Even though the railroad existed before the great division between the north and the south and it mainly contributed in providing goods for both sides, the invention of the railroad greatly contributed to the civil war. The first railroad created in the US was in 1827 and their major role was to transport goods from the North to the South and back. As slaves became more abundant in the South and less present in the North a war began on the idea of slavery. The railroad caused this Civil War by bringing goods to only one side and keeping their advantage. It went from having different point of views to all out battles that started with starvation and isolation, but led to death and separation.
The greatest cultural conflict between the years 1865 and 1898 was the Transcontinental Railroad. The Transcontinental Railroad was a railway stretching from “sea to shining sea”. It was built by two teams of workers, the Central Pacific Railroad Company starting in Sacramento and the Union Pacific Railroad building west from the Missouri River. The teams worked day and night to connect the two ends in Promontory Summit, Utah. The Transcontinental Railroad was a major breakthrough in the connection of markets and the transportation of goods and people from coast to coast.
The Civil War was the first war to use railroads and turn them into a weapon of war. During the Civil War railroads became the vital new technology for both the Union and Confederate forces. The great distances separating armies, the need for supplies, and quicker troop movements all increased the need for the railroad. Without this new weapon the Civil War may have lasted until the last man was literally left standing. The ability to implement and use the railroads in the Civil War would play a crucial role in the North’s victory and the South’s defeat. Those who controlled the rail lines controlled the war.
The Transcontinental Railroad and the Interstate Highway System were not only the two biggest contributions in the history of transportation in the United States but are tremendously similar to each other in how they were built. Both systems were built in times of extremely desperate need of a way of transportation across the country which made them such big advantages to American society. The two systems have been majorly significant tools in the history the United States as well as modern day life.
The first way that the economy was impacted was that with the ease and efficiency of the railroads, they created a large demand for goods and labor because they needed a lot of people to help build the railroads and also needed a large quantity of steel for the rails and wood for the railroad ties. Secondly the railroads created a huge national market because of the simplicity of delivering goods from place to place. The railroads helped the people in even the most rural place prosper with the cost efficient transportation of the trains. From 1830 to 1861, the United States laid aproximately 30,000 miles of railroad track, which led to an increase in demand for coal which was used to produce iron for the
The period after the civil war saw the United States of America economy transform to become a national economy and an industrial giant. The already existing industries quickly expanded and new ones emerged including steel manufacturing, electrical power, and petroleum refining. This period saw the rapid expansion of the railroad network which would subsequently connect even the remote parts of the country into the national economic grid essentially transforming the regional markets into a national economy. Following the economic expansion, the American society was greatly transformed creating a new crop of wealthy individuals and a dynamic middle class. Additionally, there was a vast expansion of blue collar job opportunities which quickly
To say the time period following the Civil War in the United States involved a lot of change would be a understatement. Between the years 1870 and 1900 the people of the United States lived through a period of great change. Not only did they witness technological advances that would change their daily lives, they also saw new laws and organizations formed. All of this was done in hopes of improving the country. Many of these changes came about because of the type of businesses that were formed. In the post-Civil War United States corporations grew significantly in number, size and influence. Big business had a major impact on the economy and politics in America resulting in changes for many American citizens.
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.
The building of railroads created rapid economic growth in America. Railroad companies employed more than one million workers to build and maintain railroads. At the same time, coal, timber, and steel industries employed thousands of workers to provide the supplies necessary to build railroads (Chapter 12 Industrialization). In turn, railroad companies spent large sums of money purchasing railroad supplies. The cycle of employing large numbers of workers, building the railroads, and spending large sums of money stimulated extraordinary growth in the economy.
Before the Gilded Age, transportation of any sort was slow, unreliable, and unavailable. However, with the invention of the assembly line and some invention, mass produced automobiles, subterranean trains, elevated trains and basic airplanes were spread out. Therefore, during the late 19th century, transportation was allowing for extreme expanse of trade and economic capability.
One of the most remarkable consequences of the Civil war was the industrialization of the United States, which transformed the economy of the country. While certain industries, such as textiles and clock making saw industrialization during the first half of the nineteenth century, it was not until the Civil War that industrialization spread throughout America. The Civil War spurred the process of industrialization and encourages new production techniques that would have the greatest impact after the end of the war. Some of the significant reasons for the delay of industrialization of America after the Civil War were social, economic, political, geographic and legal reasons. The industrialization affected various groups of the society belonging to distinct races and ethnic backgrounds. It also led to the involvement of child labor and people belonging to all genders. It was only after the Civil War that the nation’s railroads became extensive enough to distribute the excess product created by the industrialized factories across different regions.
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.
With the Civil war came many changes to America’s economy, specifically to her transportation and labor systems. While the United States’ transportation sector changed positively, the labor system did not, since the loss of slaves took its toll on the South’s economy. Overall, America’s economy changed so much from 1865 to 1880 that the effects can still be seen
The Market Revolution generated a drastic change in the United States economy and altered gender barriers while at the same time accomplishing this in a provocative manner. This economic boom occurred around the first half of the 19th Century. The economic boom was achieved by inventions such as a transcontinental railroad system which resulted in a better transportation system which improved trade and the cotton gin which sped up the rate of removing seeds from cotton fiber. However like what the great Hugo said, “The brutalities of progress are called revolutions. When they are over we realize this: that the human race has been roughly handled, but that it has advanced”. That is exactly what happened with this revolution in fact and the progress
In both the early and late 19th century there were a lot of things that contributed to the growth of America. Economically, during this point in time there was extreme growth. Up to the end of the Civil war, the way people went about life was about to change even more than what has already changed in the last fifty years. Post-Civil war, over 4 million slaves were freed. They migrated and assimilated towards the pacific coast and towards northern states. This left southern farms in crisis. The amount of people working on the farms compared to the size of the farm meant it was going to be really tough to maintain the farm himself. What did this mean for the country? There was a crisis that needed to be taken care of, and how would the country handle it? The industry needed something new. The Industrial Revolution can be viewed as one of the most significant reason towards the rise of economic powers in this country. It helped the country in so many ways. This was the start of a new life style for the people of the United States.