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Then in 1798, Whitney created interchangeable parts for guns. The price was low because they were easy and fast to make. The drawback was that the quality of the guns was not as efficient as those that were hand made. The choice was between quality versus quantity, and most factory workers chose quantity.

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The Open Door Web Site : History : The Industrial Revolution : Social Development in the Industrial Revolution

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The Open Door Web Site : History: The Industrial Revolution : Social Development in the Industrial Revolution

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Most middle class families rented their homes rather than owning them.

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All the information i need is on this website.

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Women of the Middle Class

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FC114: The Rising Status of Women in the Late 1800's - The Flow of History

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By the same token this rising status opened up new avenues of activity and expression for women. More women pursued secondary and university educations. Many of them also found their way into the workplace in what would eventually come to be seen as "female" occupations as nurses, teachers, and secretaries.

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The upper middle class often imitated aristocratic nobility.

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"BREAKING NEWS! INFORMATION HAS BEEN LEAKED THAT THE FAMOUS RICHARD ARKWRIGHT WAS ACTUALLY BORN INTO THE MIDDLE CLASS YET HAD WORKED HIS WAY UP TO UPPER CLASS."

I was very very Very VERY VERYYY Interested in this quote.

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During the 1800s the average life expectancy had a mean of 47 years

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suffragetteˌsʌfrəˈdʒɛt/nounhistoricalplural noun: suffragettes

1. a woman seeking the right to vote through organized protest.

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Children in the upper middle class would receive a standard education, however the children of the lower middle class didn't always receive an education.

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Scroll down to 2. Class tensions grow

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The middle class lived in houses, not on the streets. Like some lower class people.

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The life expectancy was low. People were expected to die at a young age.

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scroll to "Emerging middle class"

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Since the Industrial Revolution was so new at the end of the 18th century, there were initially no laws to regulate new industries. For example, no laws prevented businesses from hiring seven-year-old children to work full time in coal mines or factories. No laws regulated what factories could do with their biohazard waste.

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Middle class people didn't have servants but were allowed to have a nanny to look after their children

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Due to the growth in size/numbers, the middle class started become more powerful and rich like the upper class, therefore they dressed like the upper class and hosted expensive dinner parties.

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Men in the middle class had the right to vote and be represented in parliament.

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Link is working now, I know you are all interested, and eager to read this AWESOME article!

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Rise to power

Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period. Giving voice to urbanisation and industrialisation this emerging middle-class emphasised competition, thrift, prudence, self-reliance and personal achievement as opposed to privilege and inheritance. The moral terms of this outlook enabled the middle-class to accommodate diversity. Being middle class was defined by taking responsibility for one's self, one's family and the community but the precise terms of this were open to individual interpretation.

The success of the middle-classes in the Victorian period can be seen in their ability to universalise a set of principles based on individuality and progress. In moving from a society based on rank and privilege to one based on free exchange, the very idea that an individual, through hard work, thrift and self reliance, could achieve social and economic success provided an equalising principle. But, whilst the idea of social mobility was, and still is, central to legitimising the idea of a market economy, many critics of industrialisation, such as Thomas Carlyle, feared that the community was threatened by the aggressive individualism of some or the frustrated aspirations of others.

A sense of social order was formulated in the mixing of political economy, paternalism and evangelical religion which ascribed specific roles to groups of people. The working classes were encouraged to improve but they were also reminded they should be content with their lot as labourers. Whilst women's work, either for wages or to ensure the success of the family business, might be essential, the idealised wife and mother was prescribed the responsibility for cultivating morality and spirituality in the home as a corrective to the worst excesses of competitive industry.

These perspectives were popularised in a range of books and articles in the nineteenth century but are perhaps best demonstrated by Samuel Smiles and his best seller Self Help published in 1859. Smiles argued, along with others of his time, that individuals were responsible for their own future: men had the same characteristics and potentialities that could be maximised through hard work, perseverance, thrift, prudence and self-reliance. These ideas emphasised individuals rather than classes, morals rather than economic realities, and talked of the deserving and undeserving, the rough and the respectable, thus reducing persistent inequalities to moral rather than economic causes.

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Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period.

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The wealth of the members of the middle class was very varied. The middle class included both the keepers of small businesses and the owners of large companies and factories.

