Industrial Revolution by Hilary Miller and Luke Gavigan

The Beginning

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-07 14:42:08 UTC

The first Industrial Revolution began during the 18th century in England and was marked by the significant increase in the production of machine-made goods and the rise of industrialization and urbanization. At that time, England was almost entirely made up of farms, so wealthy land owners bought them and made improvements, leading to the agricultural revolution. They began using more productive and efficient harvesting methods, such as the seed drill. As a result, these wealthy landowners forced small farmers to give up farming and move to the cities. England had an expanding economy to support industrialization and its political stability gave the country advantages over its neighbors. Eventually, industrialization began to spread to the rest of the world and most importantly, North America.

Urbanization

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-08 02:29:15 UTC

Urbanization is when people move from rural areas to cities. Between 1800 and 1850, Europe's urban areas at least doubled in population. Before the 1800's, most Europeans lived in rural areas, but during the Industrial Revolution, the balance shifted towards cities. This shift was caused by the growth of the factory system. Factories developed in clusters because entrepreneurs built them near sources of energy like water or coal. New uses for these forms of energy brought massive change to England's economy. England's natural resources and physical geography greatly influenced industrialization and urbanization.

Labor Unions

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-08 18:23:28 UTC

In response to the harsh and dangerous working conditions, labor unions formed to fight for the rights, pay, and benefits of factory workers and child labor laws were put into effect. Abolitionist movement to end slavery became popular and the women's rights movement gathered more support. Since the employers had all the power, the only way for the employees to effectively protest for higher wages was to unionize.

Textile Industry

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-08 18:43:45 UTC

Inventions revolutionized the industry and the textile industry (wool, cotton, linen) was the first to be transformed. Factories needed waterpower, so the first ones were built near rivers and streams. Innovations such as the flying shuttle, spinning jenny, and water mule caused massive economic change. The textile factory workers were often women and children who worked long hours under harsh conditions. As urbanization increased, living and working conditions became more dangerous. Cities and factories were dirty, polluted, overcrowded, and lacked housing and safe drinking water.

Industry

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-08 18:50:54 UTC

The Industrial Revolution sparked many inventions and innovators that transformed their industry into a booming business that rose and fell through a wave of new ideas and learning. This time called for Industry, a business that was focused on the making of steam engines, and other machinery without caring about the consequences that were left behind. Transportation was transformed as steamships/locomotives were able to ferry people and freight faster and more efficiently, and the building of railways all across the country left people with a sense of hope. Although many had jobs, the people who were performing them were overworked and mistreated, so in addition, it ultimately led to the formation of labor unions. This creation helped workers to band together in a fight for better wages, shorter hours, and safer working conditions. While business was in full swing, thoughts on the environment were nowhere to be found with, huge factories burning coal and other natural resources polluting the air around them immensely.

Environmental Impact

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-08 18:53:59 UTC

The Industrial Revolution had an interesting and mostly negative impact on the environment. An increased industrial activity came from pollution, deforestation, and the damaging supply of natural resources. Even the use of chemicals and gases in factories which helped the economy in a big way, created a hindrance to the world as it continued to eat away at the atmosphere. The burning of coal and other fossil fuels played a huge role in contributing to air and water pollution, laying the groundwork for some years of ongoing environmental challenges.

The Rise of Capitalism

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-08 19:01:17 UTC

The Industrial Revolution played a very important role in the rise of capitalism with the factory system and increased production which lead to the mass gain of wealth by manufacturers. This helped to develop capitalism's principles of private ownership, market-driven economies, and profit motives as these became a central focus of the emerging economy. These business owners started to organize labor mostly into factories and emerged with a new division of labor to increase the overall output and profitability of success. Once the factory hired capable workers, the merchant investors would then equip them with the necessary tools for the job.

