New Ways and New People

The Rise of Industry

Beginnings in Textiles

Samuel Slater built the first textile machines in the United States.
This was a shift from producing goods at home to producing products in factories.

The Factory System

The Waltham System: Introduced by Francis Lowell, it was a system where the entire process of converting cotton into cloth with a power loom took place under one roof.
Lowell, Massachusetts was the first model factory town.
Working Conditions: Buildings were dirty, and pay was poor.

Inventions and Industry

Some major inventions of the middle 1800s were the cotton gin, the process of vulcanization, the telegraph, the sewing machine, and the reaper.
You needed a patent, or license, to make, use, or sell new inventions.
Eli Whitney invented the idea of interchangeable parts and the cotton gin. His ideas led to idea of mass production.
Charles Goodyear invented vulcanization; Samuel Morse invented the telegraph and Morse Code; Elias Howe invented the sewing machine; and Isaac Singer improved the sewing machine.

The Machine on the Farm

Cyrus McCormick invented the reaper.
George Page invented the disc harrow.
John Heath invented the mechanical binder.

The Iron Industry

Early iron centers were in the Lehigh, Susquehanna, and Delaware river valleys.
Before 1830, wood and charcoal were used to heat furnaces and change iron ore into crude iron.
William Kelly came up with a better way of getting steel from iron ore.
Coal replaced charcoal in making iron.
By 1860, 500,000 tons of crude iron was produced in the United States.

A System of Transportation

The growth of manufacturing and farm production added to the need for better transportation.

New Roads

The draw backs of road transportation: roads were costly and slow; and wagons could carry only small loads.
By 1860, there were 88,000 miles of hard-surfaced roads in the United States.

Building Canals

Major canals developed in the early 1800s: the Erie Canal connecting New York City with Lake Erie, canals linking the Great Lakes and the Ohio River, and canals linking the Delaware and Raritan Rivers.
The Erie Canal linked New York City and Buffalo.
Other canals linked rivers, lakes, and oceans.

The First Steamboats

Thomas Newcomen invented the steam engine in the early 1700s.
In 1769, James Watt patented and improved the steam engine.
Robert Fulton adapted the steam engine for use on a boat (Clermont).
The first steamboat was developed in New York on the Hudson River.
Steamboats made for decreased travel time.

The Coming of Railroads

In England, George Stephenson, built a steam powered locomotive called The Rocket.
Early Railroads: The Baltimore and Ohio was the first successful railroad in the United States.
In 1830, Peter Cooper built the first American steam locomotive called Tom Thumb.
Expansion of Railroad Systems: By 1850, New England had a rail system; in 1852, there was a Detroit and Chicago railroad; in 1856, the Rock Island Line was the first to build a bridge over the Mississippi River; and by the mid-1800s there were over 30,000 miles of track.
Problems of the Railroads: Problems early railroads had were the motion and noise were distracting, and the sparks from the fire sometimes set fire to people's clothing. Different railroads had different gauges of track. There was a lack of strong bridges and rails.
The Rise of Related Industries: Related industries include iron, timber, coal, and telegraph.
The use of the telegraph improved railroad service as messages could be sent by telegraph from station to station, giving the arrival and departure times of trains.

The Growth of Cities

Old Cities and New Cities

New York was the largest city in the United States in 1840.
From 1820-1840, New York City grew from 123,000 to 312,000; Philadelphia went from 112,000 to 220,000; Baltimore 62,000 to 102,000; and Boston 42,000 to 93,000.
River cities like Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and Louisville grew, along with railroad cities like Chicago.

Benefits and Problems

The benefits of city life included more jobs and schools, libraries, operas, and plays.
The problems of city life were they often lacked water, adequate lighting, and police and fire protection; crowded tenements; and air pollution.

Improving City Life

By the 1850s gas lighting became common in cities.
Water systems were installed.
Police and fire departments were established.

The Changing Population

Increasing Immigration

Most immigrants came from Ireland and Germany during the years between 1820 and 1840.
From 1820 to 1840, 700,000 people came to the United States.
From 1840 to 1860, 4 million people arrived (1 million were Irish who were escaping the potato famine).

Settling in America

Most of the Irish immigrants settled in eastern cities (eastern seaports), Germans in the Middle West (Midwest farms).

The Nativist Movement

The nativist movement was founded during the 1830s and 1840s.
Nativists were against people not born in America. They also were against Catholics, and most of the Irish were Catholic.
Nativists only wanted American-born, Protestants to be able to vote.
The American party, also known as the Know-Nothings, was a national political party formed in opposition to the immigrants.

Hokanson's Social Studies


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