Having Fun: Leisure and Entertainment at the Turn of the Twentieth Century

Between 1865 and 1920, the American population doubled to more than 60 million people. More than 10 million immigrants arrived in America, mostly from northwestern and central Europe. The influx of immigrants, and the migration of African Americans to northern states, swelled the populations of America's cities.

Americans witnessed the inventions of new technologies designed to improve their daily lives. Commuter trains, trolleys, and eventually, the automobile, helped them get to and from work. Newspapers and magazines kept them informed of local, national, and world news. And the telephone enabled them to communicate with loved ones far away.

While some Americans adapted to these social and cultural shifts, the increasingly mechanized urban environment left others feeling anxious. To offer respite from urban life, social reformers championed the construction of parks in urban areas. Physicians recommended physical exercise as a way to ward off stress. Spectator sports emerged, including baseball, football, and tennis. New forms of commercialized entertainment appeared, such as vaudeville, dance halls, and motion pictures. Railroad, steamship, and trolley lines enabled Americans to escape the congested urban environment for the clean air and beautiful surroundings of mountain and seaside resorts.

By the early twentieth century, the Victorian ideals of decorum and self-restraint, once prevalent in the nineteenth century, gave way to the notion that "having fun" was good for one's health and overall well-being. The mass media promoted the concept of fun to encourage Americans of all economic levels to engage in leisure activities.

NCSS.D2.His.1.6-8. Analyze connections among events and developments in broader historical contexts.

NCSS.D2.His.2.6-8. Classify series of historical events and developments as examples of change and/or continuity.

NCSS.D2.His.3.6-8. Use questions generated about individuals and groups to analyze why they, and the developments they shaped, are seen as historically significant.

NCSS.D2.His.4.6-8. Analyze multiple factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras.

NCSS.D2.His.5.6-8. Explain how and why perspectives of people have changed over time.

NCSS.D3.1.6-8. Gather relevant information from multiple sources while using the origin, authority, structure, context, and corroborative value of the sources to guide the selection.

NCSS.D3.2.6-8. Evaluate the credibility of a source by determining its relevance and intended use.

NCSS.D4.1.6-8. Construct arguments using claims and evidence from multiple sources, while acknowledging the strengths and limitations of the arguments.

NCSS.D4.3.6-8. Present adaptations of arguments and explanations on topics of interest to others to reach audiences and venues outside the classroom using print and oral technologies (e.g., posters, essays, letters, debates, speeches, reports, and maps) and digital technologies (e.g., Internet, social media, and digital documentary).

• Review the lesson plan and the websites used throughout. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and websites.
• Students can access primary and secondary source materials for this lesson online via The Economics of Leisure LaunchPad. Bookmark the LaunchPad URL for student use.
• Review the collection of photographs listed in Activity 1, below, that illustrate leisure and entertainment at the turn of the century. Several pre-selected photographs are listed in the LaunchPad. If desired, teachers can assemble additional photographs from the following EDSITEment-reviewed websites:
  • Touring Turn-of-the-Century America: Photographs from the Detroit Publishing Company, 1880-1920
  • New York Public Library Digital Collection
  Select photographs that display amusement park rides, circus shows, spectator sports, beach bathing, vaudeville performances, world's fairs, or other activities. Bookmark each web page that contains the photograph or download each photograph to display in class. Prepare brief notes on each photograph (date, location, activity) before the lesson.
• Download and print out the Inventions timeline. Make enough copies to hand out in class. A link for student use is also available via the LaunchPad.
• Familiarize yourself with the interactive map, On the Old Fall River Line. A link for student use is available via the LaunchPad.
• Download and print out The Economics of Leisure student worksheet. Make enough copies to hand out in class. A link for student use is also available via the LaunchPad.
• Download and print out the Class in Newport student worksheet. Make enough copies to hand out in class. A link for student use is also available via the LaunchPad.
• Download and print out the Easton's Beach: The Coolest Place to Spend the Day student worksheet. Make enough copies to hand out in class and/or prepare for student viewing (via projector, etc.) and use.
• Download and print out the Advertising Fun for Everyone student worksheet. Make enough copies to hand out in class.

Activity 1. Leisure and Entertainment

Ask students to define the term "leisure." You might direct them to consult a print or online dictionary for a definition. Dictionary.com, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource The Internet Public Library, defines leisure as "freedom from time-consuming duties, responsibilities, or activities." Next, ask them to define the term "entertainment," which Dictionary.com defines as "something that amuses, pleases, or diverts, especially a performance or show." Ask students—what is the relationship between leisure and entertainment; how are they inter-related?

