2112 Jacob Riis

Jacob Riis's book How the Other Half Lives gives present and past audiences a glimpse into the world of working class realities as America urbanized and industrialized in the late 19th and early 20th century. Try to place his primary source work into the historical context of the Gilded/Progressive Era. To look at the contents of the source (his book) go to:

http://www.authentichistory.com/postcivilwar/riis/contents.html

It is worth a look, and you should explore a couple of chapters. They are short and descriptive. Click on Contents and then select chapters that sounds intriguing. His writings serve as an interesting look at urban conditions, industrialization, and the role of media/print journalism.

In addition, this site also has pictures and illustrations embedded in the page so that you can see the images that correlate with each chapter. This is one of the few sites whereby you can read and see the images- as well as double click on the image to see it larger and in full view.