Farmers And Industrial Workers In The 19th Century Essay

Experiences of farmers and industrial workers in the 19th century
Introduction
The 19th century in America was characterized by rapid industrial growth. At this point in time, industrial plant output increased and there was mass production of goods by the machines (Foner, n.d). The British textile manufactures were the first to venture in the industrialization field within the United States of America. Mechanization was on the rise where machines replaced skilled personnel and craftsmen in different industries. By 1870, machines were already stitching leather, producing nails, knitting stockings, shirts and dresses in large numbers. This lowered the manufacturing costs and as a result lowering labor and also the prices charged on the consumers by the manufacturers. Generally, introduction of machines lead to a lot of production of goods at a cheaper price. During this time, mechanization did not have desirable impacts on the people

Banks and railroad companies were constantly taking advantage of them. At this time, farmers were on the verge of becoming the minorities in American society. The success of industrialization forced the farmers to the lowest social strata as they were overtaken by the corporate groups. The government of the day, The Republican Party also did not pay much attention to the farmers.
After the civil war, making a living as a farmer was made difficult because of droughts, grasshopper plagues, high interest rates, falling prices and even rising costs of living. Yearly, the prices of crops fell considerably. For example in 1874, corn prices were forty one cents per bushel but in 1897 the prices feel to thirty cents per bushel. Farmers realized lower and lower returns from cotton farming in 19th century. Interest rates were increasing by ten percent per year. This made it difficult for the farmers to clear their