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Effects of the cotton gin on the american economy
Introduction to the american industrial revolution
Introduction to the american industrial revolution
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The Industrialization Impact
In the history of the United States, it can be argued that the economic change that occurred in the midst of industrialization was the foremost change that led to us becoming a world power. This change began with the newfound desires of U.S. companies to do things efficiently, and the invention of newer machines such as the cotton gin enabled them to do so. These inventions made many industries that were becoming unprofitable more profitable again, and gave the economic boost that the U.S. economy needed. With increased efficiency and the lowering of costs, many factories blew up around the country, and thousands of jobs were created. People began to migrate to these newly established urban areas around factories, seeking opportunity, steady income to feed their families, and a way to move out of poverty. The people who took this risk helped develop the new urbanization period in the US, where hundreds of thousands of people left their low wage rural jobs and sought opportunity in the factories.
The first major invention in the industrialization period was the Cotton Gin, which was invented by Eli Whitney, a United States man who hoped his new invention would help slaves. Against his intentions, historians believe that without this invention, slavery would have become less and less prominent on southern plantations and may have entirely died off on its own. This first step in industrialization in the United States had a large impact on how people ran their businesses, and was one of the first steps on the road to America’s industrial revolution. The cotton and textile industry was more profitable again, and other industries began to invent and utilize machines to make their businesses more lucrative ...
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...and people were generally happy with where they were in the work ladder.
Factory workers became a part of the quickly growing “middle class,” the gap of people living between the poor and the wealthy. This middle class eventually became the most populated class in our country, and it can be accredited to the industrialization period in the United States. These workers could now support their families with the money earned despite a lack of education or experience, something that wouldn’t have been possible before this crucial period in the United States. The economy boomed, unemployment was at an extreme low, and urban areas were expanding at an alarming rate. America was booming, we were now the biggest oil producer in the world, and no one could have imagined the ruin that was hurriedly approaching our country. This ruin is now referred to as the great depression.
Before the American civil war, the Southerner’s economy had almost entirely been constructed on slave and cash crop agriculture. The cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney. The cotton gin was a contraption that transmogrified the fabrication of cotton by significantly making the task of removing seeds from the cotton fiber faster. The invention benefitted the slaves because it saved the slaves
A graduate from Yale University had thoughts of becoming a lawyer, but he needed a job urgently. After a tutoring job fell through, he accepted a position on a plantation in Georgia. His employer, Catherine Green, saw much talent in him and encouraged him to find a way to make cotton profitable. He promptly began working on a solution to the problem of separating the seeds from the cotton. On March 14, 1794, Eli Whitney was granted a patent for the cotton gin.1 The cotton gin impacted American industry and slavery changing the course of American history.
Industrialization is the process in which an economy is changed from an agricultural economy to a manufacturing approach and manual labor is replaced by machines in factories. Industrialization brought a more diverse amount of goods and more total goods and improved living for many but, for others it resulted in harsh working and living conditions for the poor and working class. Many positives and negative were present during the industrialization of the U.S. Positives such as more goods being distributed, easier way of doing things, and being able to mass produce. Negatives like children working long and difficult jobs and many workers having poor working conditions.
In history, it seems inarguably true that when a nation advanced in power and wealth, changes will soon followed. These changes affected the political, economic and social system of that nation, and often came as an advantage for wealthy individuals, while detrimental to others less fortunate. An example of this notion can be seen in American History. After the Civil War and the Reconstruction Era, America quickly surpassed Great Britain in industrial production thus became the leading nation in industrialization. However, great things do not come without a cost; the rapid technological expansion in the US would initiate the crisis of the 1890s. The crisis of the 1890s was the shift from the rural and agrarian society to a modern urban and industrial society.
Throughout the 19th century, industrialization was a turning point in the United States that led to huge changes in society, economics and politics. The incoming growth of factories had positive and negative effects. Two specific changes were the new government regulations and the increasing immigration. These changes were extremely important because they settled the bases of the country. Industrialization provided many benefits for the nation but however, it also created serious problems that required action by the government.
Many new industries were developed to support mass production of goods, such as, roads, tires, and all the items it took to build a vehicle for the automobiles.(David Shannon, 217) The chemical industry grew in the United States after First World War because America couldn't get the chemical anymore they had gotten from Germany. (Shannon, 219) Americans wanted the access to electric power which included: lights, radios, and washing machines. There was a mass movement of people from the country to the city looking for jobs. The rural life couldn't support a family like urban living could, people left the farming industry and moved to the manufacturing industries which damage the ability for agricultural to survive.(Shannon, 219) The effects of prosperity revolved around the automobile specifically younger people's ability to escape adult supervision.
