Thursday, November 3, 2011

The American City

By the end of the nineteenth century, the city of Chicago had become the pinnacle of urban American cities. With a nickname like the windy city, Chicago was known for its talk of politics that would fly like the wind all around the city. Not only was Chicago becoming more industrialized, it was becoming the new hub of urban American culture. New technologies and ideals were coming out of Chicago especially in the 1890’s when the city won the political bid to host the Worlds Fair.

Once it was declared that the Worlds Fair would be held in Chicago, the city became the “it” city of America. The fair brought attractions from all over the world, including the Middle East. The grandeur of the fair brought people from all over the United States to Chicago establishing that the city was the perfect place to hold this fair of new ideas for the upcoming century.

To say that Chicago represented the American city would be an understatement. Chicago was becoming the new New York, with developments in infrastructure, technology, and businesses. Immigrants began to move to Chicago; this increased population and the size of the city increased as well.

The name “The White City” was given to Chicago because it was mainly a White Populated area. During the World Fair, it was mostly white travelers who could afford to see the fair. This mirrors what was happening all over the country: with the development of railroads, streetcars, and other transportation systems it was mostly the white middle to upper class who could afford to use these luxuries.

Chicago was the peek of transformation during the late nineteenth century, with the Worlds Fair as the catalyst for most of the new societal developments. The Windy City was a great representation of the transforming America at the time; it showed everything America was supposed to be. With Chicago as an example, Immigrants flocked to the United States to find a better opportunity in the city. The whole world now had a better picture of what the U.S. was becoming: technologically and culturally advanced.

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