American Economy - 19th Century

401 Words2 Pages
The United States, at the end of the 19th century went through a drastic economic change in what is considered the Second Industrial Revolution. The economic change experienced was the amount of growth the American economy went through during that time. Many things can be attributed to this growth during that time period. A growing population of laborers, a larger market for manufactured goods, a vast amount of natural resources, and the government’s role in actively pushing post civil war industrial and agricultural development. During this time period, one of the changes that lead to this economic growth was the migration of the American population from small rural farming communities to the urban industrial cities. This migration of the American population created the needed workforce for the growing number of factories in the industrial cities. These cities and industries include, New York City, the Great Lakes area production of iron, steel, machinery, chemicals and packaged goods, Pittsburgh iron and steel manufacturing, and Chicago production of steel, farm machinery and processed meat in their giant stockyards. Many other industrial cities existed during this time, but these mentioned were the largest. Also an important part of the economic growth of the United States during this time period was the growth of the railroad. The railroad track increased dramatically during the last quarter of the 19th century. This increase was due to federal, state and local governments providing large land grants and government money from all levels. Private investments also contributed to the growth of the railroad. The ability to reach the population in the Western United States added to the growth of the market for manufactured goods. The railroad made it possible for the American population to move out west to cultivate the abundant natural resources
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