Progress of Industrialization Objective: Explain the causes and effects of the Industrial Revolution with emphasis on-the growth of industrialization around the world.

Progress of Industrialization When other nations began to industrialize, England tried unsuccessfully to protect its lead by prohibiting the export of the inventions described earlier. The first European country to industrialize was Belgium. In 1817, an Englishman, John Cockerill, opened textile factories there. After Belgium, France and Germany began slowly to modernize their manufacturing procedures.

Progress of Industrialization By the 1820s, United States entrepreneurs using English technology had set up textile mills in New England. The most famous were the mills in Lowell, Massachusetts. After the Civil War, the United States experienced a surge in industrialization caused by its abundance of natural resources and raw materials. Cheap labor was supplied by the huge increase in immigrants as well as by people moving from the country to towns and cities. By the early 20th century, the United States led the world in manufacturing.

Rapid Development of Technology Technological innovations became more advanced as industrialization spread. The period of the late 1800s, often called the Second Industrial Revolution, was characterized by greater and more rapid technological developments than the earlier industrial revolution.

Greater Use of Steel Steel is stronger and more flexible than iron. Then, too, it does not rust. Therefore, steel replaced iron as the material from which railroad tracks, beams for skyscrapers and bridges, and machines were made.

Electric street lamps made city streets safer. The use of electricity as a power source became widespread in the late 1800s. Thomas Edison produced the first light bulb, which allowed factories to operate at night. Electric street lamps made city streets safer. Electricity

Advances in Communication and Transportation Communication changed with Alexander Graham Bell’s invention of the telephone in 1876. Edison’s improvements to the telephone made it more practical for widespread use. The invention of the internal combustion engine led to the development of the automobile, which transformed transportation. The innovations that occurred during the Second Industrial Revolution helped shaped the world we know today.