By: Merita A. Brian K. Quinton A. Danielle F. Dean W.

The industrial revolution is the era when power driven machinery was introduced into the United States this was during the 18 th century. The first efficient American machinery was built in 1791 by Samuel Slater. What conceptual breakthrough, used b y Eli Whitney to produce rifles and the cotton gin, was vital to the first industrial revolution in the US? Interchangeable parts, invented by Eli Whitney, was the key to the industrial revolutions success. Before this breakthrough if a part broke a replacement part might not fit because all parts were hand-tooled and a replacement might not be the exact same. Interchangeable parts made repair, maintenance, and production much faster.

Samuel Morse, A New England artist invented the telegraph which sent messages in the code over a wire in a matter of seconds. Business’ used it to reply up to date info on the prices and sales of their products. This also helped the railroads keep track of the trains movements and warn engineers of safety hazards. Coming soon were: John Deere steel plow for cultivating the tough prairie sod. Cyrus McCormick reaper harvesting grain in the south remained agriculture and relied on such crops as cotton, tobacco, and rice.

Lowell System- they get young women because they provide abunatant source of labor and owners could pay lower wages to women. The mills were often dark, hot, and cramped. One of the mill managers said “I regard my work people just as I regard my machinery. So as long as they can do my work for what I choose to pay them, I keep them, getting all I can, out of them.” Many workers started strikes but they often died down since they were never organized. They were easily replaced by people who arrived Europe.

People moved away from substance farming into manufacturing jobs. Machine made products replaced hand-made ones which lowered their cost but put the people who did hand work out of business, giant corporations and large labor unions came into being both had great affect on government and the economy ( the jobs people do).

Irish immigrants worked for less, worked hard. “Paddy camp” are crowded tents and shacks. They made the first canals. The population contained mostly women. The condition was pretty good in the beginning but it got bad because of the pay. They were easily replaced also so it wasn't a problem firing them or the women quitting. The business men, were willing to fire the women and get others who worked for less and worked hard.

1807: Robert Fulton steam boat era. Steam boats slashed shipping rates as well as voyage time. This helped the water transport to travel throughout and helped export goods such as lead, copper, and heavy machinery. The first steam engine was called Clermont. They would often blowup if overloaded with wood in the boilers. The Sultan blew up in April 1865, 17oo passengers died in the explosion including the prisoners of the union army.

This map shows. Examples of road, canals, and railroads.

The trade union movement faced fierce opposition from bankers and owners. Workers efforts to organize were at first hammered by court decisions declaring strikes illegal. In 1842 the Massachusetts supreme court supported the workers right to strike the case of the Commonwealth vs. Hunt. In March 1842, Chief Justice Lemuel Shaw ruled that labor combinations were legal provided that they were organized for a legal purpose and used legal means to achieve their goals.

Per capita income doubled Living standards improved for many New goods became cheaper, more affordable for many ***wealth became concentrated in the hands of fewer people

Danzer, Gerald A. "3." The Americans. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littell/Houghton Mifflin, Print. Kennedy, David M., Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas Andrew Bailey. "14." The American Pageant: A History of the American People. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, Print. N.d. Google. Web. 24 Sept