The Development of Transportation Infrastructure in 19th Century America

Post War of 1812 CONSIDER: Why did the American manufacturing industry grow significantly in the post War of 1812 years? Hint: Think of who we were fighting, and therefore no longer able to trade with?

INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION Population Growth:

Public vs. Private: The Internal Improvements Debate In 1800, the United States was geographically large but with a small population. Other than population centers, much of the infant United States was largely uninhabited. The vast expanses of wilderness made transportation difficult in a time before railroads. After the War of 1812, South Carolina John C. Calhoun proposed a program where the federal government would pay for an expansion of infrastructure. Roads Canals Railroads Transportation Henry Clay proposed a 3 part American System Protective Tariffs A renewed national bank Internal improvements President Madison shot both down, saying the national government was not responsible for funding projects in individual states. President James Madison Henry Clay

Roads Pennsylvania’s Lancaster Turnpike, was built in the 1790’s. It connected Philadelphia with the rich farmlands around Lancaster. Its success pushed for the construction of other private roads that by the mid 1820’s connected most of the country’s major cities. There was a growing need for interstate roads, but states’ rights promoters blocked the use of federal funds for such roads.

Robert Fulton and the Steamboat "What sir, would you make a ship sail against the winds and current by lighting a bonfire under her deck? I pray you excuse me. I have no time to listen to such nonsense." Napoleon I to Robert Fulton On 7 August 1807, Robert Fulton launched the steamboat Claremont on the Hudson River for a trip between New York City and Albany. The Claremont completed the 150 mile trip in just over 32 hours, an astonishing speed against the current for the time. Although the Claremont was not the first steamboat, it was the first steamboat that was economically viable. By 1811, Fulton’s had taken the steamboat to the Mississippi River and, in 1819, the Savannah crossed the Atlantic Ocean on a combination of steam and sail. The introduction of steam power meant that transportation was no longer reliant on animals, wind, and currents. The Claremont

The Erie Canal Before the invention of the railroad, the only practical means of moving heavy objects around the country was by water. This proved an impediment to commerce as the two major American ports, Baltimore and New York, were not served by rivers. This meant that goods had to be offloaded from barges and carried overland to the port for shipping. In 1817, months after Madison vetoed the internal improvements bill, New York began construction of a canal to link New York Harbor with the Hudson River and the Great Lakes beyond. When the canal was completed in 1825, the cost of transporting one ton of wheat across New York fell from $100 to $5. A journey that had taken 20 days could now be competed in 10. Though improved, the Erie Canal remains in operation The Erie Canal circa 1829 In its first year of operation 185,000 tons of merchandise was moved on the Erie Canal. This included 562,000 bushels of wheat, 221,000 barrels of flour, and 435,000 gallons of whiskey.

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad In 1827, the Baltimore and Ohio became the first railroad in the U.S. chartered to carry passengers and freight. The railroad had not yet been invented when the Erie Canal was built. Designed to link Baltimore Harbor with the Ohio River, the B&O eventually covered the Eastern seaboard and reached as far west as Chicago and continued operation until 1986. In 1830, there were 23 miles of railroad in the United States. By 1840 it had increased to 2,808 miles of track. By 1860, 30,626 miles of track had been laid in the United States. The Tom Thumb, the first locomotive on the B&O Railroad.

Industrial Progress The Cotton Gin Stocks/Investments Factory System Eli Whitney Interchangeable Parts (Rifles) Stocks/Investments Factory System Water Power Immigrants Women Children Unions In response to the factory movement Reduce work hours Increase pay Immigrant workers? State laws outlawing unions High unemployment Farming becomes big business.

Cotton Gin

Cotton Gin and Society 1793: Transformed the agriculture of the entire South. Created cotton as a cash crop. Allowed for quickly removing the seeds from the cotton. Made cotton more profitable than tobacco and indigo. This new income was used to purchase slaves and new land in Alabama and Mississippi. Much of the cotton was shipped to Great Britain

Cotton Gin and Slavery Early 1800’s: Many people in society ‘hoped’ that slavery would die out as an institution. Rather than actually deal with the issue (MAKE IT ILLEGAL), people just hoped it would go away. It may have actually gone away without the Cotton Gin. This massive cash crop made the institution of slavery far too profitable to get rid of. The arguments over the Missouri Compromise backed this up

Population of Enslaved African-Americans 1800 1830 1860 New York 20,613 75 BIG FAT ZERO! Maryland 106,635 102,994 87,189 Virginia 346,671 469,767 490,865 Georgia 59,699 217,531 462,198 Alabama -- 117,549 435,080 Mississippi 65,659 436,631 Arkansas 4,576 111,115 All States 893,605 2,009,043 3,953,760