| Polish Immigrants and Industrial Chicago: Workers on the South Side, 1880-1922 Contributor(s): Pacyga, Dominic a. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0226644243 ISBN-13: 9780226644240 Publisher: University of Chicago Press OUR PRICE: $31.68 Product Type: Paperback Published: November 2003 Annotation: How did working-class immigrants from Poland create new communities in Chicago during the industrial age? This book explores the lives of immigrants in two iconic Polish neighborhoods--the Back of the Yards and South Chicago--and the stockyards and steel mills in which they made their living. Pacyga shows how Poles forged communities on the South Side in an attempt to preserve the customs of their homeland--how through the development of churches, the building of schools, the founding of street gangs, and the opening of saloons they tried to recreate the feel of an Eastern European village. Through such institutions, Poles also were able to preserve their folk beliefs and family customs. But in time, the economic hardships of industrialization forced Poles to reach out to their non-Polish neighbors. And this led, in large part, to the organization of labor unions in Chicago's steel and meatpacking industries. Brimming with insights into the Polish American experience, this book is must reading for anyone interested in the histories of Chicago, the working class, and immigration. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - History | United States - State & Local - Midwest(ia,il,in,ks,mi,mn,mo,nd,ne,oh,sd,wi - Social Science | Ethnic Studies - General - History | United States - 19th Century |
| Dewey: 977.311 |
| LCCN: 2003050720 |
| Physical Information: 0.7" H x 6.12" W x 8.96" (0.94 lbs) 298 pages |
| Themes: - Chronological Period - 19th Century - Geographic Orientation - Illinois - Locality - Chicago, Illinois |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: How did working-class immigrants from Poland create new communities in Chicago during the industrial age? This book explores the lives of immigrants in two iconic South Side Polish neighborhoods--the Back of the Yards and South Chicago--and the stockyards and steel mills in which they made their living. Pacyga shows how Poles forged communities on the South Side in an attempt to preserve the customs of their homeland; how through the development of churches, the building of schools, the founding of street gangs, and the opening of saloons they tried to recreate the feel of an Eastern European village. Through such institutions, Poles also were able to preserve their folk beliefs and family customs. But in time, the economic hardships of industrialization forced Poles to reach out to their non-Polish neighbors. And this led, in large part, to the organization of labor unions in Chicago's steel and meatpacking industries. |
Contributor Bio(s): Pacyga, Dominic A.: - Dominic A. Pacyga is professor emeritus of history in the Department of Humanities, History, and Social Sciences at Columbia College Chicago. His books include Polish Immigrants and Industrial Chicago: Workers on the South Side, 1880-1922; Chicago: A Biography; and Slaughterhouse: Chicago's Union Stock Yard and the World It Made, all from the University of Chicago Press. Pacyga is the 2014 Mieczyslaw Haiman Award winner for exceptional and sustained contribution to the study of Polish Americans. |