Short Answer Questions - Early Industrialization and the War of 1812/Nationalism

You will use the following information to help answer a short answer question. Please read carefully and review all materials before moving on to the assessment.

When most people think of the Industrial Revolution they think of the late 19^th Century, but the beginnings of this economic shift began in the early part of the Century. The nation would remain an agricultural-based economy, but new inventions were helping light the sparks that would build into a full-scale mechanized economy. The following information comes from Boundless.

Image of gears During the Industrial Revolution of the late 1700s to mid 1800s, changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology profoundly affected social and economic conditions in the United States. This Revolution originated in the United Kingdom in the mid 1700s and gradually spread to the United States.

In the 1780s, Oliver Evans invented an automated flour mill that eventually displaced traditional gristmills. By the turn of the century, Evans had also developed one of the first high-pressure steam engines and began establishing a network of machine workshops to manufacture and repair these popular inventions. In 1793, Eli Whitney developed a machine to separate the seeds of short fibered cotton from the fibers. The resulting cotton gin generated huge profits for slave-holding cotton planters in the South.

Reliance on horse power for machinery in the United States soon gave way to water power, with the consequence that industrialization was concentrated in New England and the rest of the Northeastern United States, where fast-moving rivers were located. The great number of rivers and streams along the Atlantic seaboard provided sites for constructing mills and the infrastructure required for early industrialization.

Between 1800 and 1820, additional industrial tools emerged that rapidly increased the quality and efficiency of manufacturing. In the first two decades of the 1800s, the development of all-metal machine tools and interchangeable parts facilitated the manufacture of new production machines for many industries. Steam power fueled by coal, wide utilization of water wheels, and powered machinery became common features of the manufacturing industry.

During this period, domestic trade also expanded with the introduction of canals, improved roads, and railways. Subsistence farming declined and more consumer goods arrived on the market. The transition away from an agricultural-based economy and towards machine-based manufacturing led to a great influx of population from the countryside, causing towns and cities to swell in population.

The Industrial Revolution marked a major turning point in history. During this period, average income and population began to exhibit unprecedented sustained growth. In the two centuries following the 1800s, the world's average per capita income increased more than tenfold, while the world's population increased more than sixfold.

View the following presentation on Early 19^th Century Industrialization.

The early 19^th Century also saw a second war with Britain. You may want to review the information earlier in the module about the roots of this conflict and its results. The War of 1812 ended in a military draw, but a vast majority of Americans viewed it as a victory. The smashing victory of Andrew Jackson over the British at New Orleans coupled with the fact that the young United States had taken on the most powerful nation in the world and held its own (this time without direct foreign assistance) showed that we were coming into our own. Following the War of 1812 we entered a period of intense nationalism, sometimes called the Era of Good Feelings. This time saw a continued push westward, a more aggressive foreign policy, and an outpouring of new art and literature.

View and listen to the following presentation on the War of 1812.

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