Summary Completion Questions in IELTS Reading

↕  scrollable window

As cities in the United States increased in size, they experienced growing pains, but a series of innovations in the late 19th century helped transform urban life. Breakthroughs such as the invention of the electric light bulb, as well as the development of efficient transportation and communication systems, helped lay the foundation for the sprawling, modern cities we know today.

In 1880, Thomas Edison patented the incandescent light bulb, which quickly became common in both homes and factories. This development transformed the lives of even lower- and middle-class Americans. Though electric power arrived slowly in rural areas, it became readily available in cities after the first commercial power plants opened in 1882. When Nikola Tesla developed the alternating current (AC) system for Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company, it allowed power to be transmitted over longer distances. This new capability expanded the reach of electricity, which in turn facilitated the growth of urban centres. In factories, electric lighting enabled round-the-clock production. The increased need for labour to meet this demand brought more people to cities in search of work.

As cities expanded, streetlights powered by electricity began to illuminate urban streets, ensuring that cities remained vibrant even at night. The introduction of electric street lamps marked a dramatic shift; economic and social activities no longer slowed at sundown as they had in smaller towns. Urban centres, fuelled by the factories that had drawn people to them, now operated 24/7.

Communication also experienced a dramatic transformation with the invention of the telephone, patented in 1876 by Alexander Graham Bell. By 1900, more than 1.5 million telephones were in use nationwide, ranging from private lines in homes to shared ‘party lines’ in rural areas. The telephone quickly overtook the telegraph as the preferred communication tool, allowing instant connections over longer distances. The rapid expansion of telephone networks played a crucial role in enabling the spread of urbanisation, as it facilitated the efficient coordination of activities and services in rapidly growing cities.

Similar to how electric lighting spurred factory productivity, the telephone accelerated business operations. Orders could now be placed continuously via telephone instead of through slower mail-order systems. This increase in demand led to further growth in production, which in turn required more workers. As companies sought to meet the growing consumer demand for their products, they turned to urban areas where the labour supply was concentrated. This created a cycle of growth that contributed significantly to urban expansion.

One of the most pressing challenges cities faced as they grew was how to manage the increased movement of people within urban spaces. Most transportation infrastructure at the time was designed to connect cities to each other, typically through railroads or canals. The most common forms of urban transportation before the 1880s were the omnibus and the horse car. The omnibus was a large, horse-drawn carriage, while the horse car was a similar vehicle placed on iron or steel tracks to offer a smoother ride. Though these horse-drawn vehicles worked reasonably well in smaller, less-congested cities, they were ill-suited for the crowded conditions in larger cities because they dropped manure all over the streets.

In 1887, Frank Sprague introduced the electric trolley, which functioned similarly to the horse car but was powered by electricity. This innovation allowed trolleys to run throughout the day and night, just like factories and their workers. In addition to transforming cities like New York and Chicago, electric trolleys helped modernise less prominent industrial centres such as Richmond, Virginia. Meanwhile, cities like San Francisco had already turned to cable cars, relying on pulley technology used in mining to navigate steep hills and create elegant middle-class neighbourhoods. However, in the largest cities, such as New York and Chicago, trolleys struggled to move efficiently through the sea of pedestrians. To solve this, planners elevated trolley lines above the streets, leading to the creation of elevated trains or L-trains, which first appeared in New York City in 1868 and later spread to other cities like Boston in 1887 and Chicago in 1892.

In response to growing demand for urban space, many cities turned to building upwards. Eastern cities, unlike their Midwestern counterparts, were geographically constrained and could not expand outwards. Rivers, coasts and settled land limited horizontal growth, while rising real estate prices made upward expansion an attractive solution. The first skyscraper, the ten-story Home Insurance Building in Chicago, was completed in 1885. While engineers had the ability to build taller buildings, they faced a crucial challenge: how to move people efficiently to higher floors. The solution came in 1889 with the invention of the electric elevator by the Otis Elevator Company, led by Elisha Otis. The introduction of elevators revolutionised urban architecture, enabling taller buildings to become viable. This sparked a boom in the construction of skyscrapers, particularly in crowded eastern cities, where developers sought to capitalise on the prestige and economic potential of these towering structures.

As a result of these innovations – electric lighting, improved communication, efficient transportation and the advent of skyscrapers – the cities of the late 19th and early 20th centuries underwent dramatic transformations. These technological advances facilitated urban growth and helped cities overcome the numerous challenges they faced. Urbanisation became a driving force behind economic, social and cultural change, shaping the trajectory of modern cities and their development.