Objectives Explain the changes that the Industrial Revolution brought to American life. Discuss the importance of Samuel Slater’s cotton mill. Describe the growth of industry in the United States after 1812. Identify important developments in factories and the problems that factory life caused.

Terms and People Industrial Revolution – a time period during which machines gradually took the place of many hand tools factory system – brought workers and machinery together in one place capitalist – a person who invests capital, or money, in a business to earn a profit Francis Cabot Lowell – an American who, with other capitalists, built a factory where spinning and weaving were done in the same building

Terms and People (continued) mass production – the rapid manufacture of large numbers of identical objects interchangeable parts – identical pieces that could be assembled quickly by unskilled workers

How did the new technology of the Industrial Revolution change the way Americans lived? In early America, most people worked as farmers and made the goods they needed at home. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, many people began working in factories and buying manufactured goods.

Prior to the Industrial Revolution, women spun thread and wove cloth at home. These processes were very time-consuming.

A series of innovations changed the way fabric was made. The Industrial Revolution began in the British textile industry in the 1700s. A series of innovations changed the way fabric was made. In the 1760s, the spinning jenny sped up the thread-making process. In 1764, Richard Arkwright invented the water frame, a spinning machine powered by running water rather than human energy. To house the large machines, manufacturers built textile mills on the banks of rivers.

There were disadvantages to building factories on riverbanks: In a dry season, the machines had no power. Most factories were far from cities, and labor was hard to find in rural areas.

In 1790, Arkwright built the first steam-powered textile plant.

The steam engine was a reliable source of power. The steam-powered plant had advantages over water-powered plants. Factories could now be built in cities, where young women and children provided cheap labor. The steam engine was a reliable source of power.

The new mills created a new way of working, known as the factory system. Instead of spinning at home as time permitted, textile workers had to begin and end work at specific hours at the factories. Workers now had to keep up with the machines instead of working at their own pace.

British mill owners turned to capitalists to get the money they needed to build spinning factories and machines. 1765 1784 By 1784, British workers were producing 24 times as much thread as they had in 1765.

Britain forbade skilled workers to leave the country in order to keep their technology a secret. But in 1789, an apprentice in one Arkwright’s factories did just that. Samuel Slater memorized the plans of Arkwright’s machines and then sailed to New York.

Slater joined forces with a wealthy merchant, Moses Brown, who had rented a textile mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. There, Slater built a spinning machine based on his memory of Arkwright’s machines. Slater’s successful mill marked the beginning of American industrialization.

In the U.S., industrialization began in the Northeast, where there were merchants who had the capital to build factories. But U.S. industry did not grow significantly until the War of 1812, when Americans could no longer rely on imported goods.

Before the 1800s, skilled craftsworkers made goods by hand, and when a part broke, they had to make a unique piece to fix the product. But American inventor Eli Whitney devised a system of interchangeable parts in the 1790s. This was one of the most important developments in American industry, called mass production.

Manufacturing became more efficient, and the prices of many goods dropped. People bought more goods, and U.S. industry expanded to satisfy their needs. U.S. Industry

The Lowell Mills Beginnings Before the War of 1812, Francis Cabot Lowell saw the latest weaving machines in England. Back in the U.S., Lowell built an improved version of the English machines. A New Kind of Mill Lowell opened a mill in Waltham, Massachusetts, where spinning and weaving were done in the same building. The Town of Lowell After Lowell’s death in 1817, his partners built more factories. They also built a new town to improve the lives of their workers.

The new factories were staffed with “Lowell girls” from nearby farms, who received an education during their off-duty hours.

Unlike the Lowell girls, most factory workers had to tolerate harsh conditions. American textile mills, coal mines, and steel foundries hired children as young as 7 to work long hours in unsafe conditions. By 1880, more than a million children between the ages of 10 and 15 worked for pay.

Factory Conditions Environment Conditions in factories were appalling. Factories were poorly lit with little fresh air. Injuries Many workers were injured by machines not designed to protect them. Business owners provided no payments to disabled workers. Length of Workdays Factory workdays lasted 12 or 14 hours. By 1844, workers were demanding shorter days, but they did not get them until many years later.

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