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Most middle class people lived in the city due to the fact they had to work in businesses

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This is a good article to read, I was very very VERY interested in reading this.

The middle class, this article contains all you need to know for the Industrial Revolution

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bourgeoisieˌbʊəʒwɑːˈziː/noun

1. the middle class, typically with reference to its perceived materialistic values or conventional attitudes.

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In the 1800's the middle class was split into 2 groups; the upper middle class and lower middle class. The upper middle consist of factory owners, doctors, lawyers and government employees whereas the lower middle included skilled workers, toolmakers and factory overseers.

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The term “middle class” was rarely used until after 1850.

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Could employ slavery or or maids for only £6 a year

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A crowd of middle class persons from the Industrial Revolution

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The middle class could convert money they earned into power

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The middle class was split into two classes, the upper middle class consisting of lawyers, doctors and government workers. Ans also the lower middle class consisting of tool makers, and other people with small businesses such as barbers

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Rise to power

Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period. Giving voice to urbanisation and industrialisation this emerging middle-class emphasised competition, thrift, prudence, self-reliance and personal achievement as opposed to privilege and inheritance. The moral terms of this outlook enabled the middle-class to accommodate diversity. Being middle class was defined by taking responsibility for one's self, one's family and the community but the precise terms of this were open to individual interpretation.

The success of the middle-classes in the Victorian period can be seen in their ability to universalise a set of principles based on individuality and progress. In moving from a society based on rank and privilege to one based on free exchange, the very idea that an individual, through hard work, thrift and self reliance, could achieve social and economic success provided an equalising principle. But, whilst the idea of social mobility was, and still is, central to legitimising the idea of a market economy, many critics of industrialisation, such as Thomas Carlyle, feared that the community was threatened by the aggressive individualism of some or the frustrated aspirations of others.

A sense of social order was formulated in the mixing of political economy, paternalism and evangelical religion which ascribed specific roles to groups of people. The working classes were encouraged to improve but they were also reminded they should be content with their lot as labourers. Whilst women's work, either for wages or to ensure the success of the family business, might be essential, the idealised wife and mother was prescribed the responsibility for cultivating morality and spirituality in the home as a corrective to the worst excesses of competitive industry.

These perspectives were popularised in a range of books and articles in the nineteenth century but are perhaps best demonstrated by Samuel Smiles and his best seller Self Help published in 1859. Smiles argued, along with others of his time, that individuals were responsible for their own future: men had the same characteristics and potentialities that could be maximised through hard work, perseverance, thrift, prudence and self-reliance. These ideas emphasised individuals rather than classes, morals rather than economic realities, and talked of the deserving and undeserving, the rough and the respectable, thus reducing persistent inequalities to moral rather than economic causes.

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Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period.

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The early middle class was created when factory managers, merchants and shippers became wealthy from the huge production from the Industries, In the 1800's the new middle class split into two groups, the upper middle class and the lower middle class. The upper middle class included factory owners, doctors, lawyers, and governement employees, they were almost the equivalent of the upper class. The lower middle class included skilled workers, toolmaklers, and factory overseers. They usually lived in the city because they had to work in businesses,.

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Common jobs of the lower middle class included factory overseers and skilled workers such as toolmakers, draftsmen, printers, government employees, and other jobs that required some skill and or education.

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Found a great website

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Liza Picard explores the expansion of the middle classes.

Usage terms: Public Domain

A junior clerk in a City firm might have earned less than £100 a year. The chairman of the Board might have been paid £1,000. But they shared one vital distinction; they were both members of the 'great middle class'. They worked with letters and figures, wore morning coats, stiff white collars and top hats. A skilled engineering workman might earn more than a clerk, but he worked with his hands - he was irredeemably a member of the lower classes.

Usage terms: Public Domain

The lowest rung of the ladder

The boom in trade and the new sophistication of banking methods meant that every business and factory needed a small army of clerks. Every invoice, every letter, every ledger entry had to be accurately, quickly and legibly written by hand. It was estimated that the 44,000 clerks, accountants and bankers who had dispatched business in 1851 had swollen to 119,000 20 years later. Anthony Trollope, who became famous as a writer, began as a junior clerk in the Post Office, at £90 a year. Seven years later he had risen to £140.

