Cultural Change during the Jacksonian Era

1. Cultural Change during the Jacksonian Era Chapter 10

2. Technology and Economic Growth • Hailed as democratic • Improvement of society due to improvement of technology • Major improvements • Steam engine • Cotton gin • McCormick Reaper • Sewing Machine • Telegraph • Technology did not benefit everyone • Made South more dependent on cotton • Undercut artisans • Mostly positive • Improved transportation • Increased productivity • Lower commodity prices • Raised standard of living • Four fundamental changes in American Society fueled economic growth • Millions moved from farms to cities • # of factory workers increases • increase in economic growth • Shift from water power to steam power • raised productivity • Rise in agricultural production • Industrial Revolution better called Industrial “Evolution”

3. Agricultural Advancement • Innovations • Cyrus McCormick’s reaper 1834 • John Deere Plow 1837 • Importance • Technological advances increased agricultural productivity • Deere plow made difficult soil easier to plow • Indiana, Michigan, Illinois • Reaper • Harvested grain 7x faster with ½ the labor force • Mechanized agriculture • Wheat became cash crop • Quote • “Americans had a general hatred of trees” – French Traveler

4. Technological and Industrial Progress • Industrial advances owed debt to development of effective tools and power-driven machines • “American System” of manufacturing • Manufacture of interchangeable parts • Allowed hiring of unskilled workers • Advantages • Replacement parts easily obtained • Inventions pushed into mass productions • National Economy • NE • Manufactured shipping goods • Ex. Guns, clocks, axes • South and West • Wheat, pork, whiskey, tobacco, cotton • Large domestic economy • Technological Innovations • Telegraph • Samuel B. Morse 1844 • By 1852: 15,000 miles of telegraph lines • Railroad Boom • Offered one class of travel • Except African-Americans • Problems with early RR’s • Open cars • No brakes • No standard time zones • Transformation 1840-1860 • More track • Covered coaches • Powerful engine • telegraph • 1860 • More track in US than entire world • Railroads= US as second leading Industrial nation

5. Railroads • Owned by private corps but received lots of federal aid • Land grants • 2nd phase of transportation revolution • Turned rail “hubs” into thriving cities • Atlanta • Chattanooga • Chicago • East-West rail stimulated settlement and agricultural development of Midwest • Also propelled small towns along routes • Nation’s 1st big business • Financing shifted to NYC • Helped wall street create greatest capital market • Turned NYC into financial capital

6. Rising Prosperity • Technological advances • Improved lives of consumers by bringing down costs of commodities • Widening use of steam power contributed to raise in real income • More year-round work • Economic advantage to living in cities • “Free Labor system” • Wage earners • Work your way up • Quality of Life • Dwellings • More brick-style houses • Divided among classes • Poor (Irish/ Black) • tenements • Wealthy • Iron gates, ornate furniture • Parks, squares • Conveniences and Inconveniences • Coal-burning stoves • Variety of diet • Water • No sanitation departments • Disease/health • Epidemics • Cholera, yellow fever • Anesthetics discovered 1840s • Popular health movements • Hydrotherapy, Graham’s healthy diet • Phrenology

7. Democratic Pastimes • Newspaper • Limited appeal, small circulation, lacked “real” stories • 1830 transformation • Technological advancements • Increased supply of paper • Flat-bed presses • Circulation increased due to slashing prices • Penny press revolutionized marketing and format of paper • Newsboys • New concept of “news” • First to use telegraphs • Theater • Large, attended by all classes • 1849 • Feud between actors Edwin Forrest and William McCready left 22 dead • Diverse plays • Shakespeare most popular • Minstrel Shows • Forged enduring stereotype of white Americans sense of superiority over blacks • Started in north 1840 • Included black song/ dance • Reinforced prejudice • “Uncle Ned” • Tattered, humble, docile slave • “Zip Coon” • Arrogant free black • P.T. Barnum • Liar/ cheat • 1st exhibition in NY 1834 • Black 164 year-old slave • 1841 American Museum • Collection of curiosities and fake exhibits • “freak show”

8. Quest for Nationality in Art and Literature • No real “American” writers pre-1820 • American Renaissance • Created by: • Economical • Transportation revolution • National market for books • Philosophical • Romanticism • Fiction becomes increasingly important • Didn’t have to have higher education • Women could write

9. Art • Date 1820s-1830s • Hudson River School • Thomas Cole, George Innes, Asher Durand, Frederick Church • Evocative scenes of Hudson River Valley • Influenced “nature” paintings • “West” • George Caleb Bingham • Missouri, Mississippi • Painted the frontier • George Catlin • Preservation of “disappearing America” • Native Americans • Romantic view of savages • Landscape Architects • 1st cemetery • Central Park (1858)

10. Literature • New England Authors • James Fennimore Cooper • Created “Western” genre • Last of the Mohicans 1826 • Henry David Thoreau • Focused on nature • Walden or Life in the Woods 1854 • Encouraged people to shun civilization • Nathaniel Hawthorne • Addressed crucial Jacksonian issues such as democracy, individual freedom, religion, etc. • Scarlett Letter 1850 • Others: • Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Harriett Beecher Stowe, Emily Dickinson • Literature focused on looking back longingly at a vanished and often imagined agraiain utopia

11. Literature in the Marketplace • Not a “career” • Emily Dickinson refused to publish • Some other wrote for $ or pride • Alcoholic Poe • Ego of Thoreau • Lyceum lectures of Emerson • Educated lectures • Most lucrative occupation for women pre-civil war • Sentimental novels • Some challenged authority • Technological advances = cheaper novels

12. Literature • Western • Samuel Clemens • Started in newspaper • Adventures of Huckleberry Finn • New Heroes • Daniel Boone • Davy Crockett

13. Architecture • Greek Revival • Glorify democracy