urbanization – American Disasters

February 19, 2014December 16, 2020

Flood Versus Disaster: The Creation of the Johnstown Flood of 1889

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The Johnstown Flood of 1889 is an “accident” that draws parallels to the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 because of human interaction with and development of the land, and human hesitation to acknowledge the preceding signs. McCullough’s geological notes regarding the speed of urbanization and tree removal on hill slope porosity describe how the development of the city quickened the speed at which the water arrived in Johnstown. This is a common problem that continues into today. Historically, rivers have big floods every 10 years, and massive floods every 100 years that widen and extend the river channel. The flood is severe, but afterwards the land gets to rest for the next 100 years. Urbanization messes up this cycle by making rainfall reach river channels quicker, and therefore increasing the volume of water in the riverbed in a shorter amount of time. The rapid industrialization of steel mills and subsequent population boom in Johnstown after the canal construction reduced the time it took water to reach the city and exacerbated the flood.

Similar to how Pernin and Smith note the small fires that broke out before the Great Fire, McCullough notes the heavy rain that occurred months before the Great Flood. Additionally, McCullough observes that in 1864 the dam broke for the first time. As Sarah points out, neglect of dam maintenance led to the eventual collapse, but the growth of the city led to a higher death toll. While the people of Johnstown did not doubt the potential of flooding, they had grown accustomed to this scare. For these two reasons: urbanization and precipitation patterns, I cannot place all the blame on the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Elite.

It is frustrating to read about the ironies McCullough presents, including the capitalists vacationing to South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club in order to free their cluttered minds from work; and how the capitalists, who commanded and encouraged construction of the dam, were not physically affected with the eventual collapse of the dam, however this disaster did not lie entire in the hands of the rich.

February 17, 2014December 16, 2020

Morality and Consumerism

An interesting point that Edwards discussed in chapter 4 of New Spirits is the relationship between women, morality and consumerism during the Gilded Age. As this age progressed and industrialization as well as urbanization continued to swell, material objects began to take on weight that they had never held before. Certain methods of travel, parties, and fashion all became status symbols that proved an individual was superior to the majority of the population (95).

Women’s fashion became a popular avenue for the display of such Social Darwinist attitudes. As shopping typically fell into the female societal role, women in particular fell prey to rising consumerism and increasing advertisements.

An interesting paradox in the relationship between woman and consumerism lies in this era’s understanding of the female character. Women were typically regarded as fragile and easily corruptible; their delicate sensibilities required them to be isolated from business and industry because of these circles corrupting influences. Yet, as consumerism grew and women’s independence slowly increased, women were thrust into the middle of American consumer culture and all of its corrupting influence. Edwards suggests that during this time period “material standards posed many moral problems” as consumerism grew and became central to American culture(96). This situation is intriguing in that women, who represented morality in humanity, could no longer be kept apart from societal corruption. Edwards mentions William Dean Howells’s book, The Rise of Silas Lepham, as an example of this loss in innocence (95).

Society and its social boundaries could not stay the same through the rise of consumerism. As Emily mentioned, women’s roles adapted in many ways beyond consumerism through the Gilded Age’s progression.

It is important to keep in mind the characterization of women during this time period in order to understand the “moral problems” associated with consumerism. People believed that women were particularly vulnerable to this rising corrupt consumer culture.

January 24, 2014December 16, 2020

The United States of Emergency

I am greeted by the image of a New Orleanais kitchen in disarray upon entering the “State of Emergency” exhibit in the Van Every Gallery of the Visual Arts Center (VAC). The photo shows the aftermath of nature battling human development in the summer of 2005. Hurricane Katrina slammed the Louisiana coast, and showed no mercy for the city of New Orleans. The superiority of wind, water, and waves was demonstrated in several other works present at this exhibit: some resembled the destruction caused by tropical storms while others portrayed the inundation of urban areas by floods. “Flood Cubes” by Eben Goff is the piece I found to be the most visually and intellectually appealing due to its originality and candidness. The piece dually reflects on pollution and urbanization, two products of the anthropocene, in the Los Angeles region.

