This document provides a summary of the Great Migration that occurred between 1900-1970, when around 6 million African Americans left the rural South and moved to major cities in the North like Chicago, New York, Detroit, and Cleveland. It was sparked by the desire to escape racism and Jim Crow laws and seek better jobs and opportunities. The Chicago Defender newspaper encouraged this migration by portraying the North as a "Promised Land." Many talented artists and writers also moved North during this time and contributed to the Harlem Renaissance. The migration slowed during the Depression but increased again during World War II due to more factory jobs.

1. Name: _________________________ Class:_______ ______ Date: _____
Social Sciences lesson (Grade 8) with vocabulary words highlighted
THE GREAT MIGRATION (1900 – 1970)
Text adapted from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_migration.html
Photos: http://faculty.washington.edu/gregoryj/diaspora/bibliography.htm. Map: http://www.enchantedlearning.com.
" Withinmigration community, there had been
constant
the black
since the end of the nineteenth
century. Much of that migration had taken place within
the South as blacks migrated from place to place
trying to make a decent living.
Seeking better
opportunities, millions
of African-Americans
left their homes in the
With everything they own loaded into their car, South for the major
a Florida family leaves -- to face an uncertain cities of the North,
future in the North (about 1932). including Chicago,
New York, Detroit,
Cleveland and
Pittsburgh.
" The CHICAGO DEFENDER, the most influential black newspaper, encouraged blacks to leave. The paper
held a vision of 'the North as the land of freedom,' a dream that has been in the hearts of black men and women
since slavery time -- many referred to the North as 'The Promised Land.' Young Richard Wright, who became an
internationally acclaimed writer, remembered how the North kept hope alive during the dark days of his
childhood in the deep South. 'The North symbolized to me all that I had not felt or seen; it had no relation to
what actually existed. Yet by imagining a place where everything is possible, it kept hope alive inside of me.'
Opportunities unheard-of in the South,
such as the insurance underwriting at
the Chicago-based company at left, did
exist in the North. (Photo at left: 1940)
However, except during the war years
(1917–1918 and 1941–1945), when
Northern factories went into full
production, jobs were limited during
much of "The Great Migration" period.
Families accepted whatever work they
could find, including sending children to
work selling newspapers. (Photo at
right: 1942)
"Among those who migrated were many of the most creative people in the South. Jazz musicians came from
New Orleans to play in Chicago, Kansas City, and New York. Blues players came from the Delta. The NAACP
welcomed writers and poets like writer Zora Neale Hurston, poet Langston Hughes, and sculptor Augusta
Savage. They [and others]… created a cultural explosion known as the Harlem Renaissance.

2. THE GREAT MIGRATION (1900 – 1970), continued
"The migration slowed down during the Depression in the 1930s but picked up speed when World War II began.
Again jobs opened up in factories. At the same time, mechanization came to the cotton fields, displacing many
black farmers. Between 1910 –1970, an estimated six million blacks migrated from the South. "
WHO SHOULD WE LEARN MORE ABOUT? THESE PERSONS HAVE MULTIMEDIA ONLINE:
=PHOTOS, =VIDEO, =WRITTEN ACCOUNTS OF LEAVING THE SOUTH AND ARRIVING IN THE NORTH
Mary McLeod Bethune A. Philip Randolph Labor leader.
An important educator. (Note: Booker T. Washington Master educator.
a CPS school is named after her.) Madam C.J. Walker Self-made millionaire.
Ned Cobb Tenant farmer. Ida B. Wells Voice against lynching.
Charles Evers Activist. Hosea Williams War hero and activist.
Marcus Garvey Black nationalist. Richard Wright Acclaimed writer.
VOCABULARY WORDS:
community, migration, decent,
emigrate, influential, acclaimed,
symbolize, mechanization,
displace, renaissance
renaissance
SOCIAL SCIENCES TERMS:
The Arts: the Harlem Renaissance
Music: Jazz, Blues
Politics: the NAACP
EXTRA CREDIT:
Look at the people in the first
photo on Page 1. How difficult do
you think it must have been for
them to leave behind "everything
they knew" – to start a new life
elsewhere?
Write a 3-paragraph paper about
this. What do you know about how
they probably lived before – and
after – the move? See Mr. Foxworth
to find out how to use our library
databases to learn more.