Dawn of the Industrial Age

Industrial Revolution https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhL5DCizj5c Started in Britain in the mid-1700s Long, slow uneven process in which production shifted from simple hand tools to complex machines

Life Changes By the 1850s, many rural villages became industrial towns and cities

Agriculture Spurs Industry Farming Methods Improve Fertilizer and livestock restored soil Less wasteful with land usage Population multiplies Surplus of food Better sanitation and healthcare

New Technology Key Steam Engine James Watt Used a vital power source → COAL Helped operate machinery and power locomotives and ships James Watt Made the steam engine more efficient

Britain Leads the Way

Why Britain? Natural Resources Capital Natural ports & navigable rivers Plentiful supply of coal--KEY! Capital Money used to invest in enterprise A business organization in an area such as shipping, mining, railroads, or factories

Textile Industry Advances Putting-out System System in which tasks were distributed to individuals who completed the work in their own homes Eli Whitney Invented a machine called the cotton gin that separated the seeds from the raw cotton at a fast rate Birth of Factories

One thing leads to another… Machines produce large quantities of goods more efficiently Consumers feed the demand for goods Prices Fall Lower Prices=Affordable Goods=More Consumers New Cycle caused a wave of economic & social changes that dramatically affected the way people lived