Preview

U.S. Economy in the 19th Century Essay Example

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1453 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
U.S. Economy in the 19th Century Essay Example
Peter Hart
History
1:00-1:50 U.S. Economy in the 19th Century The Industrial Revolution first took place in Britain where it spread like wild fire. Eventually it made its way to America in the late 1800’s to the 19th century where it would eventually change America in every aspect. The American Revolution began because of a single British man named Samuel Slater who brought over manufacturing technologies. The creation of the cotton gin by Slater would soon be the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution brought many new ideas and inventions that made the economy boom. The North would be the first to start the Industrial Revolution while the South stayed true to their old ways; agriculture. The effects of the Industrial Revolution put a strain on both the South and the North. On top of all of this, many changes were being made in this time period such as transportation, manufacturing, and communications. All of these changes transformed the daily lives of Americans as much as it did as any other historical event that has happened in history. Because of this major event, many effects were being taken place; Unions, working conditions and labor itself were accounted for the changes in the 19th century.
The North started out as a commercial industry where trading and selling was a big part of American life. Before the Industrial Revolution hit America, people made all of their goods/products in their homes. Factories weren’t that prominent in the North until the Industrial Revolution came by. Technological advancements were nowhere to be found because they were used to making everything at home by hand. The South was farther behind in innovations than the North itself. They were strictly agricultural and farming. In due time though, a man named Samuel Slater brought over new manufacturing technologies from Britain to the United States where it would start the Industrial Revolution. From there, many more inventions were created

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The period between the American Revolution and the Civil War had great significance for the United States' economy. Although initially the economy seemed unstable at first, after the second war that America fought with England, the economy began to show considerable growth thereafter. This can be seen as the result of the cotton trade in the South and the eventual industrialisation of America, especially in the Northeast and later the West. From the invention of cotton gins to the adaptation of railways one can see how the United States used their opportunities and resources to their full advantage, transforming their economy to be able to compete among the worlds leading economical countries.…

    • 1437 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are many assorted differences in the economies of the North & South. In the South, the economy was based solely on agriculture. Plantations (very large farms) sustained the southern economy quite well. They were like small towns where everyone had a job to do. Slavery was also essential to the South’s well-being and economy. It allowed plantations to be very prosperous. In the North, the economy was the complete opposite. It was based almost entirely on industry and manufactured products. The main five were shipping, mining, lumber, furs, & textiles. All manufactured goods were highly popular and made the economy what it was. Trade between the North and foreign nations was common, but high tariffs were put in place to ensure their industries would be maintained.…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many important factors helped to promote America's huge industrial growth during the period from 1860 to 1900. Before the blossom of this industrialization, the United States consisted of mostly farms and small towns. The development of factories and urban cities soon changed all of this. The railroad system expanded and eventually turned into a goldmine for commerce in the United States. Machinery started to decrease the amount of animal labor used, which allowed the consistency and production of goods to rise. As it reached the brink of the 20th century, America had surprisingly become the world's greatest industrial nation in history.…

    • 791 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Southern economy depended primarily on massive accumulations of cotton and tobacco. Unlike the South, the North experienced the Industrial Revolution (OpenStax, 430). Devices or methods, such as the cotton gin and interchangeable parts made mass production possible. Due to the Civil War, the North focused on building a transcontinental railroad for quick infrastructure transportation. The Southern economy made its profit by exporting large amounts of cotton and tobacco to Britain. Since the founding of the colonies, the southern colonies’ methods of business drastically differed from its New England neighbors. For example, South Carolina divided because the southern region focused primarily on tobacco and sugar while the northern region specialized in lumber and ship parts. Eventually, this division led to the creation of North and South Carolina. This event exemplifies how quickly the…

    • 710 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    1.While the French Revolution was opening a new political era, another revolution was transforming economic and social life. This was the Industrial Revolution, which began in Britain around the mid eighteen hundreds and started to influence the rest of Europe and then the world. It was a rapid period that brought about radical changes. The Industrial Revolution is usually defined as the shift from agrarian revolution to one based on the products of machine manufacturing. As a matter of fact, the revolution was much more involved rather than simply a shift to machine manufacture. It involved new and more efficient ways of organizing tasks, it led to increase in agricultural productivity, the harnessing of plentiful labor and the expanded role of financial institutions that began in the second half of the century that would transform society.…