Usage terms: Public Domain

But living could be cheap. The £100-a-year clerk and his wife could find a cottage to rent, in a suburb within walking distance of his work; three miles was thought to be reasonable, to cover on foot twice a day. He must have sometimes longed to board an omnibus as it splashed past him on a rainy day, but for his careful budget the fare - perhaps as much as six pence - was just not affordable except in a crisis.

Their suburban cottage could be furnished for less than £20. His wife might employ a 'slavey' or maid-of-all-work, for only £6 a year. Barring accidents, his employment was safe. The hundreds of clerks in the Bank of England could stay until they dropped dead; there was no compulsory retiring age for them.

Domestic servants

A middle class woman was entirely dependent on a supply of domestic servants, ranging from the untrained 'slavey' to a staff of several highly trained specialists. A young wife newly elevated to her husband's status in the middle class might not have the accumulated knowledge of an old-established household. Here was a huge market for Advice Books, such as Isabella Beeton's Book of Household Management, published in 1861 (and still in print and updated).

Beeton's Book of Household Management

The frontispiece and title-page of Mary Beeton's Book of Household Management (1861), showing a farmyard scene with the motto 'The Free, Fair Homes of England'.

Usage terms: Public Domain

Its usefulness in a middle class home was not so much in teaching the servants themselves, many of whom would be illiterate, but in enabling the mistress, after a quick look at the relevant pages, to pretend to an encyclopedic and impressive knowledge herself.

Retail therapy

Having set the maid to clean all the silver, and the cook to prepare for that night's dinner party, and kissed her husband as he left for the City, the prosperous housewife had the day before her. She might briefly interview her children before returning them to their governess or nursery maid. She was not concerned with buying food, much of which was delivered on a daily basis, nor with the wine for the evening, which her husband would have ordered, perhaps with the collaboration of the butler. (The germ of supermarkets was sprouting even then, in Mr. Harrod's grocery store, opened in 1849, and William Whiteley's department store in Bayswater, proudly titled The Universal Provider, in 1863.)

Usage terms: Public Domain

The housewife could take a hansom cab, or perhaps their own carriage, to visit her friends, or sample the fashionable new emporia in the town centre. The modest establishments sheltering behind uninformative façades had long gone. The glory of plate glass, and the brilliance of gas lighting, enabled the retailer to entice his clientele into his premises, where male and female staff waited to serve them. The motto of the up-and-coming shopkeeper was 'the customer is always right', and the sales staff had to bow, in every sense, to the customer.

Usage terms: Public Domain

If she could afford to, she would have her clothes made for her in one of the fashionable - and very expensive - salons. The London 'season' lasted only a few months, from Easter until August, when Parliament rose and everyone who mattered could retire to their grouse moors with sighs of relief. But during the season a rich woman expected to be able to order from her dressmaker an elaborate gown to be delivered the next day.

A lady in less exalted circles might buy a dress ready-made, or buy a ready-made bodice, which was complicated to make, with a length of the same fabric to make the skirt herself. She, or her dressmaker, might use one of the paper patterns distributed free by fashion magazines such as The World of Fashion, from 1850.

The middle class standard of living

The Victorian era was a golden age, for the middle class. The huge army of clerks worked from nine to four, or ten to five. For those without a grouse moor, a family seaside holiday in Brighton or Margate could be just as refreshing.

The days of paid annual leave had not yet arrived, but the family could take lodgings in Brighton or Margate, both easily accessible by steam boat or train, and the husband could lead a bachelor life during the week and join his family by 'the husbands' boat' for the weekend.

Usage terms: Public Domain

For those at the top of the pile, life was very comfortable. Servants, of course, could be worrying (just as labour-saving machines can go wrong, in our day). A man earning the very good income of, say, £1,000 paid just under £30 income tax. He ruled his household with a rod of iron, since his wife knew that she had little chance of divorcing him no matter what he did. His children were brought up to respect and obey him. If the domestic scene became too noisy or boring for him, he could always escape to his club. It seems, in retrospect, an enviable existence.

Liza Picard researches and writes about the history of London. She spent many years working in the office of the Solicitor of the Inland Revenue and lived in Gray's Inn and Hackney, before retiring to live in Oxford.

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Liza Picard explores the expansion of the middle classes. Usage terms: Public Domain A junior clerk in a City firm might have earned less than £100 a year. The chairman of the Board might have been paid £1,000. But they shared one vital distinction; they were both members of the 'great middle class'.

