Transcript Life At the Turn of the 20th Century

Life At the Turn of the
20th Century
Science & Urban Life
Technology & City Life
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By 1900 4 in 10 live in a large city!
Nation needs:
– Transportation
– Communication
– Space (to live!)
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*hint: if you can’t build out, build up
Cities Adapt
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Skyscrapers
– Elevators
– Steel Skeletons
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Symbols of a rich & optimistic society
Electric Transit
– Trolley cars become electrified in 90s
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Feeds growth of suburbs
– El trains
– Subways
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Engineering & Urban Planning
– Steel Cabled Suspension Bridges
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For promenades & commutes
– Planned urban parks
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Frederick Law Olmsted
– Greensward -> Central Park, NYC
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Daniel Burnham
– White City, Chicago’s World’s Columbian Expo 1893 -> lakefront & city plan
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Technology
Printing
– Paper mills, presses, print double sided pages, fold & cut
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Mass production, lowers cost
– Cheaper books, newspapers, magazines!
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Airplanes
– Orville & Wilbur Wright
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1st biplane: glider + 4 cyl. Engine
1903 Kitty Hawk NC
Photography
– George Eastman
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Flexible film -> masses can take pictures!
1888 Kodak Camera $25 + film
– 100 pix, developed $10
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Birth of photojournalism