A Portrait of the United States 1800
Agriculture (farming) In 1800, America was a rural, agricultural based society Crops were the basis for the nation’s wealth
Agriculture (continued) Cash crops in the South included cotton and tobacco Farmers in the West grew wheat or raised livestock
Rural vs Urban Centers In 1800, most people lived in the countryside. 1 in 25 Americans lived in the cities Philadelphia was nation’s largest city with 69,000 people. The four major cities were Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Baltimore. All four had a total of 180,000 people.
Social Differences Americans differed in class, race and gender. Wealthy merchants and planters enjoyed luxuries and travel Most Americans lived difficult lives. Women had limited rights. African American slaves had little rights at all.
Rise of Industry New industries were forming in the northeast Many factories will harness water power to help power machinery As industry grows, so do cities This will be known as the Industrial revolution
Industry – Samuel Slater Slater violated British law by building a machine that made cotton fibers into thread. Slater’s spinning mill in Rhode Island will cause an increase in the use of machinery
Transportation It was difficult to travel in America due to all of the untamed wilderness. Most roads that connected cities were dirt trails Travel was slow. To go from NYC to Boston by stagecoach would take three days
The National Road In 1806, Congress set aside the funds to build the first federally funded road. This would be known as the National Road
Communication Communication in the early 1800’s was SLOW! The main form to communicate was by letter through the mail service Mail was often damaged, lost or late in delivery due to the poor roads
The 1 st Industrial Revolution Things to look for: What was life like before the I.R.? What device helped the cotton industry expand? What methods did factories use to power machinery?