Manchester

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-09 17:17:30 UTC

The Northern English town of Manchester is a leading example of an industrial city. It had available labor from the nearby countryside and had access to water-power at Liverpool. It's rapid industrial growth made it an unhealthy place for the poor people who lived and worked there. Wealth flowed from its factories, but the workers labored in terrible conditions. The British government applied little control over labor in Manchester until the first factory act in 1819. The act restricted working age and hours, yet both children and adults continued to produce heavy, dangerous labor in Manchester's factories. As a result of so much industry in one place, Manchester's environment became extremely damaged with pollution. It developed the nickname "black country" due to the blackened air as a result of the copious amounts of coal produced. Additionally, the textile dyes poisoned the Irwell River. Manchester ultimately became hugely successful on the grand scale, but still stands as a reminder of the harm of rapid, unplanned industrialization.

Women's Roles

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-12 13:55:23 UTC

While some women kept their work confined to their homes, many pitched in at the factories to help make ends meet. Specifically, unmarried women often worked as domestic servants for other American employers. A considerable amounts of British women, including mothers, were employed in the textile mills to help provide for their families. In addition, children were forced to labor in the textile industry during the first couple of years of the industrialization era. Factory owners appreciated having workers whose fingers were small enough to manipulate delicately threaded machinery.

The Steam Engine

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-12 14:01:57 UTC

The inventor of the steamship was James Watt who in 1769 revolutionized industry while helping to provide a reliable and efficient source of power to manufacturers and factories. This innovation had many widespread applications, powering factories, locomotives, and steamships, which fundamentally helped in altering the transportation and production processes. They ultimately had a profound impact on transportation with the invention and ongoing development of steam-powered locomotives/trains and steamships. Railways and steamships helped to ease the movement of goods and people over long distances, connecting many regions that were less accessible before and fostering a considerable amount of economic growth.

The Spread of Education

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-12 14:06:32 UTC

The spread of education led to an increased emphasis on education, as with industrialization on the rise, there was a growing need for skilled workers. Education was put into the system to provide basic English and math skills, which helped to ultimately lay the groundwork for universal education. A rise in education created a further invention, which in addition created more industrialization. After needing more demand for workers, this ultimately led to further urbanization and more schooling.

Labor

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-13 17:23:36 UTC

Labor was a massive aspect of the Industrial Revolution. As new machinery transformed everyday life, the rapid increase of factories called for more and more factory workers. These workers were often women and children who worked long hours under terrible conditions. Children as young as six joined their parents in the factories from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. everyday with only two breaks for meals. Young children were desirable in the industries because their small hands were helpful in repairing broken threads in spinning machines and sweeping up cotton fluff. The dangerous machinery injured many of the children and the fluff from the cotton filled their lungs and caused illness. Labor laws and public health regulations were passed in Britain and the United States out of outrage of substandard working and living conditions. They were aimed at improving life for the working class and poor citizens who had been negatively affected by the industrial revolution. Issues controlled by these laws included hours of labor, child labor, minimum wage, unemployment insurance, and the rights of collective bargaining by labor unions.

Socialism

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-13 17:41:40 UTC

Throughout the Industrial Revolution, socialism expanded out of a positive view of human nature, a belief in progress, and a concern for social justice. In socialism, the components of production are owned by the public and operate for the welfare of all citizens. Socialists argued that the government should plan the economy rather than depend on free-market capitalism to do the job. They believed that government control of railroads, factories, mines and other key industries would encourage equality and end poverty and that public ownership would aid workers who were at the mercy of their employers.

Manifest Destiny

hmiller26_5 — 2024-02-13 21:51:41 UTC

Manifest destiny is the concept that the United States is destined, by God, to spread its authority and extend democracy and capitalism across North America. The ideology drove 19th-century U.S. territorial expansion and was utilized to justify the forced removal of Native Americans and other groups from their homes. The expansion of the United States strengthened the problem of slavery as new states were added to the Union.

Impact on Agriculture

lgavigan26 — 2024-02-14 15:05:52 UTC

This time helped to revolutionize the agricultural period and spurred new/and improved innovations such as many different types of mechanized farming equipment that helped to make the work shorter and more efficient. In addition to these improvements, improved breeding techniques were also put into place for larger production of cows, pigs, and other livestock for commercial use. This led to increased agricultural productivity, as well as a extra-workforce that contributed in moving to urban areas, and changes in land ownership throughout the suburbs and more rural areas.