According to the dictionary, the steamboat is “a boat driven by steam power; specifically: a shallow-draft vessel used on inland waterways” (Steamboat, 2003). People laughed at Robert Fulton and his steamboat, the Clermont, when they departed New York City for Albany on August 17, 1807. The boat was nicknamed “Fulton’s Folly”. People said it was strange looking and they could not believe it would work because they thought boats could only be propelled by the wind and the river current. The Clermont went up the Hudson River at approximately five miles per hour. It was one-hundred and forty feet long with waterwheels fifteen feet in diameter on each side. The Clermont was quite loud, and there was a tremendous amount of sparks, fire, and …show more content…
Others would use this technology in boats. American John Fitch had success in 1787, but had political and financial problems. On the other hand, Robert Fulton took what others had done with steam power and was able to make it into a successful commercial enterprise (Hunter 5). It was Robert Fulton who perfected the steamboat and it was he who produced the first steamboat that proved to be durable and economically successful. In 1807, the Clermont made its trial trip to Albany and back, moving against the current at about five miles an hour, which was phenomenal for the time (Sutcliffe …show more content…
While previous ships could only move with wind and currents, steamboats could move on their own. Steamboats could post a schedule with times that people could pretty much count on. In addition, steamboats were faster. Trips that had taken between three to four months were now taking one month. Earlier boats only traveled downstream. Steamboats were able to travel both ways. (Hunter 8). The steamboat set new trade in motion, caused new towns and industries to form, and created jobs. Steamboats eventually prevailed on American rivers. There was an increase in jobs for shipbuilders and improvements to the rivers, canals, etc. Further, due to the increase in shipbuilding and improvements to the rivers and canals, there was an increase in jobs and a change in the population near the rivers. According to Jeremy Atack’s article, “The advent of the western river steamboat revolutionized and refocused economic activity throughout the Midwest which was served by some 10,000 miles of navigable, or potentially navigable,
Cornelius Vanderbilt was born in Port Richmond on Staten Island, N. Y. in 1794. Cornelius at the age of 16 had already stepped into the busniess world and he didn’t even know it. At 16 he entered into the steamboat business when he established a freight and passenger service between Stanton Island and Manhattan. Little did Cornelius know this would be one of the key ways he would make his millions upon millions. Cornelius entered the steamer business in 1818, and bought his first steamship in 1829. Cornelius was not a laid back guy nothing was ever good enough for him. If you had and Cornelius Vanderbilt wanted it there wasn’t much you could do to keep him from getting it. This is the kind of attitude that put him on top of the world. After establishing his steamboat Vanderbilt became a very vigorous competitor, lowering his rates while also making his ships top of the line. Vanderbilt the entrepuner himself soon controlled must of the Hudson River. After awhile his fellow competitors in the steamboat business paid him to take some of his traffic elsewhere so that he wouldn’t get all the work. By 1846 Vanderbilt was a very wealthy man and with wealth he learned cam power. He became widely know as the Commodore Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt sold his steamboats in 1862 and began buying railroad stocks. In a mere 5 years Vanderbilt used his power to uphold most of the New York Central Railroad system. Vanderbilt like in his steamboats strived to be the best in the railroads now. Vanderbilt established many railway systems during his railroad career maybe his most famous was that of the one that connected New York and Chicago in a direct rail route in 1873. At the time of Vanderbilt’s death in 1877 he was worth over 100 million dollars the most at that time.
During the 1840’s and 1850’s America experienced its golden age in shipping and sailing.1 At the front of this era was Donald McKay whose innovative ship designs lead to the numerous sea speed records, some of which stand today. For most of the early 19th century American ship building consisted of merchant and cargo ships. It took a long time for these ships to sail across seas. With the increased speed came decreased time to wait for pay. Another need for increased speed was the California gold rush of 1849. People wanted to make the trip as quickly as possible in order to stake their claims. Donald McKay’s clipper ships enabled people to do that.
In 1850, the side wheeler “Columbia”, which commenced regular services between Astoria and Portland in 1850, was the first steamship to ply Columbia as a common carrier. Half a dozen steamships soon joined her on interior waters, and their numbers greatly increased after the gold discoveries of the 1860s (Schwantes, 181).
Railroads were one of the most used transportation during the Gilded Age, making traveling the United States quicker. This allowed shipping products to other states easier, while keeping the consumers happy. Originally, shipping steel, or other heavy equipment was near impossible until railroads/train could carry mass tons of products.
