Marc Moxey
Thematic Essay

12/9/14 Social Studies

The last years of the nineteenth century and the early years of the twentieth saw change in many aspects of American life. Cities were growing, skyscrapers were built, and millions of immigrants were moving into the country. Life in these cities could be difficult; many Americans worked long days in factories or coal mines or on the railroad.
While captains of industry like Carnegie and Rockefeller earned hundreds of millions of dollars, the common man was receiving far less. Even as America was becoming the manufacturing capital of the world, there was a large amount of inequality, and a growing need for change.. During the Revolutionary War in US women were seen as aides in the man’s struggles. They did man works, and helped them out in the war. After the war in 1783 the women in middle class were seen as the Republican Mother, they were seen as the role models for their children to teach them about democracy. Since they helped their country men winning the war. However, soon this role would demolish a little bit, as the women went back to caring for their children. During the Reformation period starting in the 1800s, women began to talk about their views. On drinking, money, their children’s education, mental challenged people’s rights, better prison conditions, and the end of slavery, women were seen to change politics, although they could not vote, they became leaders for their views. During the Civil War in 1861­1865 on North and South
Women became their ancient roles from the Revolutionary War, as helping their men in war. Though after that, war, women seemed to lose itself a bit.Then the Gilded Age in
1873 women before this Age and after started working in the industries. In the North than women worked, and in the South the did too, and helped their men on the farms.The roles Women played were important, in the Middle Class they were always

between poor and rich, and they were the ones that wanted to work hard enough to prove for their family, thus they wanted to become rich. When women were not seen important, they put their views through their beliefs and moral values, and when they became important the set aside that and did what was best to keep their family alive Although children had been servants and apprentices throughout most of human history, child labor reached new extremes during the Industrial Revolution. Children often worked long hours in dangerous factory conditions for very little money. Children were useful as laborers because their size allowed them to move in small spaces in factories or mines where adults couldn’t fit, children were easier to manage and control and perhaps most importantly, children could be paid less than adults. Child laborers often worked to help support their families, but were forced to forgo an education.
Nineteenth century reformers and labor organizers sought to restrict child labor and improve working conditions, but it took a market crash to finally sway public opinion.
During the Great Depression, Americans wanted all available jobs to go to adults rather than children. Unions and grassroots groups are increasingly recognizing direct connections between worker rights and the fight against child labor. Recognizing child labor as a violation of children's and workers' rights, trade unions are joining with families and community organizations to combat child labor, to move children out of work and into school, and to support core labor standards Factory conditions were poor , in some cases, deplorable. Lack of effective government regulation led to unsafe and unhealthy work sites. In the late nineteenth century more industrial accidents occurred in the United States than in any other industrial country.
Rarely did an employer offer payment if a worker was hurt or killed on the job. As industries consolidated at the turn of the century factories grew larger