Massacre at Rock Springs, Wyoming

The massacre of the Chinese at Rock Springs, Wyoming, Library of Congress

First, read this primary account of the Massacre at Rock Springs, Wyoming in 1885. For further information about the experience of Chinese laborers in the US, read this article by William Wei.

Anti-immigration sentiment existed throughout the 19th century, but Chinese immigrants were the first group to be specifically excluded from immigrating solely on the basis of race. The Massacre at Rock Springs is a particularly brutal example of violence in the west and hostility to Chinese workers. Compare and contrast the different immigrant experiences discussed in class, the conditions of Native Americans in the west and the Rock Springs Massacre. In what ways did economic development change the meaning of "freedom" in the United States?

Lower East Side

"How the other half lives" in a crowded Hebrew district, Lower East Side, NY City, Library of Congress

Take the virtual tour of 97 Orchard Street, site of the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. What is one example of what the apartments tell you about life in the Lower East Side of Manhattan in the late 19th and early 20th centuries?