1. The American Industrial Revolution
The Division of Labor and the Factory:
Whether at home (putting-out system), or a factory, work became more rote and efficient by doing specific tasks (Later known as the assembly line)
Seen in slaughterhouses and shoe factories
The Textile Industry and British Competition:
The British government forbid mechanics and machines to leave Britain
Samuel Slater – emigrated to America from England – and became known as the Father of the American Factory – developed factories that mirrored the British model.

2. Trade Wars – U.S. v. Britain
American vs. British:
U.S. Advantages
US had a tremendous amount of natural resources – cotton
Fast moving rivers for mills
US government instituted tariffs on foreign goods
British Advantages
Britain had a large population (cheap labor)
Britain had the ability to ship and manufacture things cheaper
Better Machines, Cheaper Workers
US improved on British machines
Lowell System – farmers’ daughters that worked in factories
Lived in housing provided by employers – curfews, no alcohol
These women experienced a sense of new found independence

3. The American Industrial Revolution
American Mechanics and Technological Innovation:
US patents increased drastically between 1820 and 1860 as inventors began coming up with new machines to improve industrialization
Eli Whitney:
Cotton gin (1793) – separated cotton from its seeds
Interchangeable parts – used for guns, applied to other areas
As a result, products became more abundant and cheaper to produce.

4. Labor Issues Wageworkers and the Labor Movement: Labor Ideology:
Workers Formed Unions in an attempt to get better wages:
Both English and early American law viewed unions as illegal attempts to “injure employers”
Some industries fired workers who joined unions
Labor Ideology:
Commonwealth v. Hunt (1837) Massachusetts State Supreme Court decision that declared unions legal
Labor Theory of Value – the price of goods should reflect the cost of labor and the income made from the sale of the goods should to the workers, not the factory owners

5. ***The Market Revolution***
What is it?
Change in labor systems, population, and transportation
Greatly affected the Northeast and Midwest part of the U.S.
The Transportation Revolution Forges Regional Ties:
Growth exploded into the Midwest where the government was selling land to farmers at $1.25/acre
More than 5 million people moved west of the Appalachians between
To link the Midwest to the eastern seaboard, government created:
National Road (1811) was funded by the federal government
Erie Canal(1825) – Albany to Buffalo – and beyond via Great Lakes and rivers
364 mile canal funded by New York state

6. Railroads (1850s) Link the North and Midwest:
Livestock and wheat were transported between the two regions
Inventions that helped farmers – McCormick Reaper and Deere’s steel plow
The South did not invest in manufacturing, relied on agriculture (cotton)
The Growth of Cities and Towns:
Cities emerged as trading and manufacturing centers:
Cincinnati, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Chicago, etc.