Industrial Revolution: Urbanization Simulation

Round 1: Your Town in 1750 Draw a river across your paper connecting east to west. The river should be about 1” wide. Draw a wooden bridge across the river, and draw 4 roads originating from each corner of the paper. Mark off a portion of the land in your village as the commons (land that can be used by all in the village). Draw 10 houses, 1 church, 1 cemetery, 1 store, 1 pub, 1 coal mine, and lots of trees.

Round 2: The Canal, 1755 A canal is constructed in the town. It is very profitable and allows for more trade with other parts of the country. This occurs at the same time that a population explosion occurs because of the eradication of the bubonic plague and improved sanitation. Add a canal that must run parallel to the river. Build one nice home for the owner of the canal. Add 5 houses and 2 stores to your village.

Round 3: Agricultural Revolution and the Enclosure Acts, 1765 Due to inventions like the seed drill and new farming methods like crop rotation and fertilizers, farming is more productive. Large landowners pass laws, known as the Enclosure Acts, in Parliament allowing them to buy land from the commons. Take away half of your commons and add 5 more houses and 1 more nice house.

Round 4: The Water Frame, 1770 Rickard Arkwright invents a machine that can spin and weave cloth 100 times faster than by hand. Since the machine was so large, it was stored in a factory. Poor families that have been kicked off their land by the Enclosure Acts move to your town. Add 1 factory. It must be placed on the river bank. This factory is smoke free. Add 5 houses, 1 church, 1 pub, and 1 store. Draw 1 additional road and 1 additional bridge.

Round 5: Rise of Factories, Support Services, and Leisure Time, 1775 Due to the success of factories, more “capitalists” invest their money in factories. Of course, even more workers come to live in your town. Because they cannot afford houses, people build tenements, housing in which dozens of families reside under one roof. Workers work long, hard hours in the factories and need places to relax and eat, drink, and worship. Add 5 factories on the river and 5 tenements. Add 1 store, 3 pubs, 1 church, and 1 school for the wealthy.

Round 6: The Steam Engine, 1785 James Watt invents the steam engine, a more efficient machine than the water loom, which powers machines through air pressure rather than water. Add 5 new factories with smoke anywhere in your town and add smoke to all preexisting factories. Add 2 special homes for the owners of these new factories.

Round 7: The Puddling Process and the Age of Iron, 1800 Henry Cort invents the “puddling process,” which allows for coal to be used as the primary fuel in making iron. This creates a huge demand for coal. The work in the new coal mines, however, is dangerous and unhealthy. Casualty rates, especially for children, skyrocket. Draw 1 new coal mine, an iron bridge, 2 hospitals, 2 nice houses, 2 tenements, and 2 new cemeteries.

Round 8: Railroads, 1830 Because existing roads and canals cannot accommodate the heavy industrial traffic, new experiments in transportation lead to the invention of a steam engine that pulls a series of wagons or cars on an iron track. This transportation revolution allows more workers to come to your city, creating a surplus of workers. Capitalists now begin hiring women and children over men because they can pay them less. Depressed, ashamed, and angry, men turn to alcohol at alarming rates. Add a railroad station with tracks that run parallel to the river. Add 1 major railroad line connecting every factory to your coal-mining region. Draw 1 jail and 2 pubs.

Round 9: Factory Conditions, 1835 With no government regulations or laws protecting workers, conditions in factories become increasingly dangerous and unhealthy. Cancer is first diagnosed and a variety of lung ailments increase. Owners are unwilling to help workers because it is easier to find replacements. A fire destroys 2 tenements, 1 factory, and a nice house (erase them). Add 1 police station, 1 fire station, 2 hospitals, and 1 more cemetery. Place gas lamps on the streets surrounding the railroad station.

Round 10: The Irish Potato Famine, 1840 Due to a devastating potato famine, hundreds of thousands of Irish move to England. Therefore, wages again fall and it is harder to find a job. Add 20 houses, 5 tenements, 1 church, 5 factories, 1 pub, and 1 nice house.

Round 11: The Great Divide Owners vs. Workers, 1845 The wealthy have excess cash and time to delve into cultural activities. Museums, theaters, operas, restaurants, and concerts are made available. For the poor, however, the pollution of the river has led to an outbreak of diseases. The average life expectancy drops to 30, there is lots of noise, no privacy, and suicide rates double, then triple. Add 2 theaters and 2 private schools. Add 1 cemetery, 1 jail, and 1 hospital.