The idea of the industrial revolution begin in England and soon was sweeping through the world. For years, items were made by hand, usually in the home of a master of a specific craft such as iron-making or being a gunsmith. Making items by hand took hours, or days and could be very meticulous work for the craft-master.
Soon, the idea of manufacturing went through a conversion, changing from items being made in homes to items being manufactured in factories. This transformation in manufacturing swept through the world from 1760-1840 and many new factories began to spring up across the world. In the United States, for the longest time, a majority of the economy was based on an agrarain culture. The southern part of the United States boomed by growing crops and items such as cotton that could be turned into clothes and other needed items. However, with the industrial revolution, the agrarian society began to transform more into an industrial economy. The change in economy created a change in society, many people began to leave the rural country side to find jobs in the industrial north. Before too long, many northern cities became overpopulated and it was hard to control the amount of people living there. With an increased number of residents, the cities ended up with waste and other garbage in the streets, which could lead to more people getting sick. Factory owners would hire children to come and work in the factory because their little arms and fingers could do faster work. Many factories had unsafe working conditions and many people were injured and even some were killed by the machines they were hired to work on. Even with the negative aspects of working in the factories, people lined up looking for work. Businesses began to boom in the north due to the new industrial tools that were created to speed up production rates. The American landscape would get a new look - one full of black soot covering the town, new tools, new opportunities, a chance to grow America. |