What is Urbanization?
Urbanization is the process of transforming previously unoccupied or sparsely occupied land into densly populated cities.1 Urban areas, like the cities of Detroit, Chicago, and Philidelphia, grow from increases in their human population or from migration into urban areas.2 From 1880 to 1900, the population of urban cities in America grew at an alarmingly fast rate due to rapid urbanization. The causes behind this accelerated expansion of American cities is primarily due to industrialization. U.S. cities grew by approximately 15 million people in the two decades prior to 1900.3 A sizeable portion of the people who contributed to the rapid urbanization of the Gilded Age were immigrants traveling from around the globe, and of course, Americans who lived in the more rural parts of the country were also a part of the migration of people to urban locations.4 Owing to the fact that some of those who migrated were from rural areas, those townships took a big hit in terms of their population. During a ten year period, from 1880 to 1890, close to 40 percent of the townships across the United States lost population because of rapid urbanization.5
Urbanization is an integral part of how are country came to be what it is today. It helped develop our economy at an alarmingly fast rate, it accelerated the industrialization of the U.S., and it showed the world through immigration that America is the place to be. However, do the benefits of rapid urbanization outweigh the downsides?
Footnotes
[1] “Urbanization.” Understanding Global Change, March 8, 2022. https://ugc.berkeley.edu/background-content/urbanization/.
[2] “Urbanization.” Understanding Global Change, March 8, 2022. https://ugc.berkeley.edu/background-content/urbanization/.
[3] “City Life in the Late 19th Century : Rise of Industrial America, 1876-1900 : U.S. History Primary Source Timeline : Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress : Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress. Accessed April 11, 2023. https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/rise-of-industrial-america-1876-1900/city-life-in-late-19th-century/.
[4] “City Life in the Late 19th Century : Rise of Industrial America, 1876-1900 : U.S. History Primary Source Timeline : Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress : Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress. Accessed April 11, 2023. https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/rise-of-industrial-america-1876-1900/city-life-in-late-19th-century/.
[5] “City Life in the Late 19th Century : Rise of Industrial America, 1876-1900 : U.S. History Primary Source Timeline : Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress : Library of Congress.” The Library of Congress. Accessed April 11, 2023. https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/rise-of-industrial-america-1876-1900/city-life-in-late-19th-century/.
[6] Bain News Service. Arriving at Ellis Island. 1907. https://jstor.org/stable/community.14667583.