In January of 2010, before a heavy rainfall, Goff attached the clean chrome cubes (the same cubes that 4 years later were shipped to Davidson, North Carolina) to anchors fastened to the bottom of the Los Angeles River. The artist was familiar with the precipitation patterns of this region and anticipated that “winter rains are often heavier” even though “debris flow amounts are typically highest in fall after the dry summer months” (Eben Goff, 2013). Knowing this, he was able to set up the appropriate stage for the metal cubes to transform themselves into art.

The cubes are unique conceptually and artistically. Although originally clean, I find them covered in natural and “unnatural” elements, with only part of the silver metal frame visible. Part of a palm tree, or maybe a coconut tree, swings up from the clean wooden floor of the VAC to the top of the cube on my right. This cube has more of a mix between pieces of plants and plastic than the cube on my left. The frame of the cube on my left is facing me, so I walk around to analyze the part that is now covered in things “local” to Los Angeles. A surplus of yellow police tape is wrapped around the bottom, connecting the white plastic bag and red yarn on one side to the black plastic bag on the other. There is some grass and there are some leaves, but mostly this cube is covered in man-made objects. While scrutinizing this piece of art, I wonder at which point “unnatural” elements become “natural”. Does this occur through a piece of art representative of the things found in a stream? Does a stream become “unnatural” if it is floating down a cement riverbed? Successfully, Goff has brought two issues to light: urbanization and pollution.

In addition to the visuals on the floor, Goff provided instructions to replicate his work called “To Replenish a Flood Cube”. Replicate is not an accurate term because every cube is a result and creation of the most recent rainstorm and trash in the riverbed. Goff doesn’t edit the cube, but displays them raw and instructs, “receding floodwaters will reveal a Flood Cube replenished with a new coating of debris.”

In these instructions Goff also includes advice to receive the best results:

“An L.A. area rainstorm with total precipitation amounts of ½ inch will cause flooding of creeks, some major river channels, and is a sufficiently large storm for this sculpting process, however a storm with greater tan >1/2 inch total rainfall is ideal.”

Urbanization decreases the amount of time it takes rainfall to reach streams by removing the vegetation that normally absorbs this water. This rainfall flows more quickly over paved sidewalks and roads than it would through grass and forests, which creates more flooding in a shorter time period. Engineers paved over the original streambed of the Los Angeles River in 1938 in an attempt to solve the floods that had bothered the city in past years. Although Goff displays litter and debris to demonstrate the disaster that is our environment, the imminent floods caused by urbanization are what made the final product possible. This problem is not specific to Los Angeles: it is also portrayed in the very first image I saw upon entering the “State of Emergency” exhibit.

Site of interest: http://ebengoff.net/flood-cubes/

January 22, 2014December 16, 2020

“Melting Pot–Disintegration of Individualism”

The post Civil War period known of as the Gilded Age embodied many changes in the American society. In James Connolly’s article he looks at the notion of “new urban history”. This focuses on the broad social changes that occurred during the Gilded Age. As referenced in Catherine’s post, she address the advancement in technology and the growth of capital. These new advancements became important to society because they allowed for the expansion and growth of America (through rail roads), and increasing diversity (through steamboat technology) of the American population. A phrase used to describe the American population is as a “melting pot”, but this phrase can also be used to define the decreasing desire to identify with individual culture and the “melting” of all individuals into urban culture. In Richard Schneirov’s written work, he attempts to periodize the Gilded Age through looking at capital, society and politics. Focusing more specifically on the aspect of society Schneirov looks at urbanization and industrialization and the idea of individualism. Individualism is something that I find to be of high importance when discussing the Gilded Age. With the transition to increased industrialization augments can be made that show how in this upcoming capitalist society how people have become part of a system and lack the interdependence that is become less prominent. In a capitalist society people can become lost as a result of being tied to their commute or working schedule in citifies or suburbs. Or farmers, who rely on machines and mass scale production as opposed to being self sufficient and only providing for ones family. An argument can be made that capitalism drives peoples desires to make money and become wealthy.

Shcallaway’s post brings up an interesting point connecting the work of James Connolly and Charles Calhoun. Both authors look at defining the Gilded Age and the effectiveness of the terms industrialization and urbanization. Unplanned urban growth and increasing capital are aspects in proving how people became more focused on their social status then the importance of themselves (as individuals). The importance and meaning in individualism is imperative when looking back on cultural history and what drives society.