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Common jobs of the upper middle class were factory or mine owners, managers, high level government employees, doctors, lawyers, engineers, shop owners and other successful entrepreneurs.

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A contrast between the middle class and the lower class from Punch.

The middle class man is living in comfort: he sits in front of a warm blazing fire, leaning back in a posh chair with a wine glass in hand.

However, the other man is leaning forward in front of an empty fireplace, looking quite miserable.

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John Leech Cartoons from Punch magazine | PUNCH Magazine Cartoon Archive

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Effects of a Strike Upon the Capitalist and Upon the Working Man.

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The middle class would grow throughout the 1800’s and would include both an upper middle class and a lower middle class.

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The middle classes had better food and housing, which meant they were more immune to diseases.

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http://www.skwirk.com/p-c_s-14_u-424_t-1100_c-4253/housing/nsw/housing/the-industrial-revolution/the-impact-of-the-industrial-revolution

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Introduction

The Industrial Revolution brought urbanisation. People who lived and worked in the countryside moved to the city for new employment opportunities.

As Britain became industrialised, British society was stratified (layered) into a small wealthy upper class, a larger middle class of professionals and a large lower class of workers and peasants. Housing for the upper, middle and lower classes reflected their working conditions and lifestyles.

The social classes of Britain in the Industrial Revolution

The upper classes comprised the land-owning nobility and new rich families.
See Image One
The land-owning nobility were the aristocrats of Britain. Such families may have had political connections but their position in society was reinforced by their ownership of land. The Industrial Revolution did not challenge their power but opened the upper class to new groups.

The Industrial Revolution provided the opportunity for ambitious individuals to rise from poverty to riches through hard work and ingenuity. Inventors and entrepreneurs could start companies and amass great wealth.
See Image Two
The Industrial Revolution created a new, large, middle class of professionals. These professionals included lawyers, doctors and tradesmen. These professionals also benefited from the Industrial Revolution.
See Image Three
The largest social class in British society was the working class. Workers were attracted to the cities by the promises of secure employment, good working conditions and high wages. These workers were employed in factories around Britain. They worked long hours for little pay.

Differences in wealth and occupation were reflected in the living standards and housing of the British classes.

Upper and middle class homes

The land-owning nobility lived on estates that had been owned by their families for generations. These estates could be self-sufficient with small farms attached. The houses of the nobility were mansions with many rooms. Noble families were attended upon by servants.
See Image Four
Newly-rich families adopted this lavish lifestyle. Cliffe Castle in Keighley is an example of an upper class home from the Industrial Revolution. Cliffe Castle is situated on a large estate and is modelled on a castle complete with turrets and towers. The house is surrounded by a large garden which is closed off from the public by high walls.

Large homes and gardens tended by servants were the benefits of the upper-class household. Upper class families were able to afford such luxuries from landed wealth or newly-acquired wealth.

The Industrial Revolution also produced a large middle class of professionals and tradesmen. The lifestyles of professionals and tradesmen were not as lavish as those of the nobility. Members of the middle class could, however, afford to buy their own terraced home. This terrace could have one or two levels and two or three bedrooms. Professional families did not have many servants, perhaps a nanny for young children. The middle class lifestyle was, however, luxurious when compared with the lifestyles and accommodation of the working class.

Working class lifestyle

Peasants and farmers moved to the city to realise dreams of wealth and steady employment. Upon arriving in the city and taking on a new job, the peasants were met with exploitation and disappointment.

Workers were housed close to the factories, to minimise transportation time and cost. This allowed the factory owners to exert more control over the workers. Most factory owners and employers were not willing to provide workers with good quality housing. Instead, poorly-built, cheap and unsanitary settlements were erected. Workers paid high rents to live in these slums.

Terraces, small, identical houses built in rows, were hastily constructed. The houses were basic with earth floors and no running water. Some houses had small yards at the back with a toilet outside. Other houses had communal toilets.
See Image Five
Terraced houses quickly became slums. The houses were overcrowded with workers. Several different families could occupy the same house.

There were few sewage facilities and most sewers were open. Often, several houses and families shared one toilet.

