N ATIONALISM AND S ECTIONALISM Chapter 3, Sections 1 and 2
T HE T RANSPORTATION R EVOLUTION Most of the transportation at the turn of the nineteenth century relied on water. However, with the push of the United States westward, access to waterways was not always possible. To cut down the cost of overland travel, states looked to build turnpikes, or toll roads. These often did not cut down costs or yield much profit for states, though. The one decent road was funded by the federal government: the National Road. The first major transportation innovation was the steamboat, designed by Robert Fulton in Steamboats cut travel time for goods and boosted development around the Mississippi River.
T HE T RANSPORTATION R EVOLUTION Canals, or waterways that are used for transportation of goods and people, developed primarily in the northeast. The most notable canal built at the time was the Erie Canal, which connected Lake Erie with the Hudson River in New York. Because of the canal, New York City emerged as a large commercial trading center and the population exploded. In the 1820s, railroads made their way across the Atlantic from Great Britain. The benefits to railroads included: Cost less to build Travel over hills more easily
T ECHNOLOGY S PARKS I NDUSTRIAL G ROWTH The transportation explosion became known as the Industrial Revolution and had originated in Europe. Samuel Slater created the first water-powered textile mill that produced thread. These mills often employed the family system, in which the whole family worked in the mill and lived in factory-owned villages nearby. Another merchant, Francis Cabot Lowell, opened a mill in which the full production of cloth was undertaken, not just thread. The workers in these mills became known as Lowell girls. These workers were young girls from local farms. They lived together in supervised boardinghouses at the mill. Factories changed both the speed and level of training needed by workers. Not only did productivity increase, but owners could hire workers with less skill for lower wages.
I NVENTIONS T RANSFORM I NDUSTRY AND A GRICULTURE The Industrial Revolution would not have happened without the invention of several key elements. Interchangeable parts, invented by Eli Whitney made it easier for manufacturers to replace parts when they broke. Communication also improved during the 1800s when Samuel F.B. Morse invented the telegraph in The telegraph used a series of dots and dashes to communicate messages; it became known as Morse code. This made communication almost instantaneous. While factories grew, agriculture remained the largest industry in the U.S. Farmers could now produce more and sell it faster due to improved transportation. Identify below major technological advancements that impacted farming: Steel plow John Deere Mechanical reaper Cyrus McCormick
T HE N ORTH E MBRACES I NDUSTRY The United States was quickly becoming a nation based on factories and not on farming as the Democratic-Republicans had hoped. American factories boomed in response to the Embargo Act of After the War of 1812, though, British goods flowed back into the United States and Congress passed the Tariff of 1816 to protect American industry. This tariff increased prices 20-25%. The northeast was a prime location for factories because of access to waterways and financial capital.
S OCIAL C HANGES IN THE N ORTH The declining cost of labor hurt artisans, or skilled workers, especially. Labor unions formed to argue collectively for the rights of workers to better pay and conditions. Industrialization led to the emergence of a middle class. Managerial positions were separated from common laborers in terms of wages. Neighborhoods became segregated by race as the middle class moved to gain more space, and women now stayed home to take care of the family in these families.
S OCIAL C HANGES IN THE N ORTH During the 1840s, the number of immigrants coming to the United States skyrocketed. These individuals came primarily from which two countries? Ireland and Germany Identify the similarities between these groups: Why they came: religious persecution, political upheaval, economic depression Religions: Catholic and Jewish Where they settled: mainly in major cities like Chicago, NYC and Detroit. Individuals that supported the restriction of immigration were known as nativists.
S OUTHERN A GRICULTURAL E CONOMY AND S OCIETY Three developments in the Deep South boosted cotton production and earned it the name “King Cotton” —the cotton gin, westward expansion and industrialization. Eli Whitney invented the cotton gin in It separated the cotton seeds from the more valuable fiber. As the cotton industry spread to states such as Tennessee, Florida and Alabama, farmers found both fertile soil and a warmer climate for growing cotton. As industries in the North grew, so did the demand for cotton. Even though the slave trade had been abolished in 1808, the production of cotton increased the demand for workers.
S OUTHERN A GRICULTURAL E CONOMY AND S OCIETY Economic Limited regional development Planters went bankrupt when cotton prices decreased. No urban growth to promote factories. Southern population lagged behind the North’s Cultural White illiteracy rate was at 15%, 3x higher than in the North. Slavery was seen as morally okay in comparison to the conditions of the North. White men could also earn relatively equal wages. The reliance on “King Cotton” brought both economic and cultural consequences to the South. Identify them below: