Working class people in New York in the late 19th and early 20th Essay

Working class people in New York in the late 19th and early 20th centuries - Essay Example will seek to look at the life of a working class in New York in the early 19th and early 20th centuries and explore imperative factors that directly affected their lives. With reference to Report to the Industrial Commission by Kate Holladay, Immigrants like Austro- Hungarian and Slavonic people comprised of a large population of those races in New York. In 1890 this new groups of people greatly contributed to the population. According to a census done in New York the foreign born population was 12.23%. This indicated a rise in their population. Over the years, the population of the immigrants drastically increased as it made about four –fifths of its population. A study indicated that the population of foreign immigrants who lived in the wards of Fourteen Street where there was little employment showed that there was male predominance as opposed to women. The bulk of the working class who were employed to do domestic services above the wards on fourteen streets showed equal dominance amongst male and female. Foreign born females showed much dominance in the suburban Twenty third and Twenty fourth wards. The legislative also showed how the wor king class immigrants of New York from different races were overcrowded in the tenement houses. This greatly increased criminal activities in the areas. This was in contrast to the working class whites born in New York who live suburban areas which were less congested (Holladay 470). The children of the foreign based working class went to public schools whereas the children of the whites went to most private schools. In reference to New York’s working class life, William Dean Howells is the most known and influential advocate in this field. He argued that authors had a responsibility to inform their readers on issues pertaining publications. He played a significant role in ensuring that the lives of authors change in relation to the economic changes in the America. In the beginning of his mission, he concentrated