Toilets were 'earth closets' and were located outside the houses. Each night the 'soil men' emptied the toilets. In poor suburbs, waste was simply heaped in large piles, often close to houses. Liquid from the toilets or piled waste seeped into the ground and contaminated water supplies.
See Image Six
Poor hygiene and sanitation had a number of consequences. There was a high infant mortality rate; few children born in the slums survived past their fifth birthday. There were outbreaks of diseases such as typhus and cholera.

There were high rates of crime and drunkenness. In the crowded and dirty slums, there were few groups willing to police and regulate behaviour.

Those who could not afford to live in the terraced houses were accommodated in cellars. Cellars were located underneath other houses. Sewage that had been thrown out by neighbours living upstairs could seep through the cellar walls. When it rained, the cellars could flood.

By the 1850s, conditions in the British slums gained public attention. Workers campaigned for improvements in housing and sanitation. Parliament passed a number of public health acts which ordered the covering of sewers and other basic hygiene procedures. While these acts improved conditions, they were ineffective in solving the ongoing housing and health problems.

As the Industrial Revolution continued, wages increased and living standards gradually improved. Changes were, however, a long time coming.

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Housing, The impact of the Industrial Revolution, Industrial revolution, SOSE: History, Year 9, NSW Introduction The Industrial Revolution brought urbanisation. People who lived and worked in the countryside moved to the city for new employment opportunities. As Britain became industrialised, British society was stratified (layered) into ...

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Individuals and groups formed new libraries, schools, and universities because education was suddenly important

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The middle class composed of businessmen and other professionals.

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"The Rise of the Victorian Middle Class"

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Rise to power

Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period. Giving voice to urbanisation and industrialisation this emerging middle-class emphasised competition, thrift, prudence, self-reliance and personal achievement as opposed to privilege and inheritance. The moral terms of this outlook enabled the middle-class to accommodate diversity. Being middle class was defined by taking responsibility for one's self, one's family and the community but the precise terms of this were open to individual interpretation.

The success of the middle-classes in the Victorian period can be seen in their ability to universalise a set of principles based on individuality and progress. In moving from a society based on rank and privilege to one based on free exchange, the very idea that an individual, through hard work, thrift and self reliance, could achieve social and economic success provided an equalising principle. But, whilst the idea of social mobility was, and still is, central to legitimising the idea of a market economy, many critics of industrialisation, such as Thomas Carlyle, feared that the community was threatened by the aggressive individualism of some or the frustrated aspirations of others.

A sense of social order was formulated in the mixing of political economy, paternalism and evangelical religion which ascribed specific roles to groups of people. The working classes were encouraged to improve but they were also reminded they should be content with their lot as labourers. Whilst women's work, either for wages or to ensure the success of the family business, might be essential, the idealised wife and mother was prescribed the responsibility for cultivating morality and spirituality in the home as a corrective to the worst excesses of competitive industry.

These perspectives were popularised in a range of books and articles in the nineteenth century but are perhaps best demonstrated by Samuel Smiles and his best seller Self Help published in 1859. Smiles argued, along with others of his time, that individuals were responsible for their own future: men had the same characteristics and potentialities that could be maximised through hard work, perseverance, thrift, prudence and self-reliance. These ideas emphasised individuals rather than classes, morals rather than economic realities, and talked of the deserving and undeserving, the rough and the respectable, thus reducing persistent inequalities to moral rather than economic causes.

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Such economic and financial divergences were compounded by differences of religion, background and politics. But, whilst it is difficult to talk of the Victorian middle-class as a group with a coherent outlook, they nevertheless gained coherence out of the political and social changes of the period.

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Found a great source! Give it a shot ~ Jack

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AP European History - Industrial Revolution's Affect on Social Classes

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Quick video discussing the Industrial Revolution's affect on social classes for AP Euro History by David and Jake. Sources: ...

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- when did the 'middle class' come into being? Why?

- how much did the average middle class person earn?

- what occupations did they have?

- where did they live?

- what was education like for the children?

- what sort of conditions did they live in? houses? apartments?

- what was the life expectancy?

- what primary sources can you find that depict the life and times of the middle class in England? (e.g.: newspaper cartoons, diary entries)?

- what songs (from musicals) can you find that relate to the life of the middle class?

- put yourself in the shoes of a middle class man, woman or child - what would you be most likely to do? Would you prefer to live now or then?