Irene Antiri

NAME _______________________________________ 11/1/2022

DATE _______________ 3
CLASS _________

Geography and History Activity netw rks

World War I and Its Aftermath, 1914–1920

The Great Migration

The Urbanization of African Americans
During World War I, Northern factories were desperate for workers. Led by Henry Ford,
many companies sent agents to the South to recruit African Americans. The promises of
high wages and steady work resulted in the Great Migration. Between 300,000 and
500,000 African Americans left the South and moved to Northern cities.

The Race Riots of 1919

In addition to urbanizing the African American population, the Great Migration changed
the characteristics of industrial cities such as Chicago, New York, Cleveland, and Detroit.
In addition to altering the racial makeup of cities, the Great Migration also resulted in
overcrowding, which helped spark a series of race riots in over 20 cities across the
North during the summer of 1919.

The Great Migration, 1917–1930

African American Population Increase from 1910–1920

WA ME
Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.

Detroit: New York:

MT ND increase of 35,100 Cleveland:
increase
in of 26,000 increase of 60,700
OR N
MN
D
SD MA
ID WI NY
Chicago::
WY increase of 65,300
5,300 MI RI
CT
NEE PA NJ
IA Philadelphia:
NV OH increase of 49,800
St. Louis: IL IN DE
UT Baltimore
CO increase of 25,900 WV
CA VA MD
KS MO KY Washington,
NC D.C.
TN
AZ NM OK AR SC
AL GA
MS
LA
TX

FL

African American migration

Caption: During World War I, thousands of African Americans began the Great
Migration from the rural South to the industrial cities of the North. Many African
American neighborhoods, including Harlem in New York City, developed at this time.

United States History and Geography: Modern Times

NAME _______________________________________ DATE _______________ CLASS _________

Geography and History Activity Cont. netw rks

World War I and Its Aftermath, 1914–1920

Directions: Answer the questions below in the space provided.

Understanding Concepts
1. Why do you think Henry Ford and others wanted to recruit workers from the South?

I think that Ford and others wanted to recruit Southern workers because they had already
__________________________________________________________________
advertised to and employed the Northern population, but with Southern workers they could
__________________________________________________________________
spread their business as well as gain a new consumer group.
2. What other factors besides overcrowding might have contributed to the race riots
of 1919? Consider the impact of World War I ending and thousands of American
soldiers returning home from Europe.
I think that news of racial segregation of the military units, the military's treatment of American soldiers in
terms__________________________________________________________________
of discrimination, and the amount of attention being brought towards the constitution's equality
__________________________________________________________________
statements (especially from the women's rights movement) could have sparked these race riots.

3. Why do you think the population of Southern African Americans became more

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
urbanized during the Great Migration period?

I think it became more urbanized as African Americans were likely introduced to new and
__________________________________________________________________
different traditions and sorts of settings. They may have adopted them and became more
__________________________________________________________________
urbanized due to the cities they migrated to.

Applying Concepts
4. What kinds of cultural changes do you think the Great Migration brought to the
African American community?

I think that, sort of like my idea as to why the population of Southern African Americans
__________________________________________________________________
became more urbanized, the Great Migration brought more employment with better
__________________________________________________________________
conditions. I think that the culture and general ideas of the Northern cities that African
__________________________________________________________________
Americans had mainly moved to could have been integrated into the latter's culture.
5. What do you think were some of the long-term effects of the migration of African
Americans from rural Southern areas to Northern urban areas?
I think some of the long term effects would have been based on the amount of African American
__________________________________________________________________
people that made up these Northern urban areas and the differing culture. For the population
percentage factor, this could change the amount of attention and influence that an area or group
__________________________________________________________________
has in particular issues, such as equal rights. As for the culture factor, cultures could combine and
__________________________________________________________________
mix over time, with things being adapted into cultures. This could change the way people and their
descendants go about things, making them quite different in terms of their perspective on things.

United States History and Geography: Modern Times