Canals, steamboats, and railroads allowed for faster travel of exports and the creation of bigger cities. The invention of the Pony Express, specialized regions, and infrastructure permitted Americans to keep in touch over long distances and the creation of market towns, which inspired a deep, national connection from all corners of the country. The giant leap made by the Transportation Revolution changed America greatly in ways of their economy and
Steamboats were invented in the early 1800's, but it took until the 1820's to make them a common site on U.S. rivers. In the 1840's their popularity kept rising as they continued to increase the amount of trade possible. The reaper, for farming, was also developed in 1831. This allowed more farming in the west on the prairies. Many other farming machines were also developed during this time period, they all made farming in the west much more popular, easier, and profitable. The Trans-continental railroad was started in 1862, even though other trains were already running in different parts of the U.S. The telegraph also went up along with the railroads, although the first time it was used was in 1844. All four of these major technological advancements made the United States really get going on their Manifest Destiny.
In the first half of the nineteenth century, the Market Revolution was famous in America. It was an economic revolution marked by industrialization, improvements in transportation, and expansion. People had difficulties selling their production because of the poor transportation and many family lived in the self-sufficient mode. However, this problem was solved because of the invention of the steamboat,
Robert Fulton is best known for developing the first successful commercial steamboat. Much like Henry Ford, Robert Fulton didnt actually invent the machine he is most commonly assciated with, but his inovation is what origianlly commercialized the steam boat. Fultons invention did not only lead to new inventions, but also created a new type of transportation around the world.
The development of canal, steam boats and railroads provided a transportation network that linked different regions of the nation together. When farmers began migrating westward and acquiring land for crops, cheaper forms of transportation provided the means to transfer their goods to other regions for s...
The railroad created a more economic means of transporting the grains and produce from the breadbasket of America to the markets in the population centers of the coast.
Travel by land and water was both tedious and expensive. Transporting one ton of goods across states would cost around 100 dollars or 1,265 dollars in today’s money. In the 1790s, land routes connecting the east coast and the farther western regions of the United States were undeveloped. Along with this, when weather conditions were poor land routes could not support any sort of dependable shipping by wagon, or even travel by horseback. Natural waterways provided the most dependable method of transport west of Albany. Even travel by waterway in this time period was inconvenient because these water routes were unreliable due to shallow water and raging rapids.
One of America’s oldest railroads, known as the first common-carrier railroad, was chartered on February 28th 1827, by a group of Baltimore businessmen. The main objective of the railway was to ensure traffic would not be lost to the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal, which was proposed and ground broken the same time as the railroad. The new railroad was a big invention, which allowed people and freight to travel by train. This was a huge improvement for the United States, since everything was becoming more advanced in other countries. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company is the great railroad that owns up to the big title of “The First Common Carrier.” The B&O railroad has a rich history dealing with its background, building, competition, growth tactics, numerous raids, and involvement in the Civil War.
Farmers, who had moved out west looked for a way to send their produce back east. However, roads were far too expensive and inefficient for this. Thus, canals and steamboats were used to link the country commercially and allow for the transport of goods across the nation. The Erie Canal was one of the greatest technological achievements of its time. At 363 miles long it connects New York to the Great Lakes by water (Sheriff 251). The canal provided easy passage halfway across the country for people and goods and sparked a push for westward movement. To travel on these new canals steambo...
In "Two Views of the River," an excerpt from Mark Twain's Life on the Mississippi, Twain comes to the realization of the realities of the river. After a life along the river and knowing "every trifling feature that bordered the great river as" well as he knew his alphabet, (Twain 1) Twain sees the reality behind the "beauty" (1) and "poetry" (1) of the river. A comprehensive analysis reveals Twain's argument questions the value of learning a trade, as his images of "the majestic river" (1) and the peril it may cause for the steamboat, show the comparisons of the beauty and the reality of the river.
Fulton invented the first steam powered warship for the United States that was launched in New York in 1814 (Pierce 95). Little did he know that this steamboat would help America defeat the British and prohibit them from entering America’s waters and land. The main reason for constructing his steamboat was to keep the U.S. safe from harm by the British, and to protect them from the fear (Sutcliffe 132). In order to achieve this goal, he would make a sturdy boat with cannons on top that could fight against the British and keep America out of harm’s way. Not only would this innovation defend the U.S., the warship would help transport American troops to their bases. He also supplied Commodore Perry with a steamboat that helped America create foreign relations (Sale 180). This meant that ideas, goods, and materials could be exchanged among other countries. It would increase America’s income through exports and imports. The money America would make from this could lead to more exploration, the invention of new technology, and more evolved weaponry. Robert Fulton once declared that his, “‘ingenious Steam Boat, invented with a view to the navigation of the Mississippi from New Orleans upward . . . will certainly be a very valuable acquisition to the commerce of Western States’” (Kirkpatrick 14) Fulton saw his steamboat as an opportunity to spread goods and commercialize America. The steamboat also made America’s population more diverse and greater. Once people from outside countries heard about the first successful steamboat, they wanted to experience that new piece of technology. Immigrants and tourists noticed how intriguing the steamboat and decided to stay. A frenchman by the name of Michel Chevalier once expressed that “‘the discovery of steam has added unbelievably to the strength and prosperity of the Union . . .’” (Kirkpatrick 191). Robert Fulton’s