Industrialization Dbq Essay

Industrialization itself brought along many things both positive and negative, some of which are still affecting us as a society today. While some might argue that Industrialization had primarily negative consequences for society because of the harm it did to people of that time, it was actually a positive thing for society. Industrialization’s positive effects were economic prosperity, Efficient, serviceable inventions, and more, and better jobs.

The Industrial Revolution was the urbanization of rural areas, and the development of factories and machines. These transformations allowed economic prosperity and brought along tremendous plusses, and were still seeing the success in these up-comings today. “…Industrial Revolution spread to the

“You are surrounded ….. With an infinite number of comforts and conveniences which had no existence two or three centuries ago …. Are not only used by a few, but are within the reach of almost all men” (Document 9). During this time period in the early 1830s people had the conveniences of better, safer homes, cheaper merchandise, and a countless number of other domestic utensils. Although these might not have an immense effect on the economy, they did in-fact better living conditions and the qualities of life. One major, still active, and still extremely important example of a big factor to bettering the lives of everyday people was the construction of the railroads. An American traveler said “Railroad travel was fast. Going to San Francisco from New York City took only six day, before the railroads, the trip took months” (Document 5). The invention of the railroads all started in 1705 when Thomas Newcomen invented the first steam engine. Later on in the 1730s Scottish engineer James Watt, made improvements and innovations to the steam engine that led to its wide use in industry. “You can travel cheaply from place to place, and not only travel at less expense, but travel ten times quicker…” (Document 9). The availability of faster travel via; trains and ships, opened up new doors for agricultural

Another big contribution to having abundant amount of job opportunities was urbanization. Small farms became corporations and people had no choice other than to move to the cities in search for employment. “Mary Paul worked in a textile factory in Lowell, Massachusetts. In an 1846 letter to her father …. The 16 year old expressed her satisfaction with her situation at Lowell” (Document 1). Mary Paul was from New Hampshire, and she traveled around the country looking for employment, she then finds a job working in a spinning room where she is very content with her living conditions. In the letter to her father she even says she would recommend any girls that want employment, to come to Lowell, and that she thinks that’s the best place for her. “I have a very good boarding place, have enough to eat … The girls are all kind and obliging” (Document 1). In this piece, the teen girl talks about the living conditions at her place of employment, her boarding area, and co-workers. She doesn’t seem to have any complaints or negative statements about where she resides, she is fed, and well taken care of. “Five people, each specializing in one of the five steps, can make ten units in the same time” (Document 4). In the late 1800s an inventor name Henry Ford, developed the first successful assembly line, in which he had five men doing the work of