The mid 19th century was an age of growth like no other. The term “Industrial Revolution” refers to the time period where production changed from homemade goods, to those produced by machines and factories. As industrial growth developed and cities grew, the work done by men and women diverged from the old agricultural life. People tended to leave home to work in the new factories being built. They worked in dangerous conditions, were paid low wages, and lacked job security (Kellogg). It is difficult to argue, however, that the economic development of the United States was not greatly dependent on the industrial revolution.
America had a huge industrial revolution in the late 1800”s. Many changes happened to our great nation, which factored into this. The evidence clearly shows that advancements in new technology, a large wave of immigrants into our country and new views of our government, helped to promote America’s huge industrial growth from the period of 1860-1900.
Transportation advances began a unification process across the country, both economically and culturally (Roark, 262). The United States finally started to take advantage of the natural resources of the land to benefit the economy. By having water powered equipment, the growth of factories mushroomed, but at the same time, caused a great issue with working conditions and the employment of women. Financing new ventures became an important facet during the market revolution. America’s money supply grew considerably, which led to increased investment opportunities.
The invention of the cotton gin helped speed up the growth of the United States, of course with the help of Eli Whitney who helped the United States in many other ways. As a result, cotton became the cheapest and most widely used textile fabric in the world.
The Industrial Revolution was the major advancement of technology in the late 18th and early 19th century that began in Britain and spread to America. The national and federal government helped the United States grow into a self reliant nation with improvements in transportation, technology, manufacturing and the growth of the population. Americans had an economy based on manual labour, which was replaced by one dominated by industry and the manufacture of machinery. It began with the expansion of the textile industries and the development of iron-making techniques, and trade expansion was enabled by the introduction of canals, improved roads and railways. One of the first to kick off, was the textile industry.
The industrial revolution was a huge thing in the 1800’s. The industrial revolution was when there were many new technological breakthroughs, such as medicine and new inventions that helped people. There were many new things that people could use that would change the way that these people lived their lives. Because the industrial revolution happened, Americans today can still use these inventions and use that knowledge and innovate them to make it better. One such device is the cotton gin patented by Eli Whitney in 1794.
America was socially and economically changed from the transition from a local market economy to a national market economy. Thus shifting society from rural to urban which was facilitated by three components. The workforce was changed from fabrication by hand to industrial fabrication; this change was one fuelled by new industrial machinery. This means that the manufactured goods were now produced in small factories that allowed for mass production of goods outside the home by hired workers. These technological advancements were just the beginning of what was to occur. “The invention of the cotton gin [in 1793] allowed cotton production to dominate the economy and made its exportation ...
The industrial revolution began in Europe in the 18th century. The revolution prompted significant changes, such as technological improvements in global trade, which led to a sustained increase in development between the 18th and 19th century. These improvements included mastering the art of harnessing energy from abundant carbon-based natural resources such as coal. The revolution was economically motivated and gave rise to innovations in the manufacturing industry that permanently transformed human life. It altered perceptions of productivity and understandings of mass production which allowed specialization and provided industries with economies of scale. The iron industry in particular became a major source of economic growth for the United States during this period, providing much needed employment, which allowed an abundant population of white people as well as minorities to contribute and benefit from the flourishing economy. Steel production boomed in the U.S. in the mid 1900s. The U.S. became a global economic giant due to the size of its steel industry, taking advantage of earlier innovations such as the steam engine and the locomotive railroad. The U.S. was responsible for 65 percent of steel production worldwide by the end of the 2nd World War (Reutter 1). In Sparrows Point: Making Steel: the Rise and Ruin of American Industrial Might, Mark Reutter reports that “Four out of every five manufacturing items contained steel and 40 percent of all wage earners owed their livelihood directly or indirectly to the industry.” This steel industry was the central employer during this era.
The aims of this paper are to evaluate the effects the Industrial Revolution had on the wider world. This essay will be assessing the impact of technology and innovation on employment of the era, and how the factory system gave rise to socialism. In addition, it will be evaluating how the Industrial Revolution was the precursor to the phenomenon of consumerism and the resulting globalization.