1. Starter
Think about an invention that you believe significantly changed the way in which we live. (This can be any invention from any time period.) What invention would you choose? Explain your response in your notebook.

2. Inventions that Changed the Century
Inventions of the Gilded Age

3. The American Industrial Revolution
Lasted from
Many new inventions were created or improved because Americans were hoping to gain intellectual respect.

4. New and Improved Inventions
Phonograph
Light Bulbs (became household items)
The gas-powered car
Submarines
Dishwasher
Elevator
Electric Trolley
Telephone
Silent Movie Camera
Skyscrapers
Amusement Parks
Roll Film Camera

5. The Transcontinental Railroad
Although the Transcontinental Railroad was completed in 1869, it was improved upon and used more frequently for travel and trade during the Gilded Age.
This was due to improved trains, braking systems, the creation of time zones, and the need to trade manufactured goods.

6. History by the Numbers
Utility (Invention) patents awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 1880: 12,926
Utility (Invention) patents awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 1900: 24,656
Patents held by Thomas Edison: 1,093
American telephone subscribers in 1880: 48,000 American telephone subscribers in 1900: 800,000

7. What can we assume?
Do you think everyone appreciated these new inventions? Who might not have liked these new inventions?
What kind of effects do you think these new inventions caused in America during the Gilded Age?