Explain that by the turn of the century reduced work hours gave many Americans leisure time, and higher wages gave them the means with which to explore new forms of entertainment. To provide historical context, explain that by 1900 there were more than 29 million people in the American workforce. This included men, women, and children. Americans worked an average of 59 hours per week and usually received Saturday afternoons and Sundays off. Many companies provided unpaid leave to their employees.

Ask students to describe what they like to do in their leisure time. Encourage them to discuss their favorite forms of entertainment. Use the following questions as a guide:

• How do you spend your free time?
• Where do you like to go?
• What do you like to do?
• Do you stay at home, or do you go out?
• Do you try out local activities, or do you travel to other places?
• When do you travel?
• How often do you travel?

Write their answers on the left side of the blackboard in front of the class.

After viewing the footage of a baseball game recorded by Thomas Edison in 1898, ask students to think about how Americans might have spent their leisure time a century ago. To help students brainstorm, show some of the following photographs, or have them explore them in groups using the EDSITEment-reviewed National Archives Document Analysis Worksheets:

• Connie Mack, Catcher, 1887
• Carriages on Boulevard in Park, c. 1890-1910
• Football Team, c. 1895-1910
• Bathers, Atlantic City, c. 1900-1915
• Loop the Loop, Coney Island, c. 1903-1910
• A Morning's Catch in the Adirondacks, c. 1903
• May Pole Dance, Central Park, New York, c. 1905

These and many other photographs useful for this exercise are available via the following EDSITEment-reviewed resources:

• Touring Turn-of-the-Century America: Photographs from the Detroit Publishing Company, 1880-1920
• New York Public Library Digital Collection
• Photo Gallery of Play and Leisure via Children in Urban America

Use these photographs as a springboard for discussion about leisure and entertainment at the turn of the century. Have students identify the activity depicted in each photograph. Ask the following questions:

• Who is in the photograph?
• What can you tell about the person or people in the photograph?
• What is going on in the photograph?
• Where might the photograph have been taken?

Hand out copies of the Inventions timeline, which lists leisure-related inventions. If you prefer, you may refer students directly to the Technology Timeline, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource The Internet Public Library, and the Interactive Timeline at the EDSITEment-reviewed resource Learner.org. Discuss some of the leisure-related inventions listed in the timeline, such as the phonograph (1877), the Kodak camera (1888), the motion picture camera (1891), and radio (1906). Explain that these inventions came before the age of television (1927) and well before the age of the Internet. These new technologies connected Americans as never before. For the first time, Americans could listen to music in their own homes, take their own photographs, watch a motion picture at a local theater, and listen to radio broadcasts.

Encourage students to brainstorm other leisure-related inventions that may have been introduced at the turn of the century. Write their answers on the right side of the blackboard in front of the class. Now compare the two sets of answers. Ask students if they see any similarities or differences between the activities they enjoy today and activities Americans enjoyed a century ago. Make some comparisons—e.g., Americans watched motion picture shows then; today, we have television and the Internet. Ask students which turn-of-the-century entertainments are still popular today, and which ones they enjoy.

Activity 2. Getting There

Refer again to the Inventions timeline introduced above. Discuss some of the transportation inventions listed in the timeline, such as the steamboat (1807), the transcontinental railroad (1869), the electric trolley (1885), the automobile (1892), and the airplane (1903). Use the timeline as a springboard to discuss turn-of-the-century technologies that influenced the growth of the leisure industry.

To provide historical context, explain that transportation improvements opened inland and coastal areas and led to the establishment of national parks and resorts. By the turn of the century, a growing network of railroad, trolley, and steamship lines and inexpensive fares made it possible for Americans to travel to new destinations. Transportation companies often financed the construction of amusement parks and other attractions to encourage people to use their transportation services to reach resort areas.

Have students explore the interactive map, On the Old Fall River Line, to see how steamship lines carried passengers to and from a turn-of-the-century seaside resort. As part of this exercise, students will explore The Fall River Line and Other Steamers website, available at the EDSITEment-reviewed American Studies at UVA.

Activity 3. The Economics of Leisure

Have students estimate how much money they spend on leisure activities each month. Ask:

• Are your favorite activities free?
• If not, how much do they cost?
• How might the amount of money you have influence how you spend your free time?

In this activity, students will learn about the various people—their social and economic status, activities, jobs, and so forth—that vacationed in Newport. Students will then work together to study the various entertainment venues that were popular at the turn of the century and the economics of leisure. Teachers might have students role-play their characters and follow up with a discussion of how the various individuals might—or might not—encounter one another. Part of this activity's research requirements might be suitable for homework.

Define the term "class" for your students. Dictionary.com, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource The Internet Public Library, defines class as "a social stratum whose members share certain economic, social, or cultural characteristics." Explain that indicators of class include income level, level of education, and choice of employment. A century ago, members of upper-class society included intellectuals and wealthy businessmen. Middle-class workers included salaried employees such as business managers, physicians, lawyers, and teachers. Working-class families included skilled or semi-skilled laborers.

