The Industrial Revolution

Causes of the Industrial Revolution

In addition to math and astronomy, the Scientific Revolution produced new techniques in agriculture. These new techniques improved water drainage from fields, allowed for larger livestock herds, and provided better cultivation practices. With the introduction of new foods from overseas, Europeans planted high-yield crops like corn and potatoes. In general, this led to more food in Northern Europe. More food led to population growth.

In the 18^th century, in Great Britain, the food increase led to some farmers getting unexpectedly wealthy. They wanted to get even richer, so they began the Enclosure Movement, where they bought up “public” land. The poor, landless farmers that lived on public land were forced to move to cities. England was also rich in natural resources: coal, waterways, and iron. Meanwhile, the rich now had enough extra capital and land to fund innovation.

British Innovations of the Industrial Revolution

Select each innovation below to see how people completed tasks before and after the innovations.

Weaving: The Flying Shuttle (1733) and the Spinning Jenny (1764)

Before: The image below shows women weaving by hand using simple wooden props to help hold the yarn.

Women weaving before the invention of the flying shuttle and the spinning jenny.

After: The images below show the Spinning Jenny and the Flying Shuttle. A Spinning Jenny spins many bobbins at once. The Flying Shuttle quickens the process of weaving thread into cloth. Both are large machines but can still be operated by one person.

An image of a Spinning Jenny An image of the flying shuttle.

Result: These inventions made the process of turning cotton into yarn and yarn into woven fabric much faster than by hand. It produced a lower quality but inexpensive cloth that required many, many fewer workers to produce.

Water Power: The Steam Engine (1776)

Before: The image below shows a mill attached to a granary. Water from a nearby running source (like a river) pours onto the wheel, making the wheel turn. The wheel is connected to a machine inside the granary to pound the grain into flour. This is practical for one location, but cannot move and must be located near water.

A water mill attached to a granary.

After: The image below shows a model of a steam engine. Water is held in a container (on the far left of the picture), which produces enough steam to make the wheel turn. This is a simple engine, but it became the basis of trains, steamboats, and cars today.

A model of a steam engine

Result: This invention replaced individual human power, animal power, and even water/mill power (an innovation of the Middle Ages). Steam engines powered factories, which could now be located anywhere.

Transportation: Railroads (1803)

Before: The image below shows a man sitting on a horse-drawn cart. He has supplies in the back. He is limited by how much weight the horses can hold, how far the horses can walk, and what terrain is suitable for horses and carts.

An animal drawn wagon

After: The image below shows a very early railroad. It uses a steam engine to push the locomotive, which is attached to one or more cars that can haul people or goods. This is only limited by the rail route options.

A steam locomotive.

Result: This invention used a small steam engine to move a vehicle (train). Now, goods and later people could move across long distances quickly and at a low cost.

The result of these innovations, and others, was the replacement of human labor with machine labor. Even more farmers and craftsmen moved to the city (called urbanization) to work in factories.

The Industrial Revolution Spreads to the United States

If you go back and look at the dates of these inventions, you’ll notice that it is around the same time as the American Revolution (1776-1783). As former British colonies, Americans enjoyed the early benefits of the Industrial Revolution. In the first 75 years of being a country, American innovators industrialized the United States. They invented the Cotton Gin (1794), Interchangeable Parts (1798), the Steamboat (1807), the Mechanical Reaper (1831), and the Telegraph (1844). In fact, America’s land, resources, and production outpaced their labor supply! This coincided with a potato blight, religious warfare, and political revolutions in Northern Europe. European immigrants, especially from Ireland, Sweden, and (what would later become) Germany, flooded America in hope of a better life. Many of them worked factory jobs.

Effects of Industrialism

This massive societal change would impact England and America’s cultures, governments, and economies. The first effect was urbanization (the movement of people to cities and the construction of cities). By 1900, of the top 10 most populated cities in the world, 3 were in the United States (New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia) and two were in Great Britain (Manchester and London). Women especially moved to cities for the opportunity for financial independence.

However, factories were also dangerous – children worked as young as nine, which resulted in stunted growth; women with long hair had to be careful not to get it caught in the machinery, or they could be scalped. Men, women, and children were sometimes dismembered and killed in these unregulated factories. Work weeks sometimes exceeded 60 hours.

Without adequate lighting, cities were teeming with crime (especially against vulnerable groups like the poor, disabled, and women). However, among the rich and middle classes, cities also offered entertainment (museums, theaters, and dance halls) and higher standards of living (new foods and cheap goods).

The British Parliament enacted limits on the number of work hours allowed per day per person, placed minimum age limits on workers (to restrict child labor,) and set regulations on cleanliness and safety to improve working conditions within factories in its Factory Act of 1883. America also worked to improve its cities and labor conditions through the work of labor unions and progressivists from the 1870s to 1920.

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