Throughout history, people have been inventing things to make their lives easier. That drive has produced huge changes in the American life several times over. In the 1700’s, life in America was very difficult. Transportation infrastructure was lacking, which pushed the delivery of goods to be almost exclusively down rivers. Military technology was roughly unchanged since America began, leaving the country open to attack from other nations. And industry was totally undeveloped, forcing households to act as miniature factories, producing almost everything they would need. In the 1800’s though, the lives of nearly all Americans was changed. Transportation has revolutionized trade and the connections between different places. In early America, roads were in such bad shape traveling any significant distance was dangerous. Commerce was driven by rivers. Gradually, that changed. In the 1790’s, a private company created a hard-surfaced road that went from Lancaster to Philadelphia. That started a road building craze that vastly increased …show more content…
The cotton gin was one such invention. In the 1780’s, there was some cotton production. But harvesting the actual cotton from the seeds was so time-consuming, it wasn’t very profitable. By the time the cotton gin was invented in 1793, slavery was decreasing. With one simple invention, everything changed. Slavery increased by 70%. Cotton farming exploded. By 1860, New England was importing over 400 million pounds of cotton. The effect of the cotton gin wasn’t just limited to cotton farmers though. With the South focusing all of their energy on cotton, someone had to feed them. That job fell on the West, where several inventions, such as the Reaper, changed farming. And someone also had to provide the materials, a job perfectly suited for the environment of the North. Both areas had to ramp up production to keep up with the new demand, a problem that only drove more innovation and
From 1865 to 1920, technological innovations helped to simplify lives by providing more efficient tools to complete work, but also proved to hurt the workers and create economic hardship. With the civil war coming to an end and reconstruction beginning, America was emerging one of the world's industrial leaders. Our influential industries, such as the oil industry, controlled mainly by John D Rockefler, became increasingly influential around the world. Between 1856 and 1920, technological advancements made both rural and urban life easier by supplying more effective ways to do work, although this also was the cause of economic hardship. Technology had both positive and negative impacts on everyone, but the impacts were felt most prominently
In the 1800s America changed in many different areas. The education system improved vastly after having schools with poor education that teach little and schools that make it hard for the poor to go to. American art changed greatly when America developed their own style and many books were written that are famous today like Moby-Dick. A change in women’s rights occurred with many changes that pushed equality at the time. In America the need for a change in education was great.
How Did Trains and Railroads Change Life in America? Prior to the Industrial Revolution, many people relied on slow and strenuous methods of transportation such as bandwagons, horses, and walking. Many life-changing inventions were created in America during the Industrial Revolution, such as the cotton gin and sewing machine. Although these inventions influenced many changes America, there was one invention that vitaly impacted the country which was the development of trains and railroads.
A major continuity over time will always be shown in the world, even if an event took place years ago. In this standard many dates and time periods were stated. Wars broke out, new presidents took the stand, and a handful of laws were brought into place but were changed as time moved on. Even though these events were dated so long ago, they played a major role in the shaping of our nation. With the past events that occurred, these events are still practiced and used today.
This caused America to flourish with new inventions, for example the automobile, household machinery, television, etc. Even old inventions and ideas were improving, like the radio, movies, and the use of advertising. The radio, movies, driving, and buying the various new products became a part of the daily lives. These inventions created a sense of ease for daily lives in America in the 1920s. It made life, jobs, and experiences easier.
Throughout the 1920s, the United States of America experienced drastic changes in economy, lifestyle, and technology. These alterations helped shape the future of the country, while improving the American way of life. The most influential creation during this time period was the automobile. It majorly impacted average Americans through the development of roads, changed structures of buildings, and establishment of new businesses. As automobiles became popular throughout the country, roads had to be built.
The invention of the cotton gin decreased labor and increased the production of usable cotton and the demand for items being made from it. Advancements being made in both water and land transportation led to explosive growth in cities and factories; thus improving the national economy little by little. All in all, the revolution taking place in the Americas after the war of 1812 turned the nation into the successful, worldwide marketplace we know of
Therefore, the Transportation Revolution had an immense impact on society. Before the Transportation Revolution sprang in the United States, Americans traveled by foot, horse, or by a wagon or carriage, pulled by horses. Goods were typically transported utterly by rivers or canals. Transportation throughout America could be a bit challenging, but yet it could be done. America could have still found a way to prosper without all the transportation innovations that the 19th
Inventions like the automobile made a faster form of transportation open to the public; this would allow people to be able to go from places in a timeless matter compared to their other forms of transportation such as boats, and railroads. Also, the light bulb allowed people to save money and power their houses at the same time. Once the light bulb was put in, and electricity was wired through the house, they didn't have to pay for more light bulbs for a long period of time; compared to how much money families would spend on buying standard oil to light their homes, electricity and light bulbs were a giant money saver for many families during the Gilded Age. These inventions were not limited to the United States, though, over time technology diffused into other countries due to trade. In short due to new technology being created and new ways of doing things industrialized the lives of millions of people across the globe were made
Throughout American History, revolutions in transportation have affected the American society politically, socially and economically. Soon after the war of 1812, American nationalism increased which leads to a greater emphasis on national issues, the increase in power and prevalence of the national government and a growing sense of the American Identity. Railways, canals, and Turnpikes began to increase making many people employed. The era of 1830-1860 represents a shift from agrarianism to industrialism. Overall, during the transportation revolution, construction of turnpikes, roads, canals, and railroads led to the market economy expansion, an increased population in America and alternations of the physical landscape of America.
The Tremendous Impact of Railroads on America In the late 19th century, railroads propelled America into an era of unprecedented growth, prosperity, and convenient transportation. Prior to the building of the railroads, America lacked the proper and rapid transportation to make traveling across the country economical or practical. Lengthy travel was often cumbersome, costly, and dangerous.
In the early 1800’s, Westward Expansion resulted in the demand for better road systems due to such poor quality. Between local and state governments and other private companies, more than 4,000 miles of turnpikes were built by 1821. In 1806, the National Road is funded by the Federal government; The road was completed in the year 1836.
Between 1800 and 1860 two major things changed within the country. The cash crops changed from tobacco and rice to the new money maker cotton. Along with the crops changing the slave trade grew to replace the economic short fall in the Chesapeake area. These changed occurred due to the supply and demand of commonly bought goods. Another contributing factor for the crops changing was the invention of the cotton gin in 1793 and the use of cotton in textile facilities.
The building of roads, canals and railroads played a large role in the United States during the 1800s. They served the purpose of connecting towns and settlements so that goods could be transported quickly and more efficiently. These goods could be transported fast, cheap and in safe way through the Erie Canal that was built to connect the Great Lakes to New York. Railroads were important during Civil War as well, because it helped in the transportation of goods, supplies and weapons when necessary. These new forms of transportation shaped the United States into the place that it is today.
Transportation, without any form of it, we would just be stuck. Decades before the Transportation Revolution, all that was available for travel was horses, and after that was just carriages. Everyday Americans continued to work toward a better America, and one day a man named George Stephenson invented the first locomotive. Invention of this was definitely beneficial in many ways, but it also had its downside, years passed and more railroads popped up making it more and more clustered everyday. However, the beneficiality of the Transportation Revolution outweighs the negatives, this revolution allowed more jobs to be created which resulted in a better economy and this also allowed for Manifest Destiny to be completed.