The USA started exporting and importing goods with other countries. So, to keep up with demand, we had to produce more, which led to factories and labor unions. Also, the Railway Act that President Lincoln signed helped spur the Industrial Revolution
Although the making of new transportation was dangerous and killed many workers, the ways the developments in transportation brought economic and social changes in the United States in the period 1820 to 1860 was because of the new railroads, the new types of transportation, and the way it helped make more income. The first reason why the developments in transportation brought social changes was because of the railroads. With new railroads people were now able to move all around the United States. Now that people were settling in new places it allowed the growth of cities. With all these growing cites, it really changed the way people lived.
This can be demonstrated through the examination of urbanization, the rise of new classes, theories (by Smith, Malthus and Ricardo), and factory conditions. The industrial revolution began with tinkers introducing new inventions that were going to dramatically improve the way people produced goods. These new machines (such as the water frames, cotton gins, power looks, and the spinning jenny) enabled different industries (like the Textile industry to produce products in mass quantities. In consequence, these new methods of production made other approaches such as the cottage industry obsolete. These new techniques may have allowed for ample production of goods and prices of goods to drop, ultimately increasing consumerism; inevitably though, it had a destructive effect on the old-fashioned methods of production.
The rapid growth of old and new industries led to a population migration from rural to urban areas. The agricultural industry was another of the industries that faced a lot of changes, mechanisation meant better yields which therefore meant that, less agricultural workers were needed. There is evidence to support and contradict whether or not those economic developments did in fact threaten the power of the elites. There is evidence to support the idea that the economic developments in Germany in the period 1900-1914 didn’t pose a threat to the power of the elites because economic growth and the opening up of new industries bring many benefits with them. While it has been argued that an exceptional economic growth caused some problems, the advantages that came with it, outweigh the negatives.
It also had a stable government, which allowed for the people to begin industrializing in the first place, harbors for trade, a very large population resulting in a very large workforce, and many water ways throughout the country to transport materials and products as well as to use for water power at mills. There are several reasons why the Industrial revolution started in the first place. One reason being that there was widespread resistance to disease in Europe as well as a reliable food supply, allowing for steady population growth, which in return created more demand for products, which in turn resulted in new ways of producing products more efficiently in response to demand. As a result of Industrialization, a new economic philosophy arose. Capitalism called for the lack of government intervention in the economy.
It made it more apparent that heavy industries, factories and coal mining were becoming more and more important. As stated above the railroads made the trade of goods, coal and steel easier which lead to the growth of steel production as well as the growth of large corporations in the oil, sugar and meat industries. With the arrival of new machine driven factories, the need for skilled workers was dramatically reduce, creating more opportunities for unskilled workers. These laborors were hired to clear lands, build and repair tracks and build the trains needed to supply the new demands. With the promise of learning a trade and becoming more wealthy a new class of people was appearing in the cities, the middle class.
Both of these inventions provided new job opportunities and promoted industrial growth. Unskilled workers or immigrants would lay the tracks and maintain the rail lines while factory workers manufactured the locomotives and rails. This need attracted fourteen million immigrants into the country and encouraged continued growth. Most of the industrialization took place in the Northeast region as the textile plants grew because they had an abundant water supply that could be used to power the textile mills (Library of Congress 2013). The sewing machine was used in factories and provided many jobs.
These machines that were invented helped to make work more efficient. In DBQ 12, document 6, says that there were many machines that increased the speed and quantity or the work that was being done such as the Flying Shuttle, and Spinning Jenny. Scientist, who sought out a need of faster and better work, invented these machines. The creation of the machines was the basis of the Industrial Revolution. In DBQ 12, document 5, it states, “The stream of English scientific thought was one of the main tributaries [causes] of the industrial revolution”.
DBQ 12: The Industrial Revolution: Beginnings The Industrial Revolution started for many reasons. It was because of the resources and where they were located. Also, innovation and innovator made things and showed ideas, the people, and political and economic freedom played a part in it as well. England’s land was no farther then seventy miles away from sea in every direction. (doc 4) It was a good way for transportation of the goods and getting resources giving them.
At this point in time, roads got improved and underwent repair on a larger extent; the production of railways skyrocketed in the German States. The expansion of railways increased industrialization and provided many raw materials, which could only be accessed to industries from far sources. Just like Zollverein, this made connections with one another (the German States) easier and promoted freedom, independence and prosperity. Germans began to see unity in factors other than language.