Cities were not as big as they are now. They were compact and small.Many people lived in the centre and walked to work. the very wealthy lived in the suburbs.
SHOPS AND HOUSES
The local shops was a source of food for the local people living in the town. Only the very wealthy owned their own houses. People who had middle income jobs usually rented out their houses. People who were unskilled were very poor and rented out one room living accommodation in a tenement house. These houses were very damp and dirty and many people died from diseases that has been passed around and starvation.
WORK
Belfast was one of the few Irish towns that had industry. Most jobs that people could obtain was in transport and services such as shops, banks and offices. Very few Irish people were well educated enough to get jobs like these so many ended up in a tenement houses