The Photographs of Jacob Riis
Name: _____________________
AIM / ESSENTIAL QUESTION
How successful were photographs in demonstrating the conditions of immigrants during the Gilded
Age?
The latter portion of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century witnessed the start of
photojournalism - investigators scouring the slums and ghettos of American cities. Just forty to fifty years
following the devastating and powerful photographs taken by Matthew Brady during the Civil War, these new
chroniclers of the urban scene, along with the print "muckrakers," recognized that photographic images could have
an effect on perceptions of social realities and used them to expose the horrific living conditions of America's
immigrant underclass. The photos provoked debate and discussion, and promoted legislative action to remedy the
neglect of those who had no real voice in the halls of government.
This pioneering work of photojournalism by Jacob Riis focused on the plight of the poor in the Lower East Side of
New York City, and greatly influenced future "muckraking" journalism. Riis mostly attributed the plight of the poor
to environmental conditions, but he also divided the poor into two categories: deserving of assistance (mostly
women and children) and undeserving (mostly the unemployed and intractably criminal). Riis was a product of his
time; like many people of the late 19th and early 20th century, he could demonstrate great bias and bigotry towards
certain groups of people. He wrote with prejudice about Jews, Italians, Asians and Irish, and he stopped short of
calling for government intervention. However, much of the inspiration for his work seemed to arise from a
genuine sympathy for his subjects, and his work shocked many New Yorkers into taking action to help the poor.
Directions: Use the web sites listed below (or others if desired) and review as many of Riis’s
photograph’s as possible.
 How the Other Half Lives, by Jacob Riis (from Authentic History)
http://www.authentichistory.com/1898-1913/2-progressivism/2-riis/index.html

UVA: Documenting "The Other Half": The Social Reform Photography of Jacob Riis and Lewis
Hine
http://xroads.virginia.edu/~ma01/davis/photography/images/riisphotos/slideshow1.html

NY Times: Jacob A. Riis’s New York
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/02/27/nyregion/20080227_RIIS_SLIDESHOW_index.html?_r=0
Then, using copies of the Photo Analysis Worksheet from the National Archives and Records
Administration, choose three (3) photographs and explore them in detail. Be prepared to share your
results with the class.
Photo Analysis Worksheet:
http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/worksheets/photo_analysis_worksheet.pdf
Adapted from: https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-by-era/immigration-and-migration/resources/immigration-gilded-age-usingphotographs-primary-