housing.
Source-Dependent Questions
- Look closely at the photo and describe what you see.
- Buildings that had once been single-family spaces were divided into multiple living spaces and called tenement houses. Based on this photo and the photo of tenement kitchens, describe what living in a tenement home would have been like.
- In the early and mid-19th Century, more and more people began crowding into America's cities, like New York City, including thousands of newly arrived immigrants. Why would people choose to live in tenement houses?
- Look at this photo and watch the Push Cart Vendor video. What were the advantages and disadvantages of industrialization?
Citation Information
"Yard of Tenement, New York, N.Y.," Detroit Publishing Co., between 1900 and 1910. Courtesy of Library of Congress