    • 605 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How did the Industrial Revolution Change the American Economy Before the Industrial Revolution, the American economy was built on cotton plantations, hand-woven textiles, farming, fishing, and trade. Products were made by hand on farms and in homes. The Industrial Revolution changed how goods were produced which had a major impact on the American Economy both positively and negatively. The invention of machines, water power, and steam engines, for example, led to materials being produced more quickly while reducing the cost of production. Although many changes were being made, the South trailed the growth of the North.…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The North was highly industrialized during the time of the Civil War, being imperative to their victory over the South. Primarily, the…

    • 742 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Industrial Revolution Dbq

    • 301 Words
    • 2 Pages

    the Industrial Revolution had a great impact on the people all around the world. The Industrial Revolution began in England in the 18th century and spread throughout the world. Many nations had to respond to the challenges of the Industrial Revolution and the imperialism of the West that had spawned. People had to face the significant consequences that were created through this time in history. The nature of these consequences and their effect on various people throughout the world were very similar.…

    • 301 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Industrial Revolution started in England because of the extravagant amount of water sources and the country had, it also had a large amount of wool. The changes in farming and the many inventions that were made and the scientific thought put into the inventions greatly impacted the process of industrialization. Having a large amount of water aloud for more factories because they machines in the factories ran on water power. As for wool, farmers went from planting crops to living in the city working in a factory. This change occurred because the people who actually owned the land told the farmers to leave the land because the real owners wanted to raise sheep for wool. Inventions were a big part of the success of the industrialization. The inventions of new machines allowed products to be made quicker which initialed more goods to be bought and traded.…

    • 791 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    While the South was good for farming, and agriculture the North has warm, and humid summers, and snowy winters. The North's land is difficult for farming they had a short growing season. The North was rocky and hilly, so the Noth was great for factories, and used waterpower to run…

    • 319 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The North and South had very different types of climate and geography. The North had warm summers and snowy cold winters. The North was very rocky, hilly, had short growing seasons and was not good for farming. The North had plenty of access to rivers, oceans and bays, along with waterfalls used for energy in industries. The North also had forests that were made up of timber. In the South they had warm, sunny, long, hot, humid summers, and mild winter, and heavy rainfall. Their geography and climate was ideal for agriculture and the ability to grow different crops in bulk (Johnson, 2014). The South bordered is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. This gave them wide, slow moving rivers ideal for large steamboats. The geography and climate of both made the things they did capable of doing.…

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Industrial Revolution was when people changed over from an agricultural economy to an industrialized economy, home-made production to more factory, machine-made production. The Industrial Revolution began in Europe, but soon America began to borrow the ideas of English inventors. Samuel Slater was the man to built the first factory in the United States. After going to England, Slater returned to America with the idea of textile factories. Slater’s first textile factories were used to spin cotton, but these led to a decade of the textile industry completely dominating the country.…

    • 1874 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Market Revolution

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The market revolution in the United States brought a sudden change in the manual labor system originating in south and digressed to the north and later spread to the entire world. The integral part of the economic growth in the United States in the nineteenth century was a good thing that brought change in the market. In respect to the change, America took its first major step in creating the world’s most stable and strongest economy, which gave room for growth among the citizens.…

    • 816 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Industrial Revolution was an important turning point in history. It changed our societies from a mainly agricultural society to one that in which industry and manufacturing was in control. (1). The Industrial Revolution started in Great Britain and then spread to other European countries such as France and Germany. Great Britain was the most powerful country during this time so it made sense that this revolution began there. The Industrial Revolution influenced all aspects of society. Women were no exception; their roles in society changed quite dramatically during this time period.…

    • 435 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Market Revolution

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages

    During the late 1700’s, the United States was no longer a possession of Britain, instead it was a market for industrial goods and the world’s major source for tobacco, cotton, and other agricultural products. A labor revolution started to occur in the United States throughout the early 1800’s. There was a shift from an agricultural economy to an industrial market system. After the War of 1812, the domestic marketplace changed due to the strong pressure of social and economic forces. Major innovations in transportation allowed the movement of information, people, and merchandise. Textile mills and factories became an important base for jobs, especially for women. There was also widespread economic growth during this time period (Roark, 260). The market revolution brought about economic growth through new modes of transportation, an abundance of natural resources, factory production, and banking and legal practices.…

    • 1064 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays