Chapter 14: North and South: Section 2: Life in the North

Main Idea: Industry in the North changed with the arrival of

new immigrants and the efforts of factory workers to improve
their working conditions.
How were conditions in factories in the 1840s worse than those in the
1820s?
What did factory workers hope to accomplish by joining together?
Who were the new immigrants in the mid-1800s?
How were free African Americans treated in the North?
Factory Conditions Become Worse
o Steam-powered factories of the 1840s and 1850s were
larger than the mills of the early 1800s. The new factories
changed the way work was done and the way workers lived
and worked.
o A Change in Values
Mass production changed the way workers felt about
their jobs. In the past, artisans, or skilled workers,
were proud of what they made. With mass
production, factory owners were interested in how
much the factory produced, not how well it was done.
Workers could not be creative.
Artisans often owned and managed their own
businesses. Factory workers were unlikely to rise to
manage a business.
o Families in Factories: Often, entire families labored in
factories, including children. They worked long hoursfrom
4 A.M. until 7:30 P.M. In some cases, a family agreed to
work for 1 yr. If 1 member broke the contract, entire family
could be fired.
o Hazards at Work: Factory workers faced discomfort and
danger. Few factories had windows or heating systems.
Factory machines had no safety devices. There were no
laws regulating factory conditions.

Workers Join Together: Poor working conditions and low wages

led workers to organize.
o Trade Unions and Strikes
In the 1820s and 1830s, artisans in each trade
formed trade unions.
The unions called for a shorter workday, higher
wages, and better working conditions.

Sometimes, unions went on strike, that is, they

refused to work until their demands were met. In a
strike, union workers refuse to do their jobs.
Strikes were illegal in many parts of US.
o Progress for Artisans
Slowly, workers made progress.
In 1840, President Van Buren approved a ten-hour
workday for government employees.
Artisans won better pay, but unskilled workers made
little progress
o Women Workers Organize
New England textile workers, many of whom were
women, protested wage cuts and unfair work rules.
Women faced special problems:
They had earned less $ than men did.
Most union leaders did not want women in their
ranks.
Women workers staged strikes at Lowell,
Massachusetts, in the 1830s.
The Lowell Female Labor Reform Association
petitioned the state legislature for a ten-hour
workday.

A Wave of Immigrants: By the late 1800s, many factory workers

were new immigrants. Immigrant: a person who enters a new
country in order to settle there. Many immigrants came from
Great Britain seeking to earn higher wages.
o From Ireland and Germany
Between 1845 and 1860, over 1.5 million Irish
immigrated to the United States. A disease had
destroyed Irelands potato crop, leading to a famine,
or severe food shortage. Thousands died of
starvation and disease. Others fled to the United
States.
Between 1848 and 1860, nearly a million Germans
arrived in the United States. Revolutions had broken
out in many parts of Germany. People left Germany
to avoid the violence.
o Enriching the Nation
Immigrants supplied much of the labor that helped
the nations economy grow.
o A Reaction Against Immigrants: Not everyone welcomed
the immigrants.

One group of Americans, called nativists, wanted to

preserve the country for native-born, white citizens.
Because immigrants were willing to work for lower
pay, some Americans protested that they stole
jobs.
Many people distrusted the different languages,
customs, and dress.
Some people blamed immigrants for a rise in city
crime.
Some people mistrusted Irish newcomers because
many of them were Catholics. Until then, a majority
of immigrants to the United States had been
Protestant.
Nativists formed a new political party. It was called
the Know-Nothing party. The party was antiCatholic and anti-immigrant.

African Americans in the North: By the 18002, all the northern

states had outlawed slavery, so many free African Americans
lived in the North.
o Denied Equal Rights
Free Afr. Americans faced discrimination.
Discrimination is a policy or an attitude that denies
equal right to certain groups of people.
Even skilled AA had trouble finding jobs. AAs faced
competition from immigrants who settled in northern
cities.
o Some Success
AAs achieved notable success in business. William
Whipper grew wealthy owned lumberyard in Pa.
Henry Boyd operated a profitable furniture company
in Cincinnati.
AAs made strides in other areas as well.
Henry Blair invented a corn planter and a
cottonseed planter.
Macon Allen became the 1st AA licensesd to
practice law in the US.