Now hand out copies of the Class in Newport student worksheet. Ask students to read the background information about different classes in Newport on Class and Leisure at America's First Resort, a link on the EDSITEment-reviewed resource, American Studies at the University of Virginia. Ask them to read about how Americans of different classes spent their leisure time in Newport.

Ask each student to select a name from the list on the People in Newport worksheet (or, teachers might cut up the list and hand out names or have students pick them from a hat). Ask each student to read a brief biography of this person. Ask students to answer the following questions (which are on their worksheet) using the information they have researched online:

• What was the class of the person you researched?
• Was this person a summer visitor, a summer worker, or a year-round resident?
• Why did this person come to Newport?
• What did members of his or her class do in Newport? Where did they go? Where did they stay? What leisure activities did they enjoy?
• Would the person you researched have socialized with members of other classes? Why or why not?
• How might this person have interacted with members of other classes?

Now ask students to consider how Americans at different levels of society spent their leisure time a century ago. Explain that the economic levels of many Americans determined how they spent their leisure time. Upper-class Americans took vacations to resorts throughout the country and often stayed in their own vacation homes. Middle-class Americans took short trips away from home, renting small cottages or staying in hotels and boarding houses. Working-class Americans took Saturday afternoon or Sunday trips to local parks and beaches.

Place students—or have them self-select—into groups. Have each group select a topic from the following list:

• National parks
• Seaside resorts
• Spectator sports
• Variety shows
• World's fairs

Have students conduct Internet research and create a brief report on their topic's history and significance, its associated costs, and who might have enjoyed going there.

It may be helpful if students first review the essays and timelines on the following EDSITEment-reviewed websites:

• The Making of Modern America
• America at Leisure
• Vacations and Resorts via the EDSITEment-reviewed Digital History
• Technology Timeline via the EDSITEment-reviewed Internet Public Library
• Technological Timeline at the EDSITEment resource American Centuries: View from New England
• Interactive Timeline

Point students to The Economics of Leisure Study Activity, which provides a list of web resources they can use to research their topic. The Study Activity includes a list of questions students should ask as they conduct their research, such as:

• Where did this leisure activity take place?
• What is its significance?
• What is the history of this activity? Be brief.
• What types of visitors engaged in this leisure activity?
• What types of transportation enabled visitors to get to and from this location?
• What forms of entertainment did people enjoy there?
• What new technologies, if any, were used?
• What did it cost to travel there and enjoy the entertainment?
• What other observations can you make about your topic?

Hand out copies of The Economics of Leisure student worksheet for note taking. Remind students that Americans at all economic levels may have participated in any given activity. When the groups have completed their research, ask each to present its conclusions and supporting evidence to the class.

Note: If a group has discovered an interesting game from the turn of the century, encourage them to share it with the class in their presentation. You may ask students to learn to play the game in class.

Activity 4. Advertising Fun for Everyone

Ask students to consider how companies might have advertised leisure and entertainment in a time when there was no television or the Internet. What methods might companies have used to reach their intended audiences?

Explain to students that the mass media encouraged the growth of a leisure industry by promoting leisure and entertainment options to all Americans. Turn-of-the-century ads appealed to consumers' desires by convincing them that the products in the ads would satisfy their emotional and physical needs.

Travel ads used words, images, and selected details to interest Americans of all classes in exploring new destinations. Society columns in major newspapers described the comings and goings of American industrialists and their families at resorts around the country. Photographs and illustrations of their vacation homes appeared in popular magazines. This type of media coverage encouraged upper-class Americans to frequent the same locations as their peers. Guidebooks, travel guides, and newspaper ads introduced middle-class Americans to travel. Newspaper ads and word of mouth interested working-class Americans in leisure activities.

Have students examine an actual turn-of-the-century travel ad. Project on a screen or hand out copies of the Easton's Beach ad, which is also available on Class and Leisure at America's First Resort, a link on the EDSITEment-reviewed resource, American Studies at the University of Virginia. Also, hand out copies of the Easton's Beach: The Coolest Place to Spend the Day student worksheet.

Ask students to study the ad and answer the following questions on the worksheet:

• What forms of entertainment are listed in the ad? Who enjoyed these forms of entertainment at the turn of the century?
• What do the photographs tell you about Easton's Beach visitors? What are they doing? What are they wearing?
• How long are visitors expected to stay at Easton's Beach? How do you know this?
• Who do you think this ad hopes to attract to Easton's Beach? Give some examples to support your answer.

Ask students to read the brief history of Easton's Beach available at the EDSITEment-reviewed Class and Leisure at America's First Resort. What other forms of entertainment were at the beach? Were these forms of entertainment listed in the ad? Why or why not?

As a final assessment exercise, ask students to create an ad marketing a popular turn-of-the-century destination. It can be an amusement park, a seaside resort, a national park, or another type of destination. Their task is to market this place to potential visitors.

Ask students to consider what they have learned in this lesson as they work on the ad. If they need to research their destination, they can use the websites listed on The Economics of Leisure LaunchPad.

The ad should address the following questions:

• Where was this destination located?
• At what times of year did visitors travel there?
• What types of people went there? Why?
• How did they travel there (by train, trolley, steamboat, coach)?
• Where did they stay when they arrived?
• What types of activities did they enjoy there?
• How long did they stay there?
• Where would an ad like yours have been published to reach potential visitors?
• What words and images might have been used to interest visitors in this destination?
• What words and images will you use to construct an ad about this place? Hand out copies of the Advertising Fun for Everyone student worksheet. Tell students that they can draw an ad on this worksheet. Or, they can create a collage on poster board with text, photographs, brochures, and other items for classroom display.

As an additional—or alternate—activity, you may want to show a selection of short film clips produced by Thomas Edison, available at Inventing Entertainment: The Motion Pictures and Sound Recordings of the Edison Companies on the EDSITEment-reviewed resource American Memory.

Thomas Edison invented a number of technologies that enhanced the leisure industry. He is perhaps best known for his development of the motion picture medium. He invented the motion picture camera in 1891 and the talking motion picture in 1910. He produced a number of short films in the early 1900s. Refer to the inventions timelines listed in Leisure and Entertainment if needed.

To provide historical context, explain that by 1909, there were 9,000 nickelodeons, or theaters, that showed motion pictures to thousands of people a day—a testament to the popularity of Edison's inventions and the importance of his contributions to the leisure industry. This statistic and more can be found at the Chronology of Film History, available in the EDSITEment-reviewed Digital History Hollywood's America section.

The following Edison clips may serve as a starting point:

• Chooting the Chutes, Coney Island, 1896
• Hockey Match on the Ice, 1898
• Tourists Going Round Yellowstone Park, 1899
• Spanish Dancers at the Pan American Exposition, 1901
• Princeton and Yale Football Game, 1903

You can use the same questions in the Leisure and Entertainment exercise when discussing the leisure activities in these clips. In addition, ask students to compare these early films with films produced today. How are they similar? Different?

Have students read The Wizard of Menlo Park, a brief biography of Edison found on the EDSITEment resource, Digital History. Ask students to think about Edison's life in the context of his inventions. How did Edison's hearing loss impact his work? What is considered his greatest invention? Why?

Selected EDSITEment Websites

• American Centuries: View from New England
  • The Youth's Companion World's Fair
• American Memory
  • America at Leisure
  • Touring Turn-of-the-Century America: Photographs from the Detroit Publishing Company, 1880-1920
  • Mapping the National Parks
  • Evolution of the Conservation Movement, 1850-1920
  • Baseball Cards, 1887-1914
  • Spalding Baseball Guides, 1889-1939
  • Inventing Entertainment: The Motion Pictures and Sound Recordings of the Edison Companies
  • Vaudeville and Popular Entertainment, 1870-1920
• American Studies at the University of Virginia
  • Coney Island History From Amusement Park Physics
  • Class and Leisure at America's First Resort: Newport, Rhode Island, 1870-1914
  • All Aboard: The Role of the Railroads in Protecting, Promoting, and Selling Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks
  • Commodifying Leisure: The Business of Baseball in the Gilded Age
  • The Circus in America Timeline: 1872-1905
  • "In Business for Myself": P.T. Barnum and the Management of Spectacle
  • Vaudeville
  • The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition: Idea, Experience, Aftermath
• Children in Urban America
  • New York Public Library Digital Collection
  • Photo Gallery of Play and Leisure
• Digital History
  • The Making of Modern America
  • Vacations and Resorts
  • Spectator Sports
  • Football
  • Baseball
  • Movies
  • American Music before 1900
  • Theater
  • World's Fairs
• Internet Public Library
  • Technology Timeline
  • Technological Timeline
  • Great Lodges of the National Parks
  • New Perspectives on the West: Yellowstone
  • New Perspectives on the West: Yosemite Valley
  • Coney Island
  • Baseball
  • Houdini
  • International Tennis Hall of Fame
  • Newport Casino—Tennis
  • Vaudeville
  • Missouri Historical Society
  • 1904 World's Fair: Looking Back at Looking Forward
• Learner.org
  • Interactive Timeline
• National Park Service: Links to the Past
  • Yellowstone National Park
  • Yosemite National Park