Essential Questions
- How did Industrialization change the economic development of the United States?
- What was the interplay between technology and economic development during the Industrial Period?
- What were the social consequences of the Industrial Revolution and the wage system?
"Industrialization based on machinery, already referred to as a characteristic of our age, is but one aspect of the revolution that is being wrought by technology." -Emily Greene Bauch
The Industrial Revolution would have far-ranging implications for the United States. Begun in Britain in the late 18th century, spread to the United States by the 1820s and was dramatically accelerated during and after the American Civil War.
Industrialization has several different components/characteristics:
-The use of machines to produce goods.
-The changing of fuel types from biofuels to the use of coal and oil.
-The changing of a society from being an agricultural economy to a manufacturing economy.
-An increase in the development of technology.
Assignment
Powerpoint: Very Brief Overview of Industrialization
Notes: Very Brief Overview of Industrialization
Farcebook: Industrial Revolution Assignment
Viewing Guide: American Geniuses, Edison vs Tesla
The Industrial Revolution would have far-ranging implications for the United States. Begun in Britain in the late 18th century, spread to the United States by the 1820s and was dramatically accelerated during and after the American Civil War.
Industrialization has several different components/characteristics:
-The use of machines to produce goods.
-The changing of fuel types from biofuels to the use of coal and oil.
-The changing of a society from being an agricultural economy to a manufacturing economy.
-An increase in the development of technology.
Assignment
Powerpoint: Very Brief Overview of Industrialization
Notes: Very Brief Overview of Industrialization
Farcebook: Industrial Revolution Assignment
Viewing Guide: American Geniuses, Edison vs Tesla
The Steam Engine
The development of the steam engine allowed for the creation of new machinery, which could further increase production. These new steam engines were used to replace human and animal muscle power for the production of goods. as a result, larger and larger amounts of goods were being produced at higher quality than ever before. To facilitate this new type of production the Factory System was developed.
The Factory System and Taylorism
Factories were developed across the United States. In the past, workers produced their goods at home or in local workshops. However, the machines of the period required a central location and thus workers had to be brought to them. Because the machines were so precise, they set the pace of work, meaning that workers had to accommodate their tools, not the other way around.
This process was further exacerbated by the development of Scientific Management, known as Taylorism. First developed by Frederick Taylor, Taylorism was a program in which factory work was regimented by the scientific process. Each job was broken down into specific components, with the worker being instructed on each step.
Urbanization and Working Life
"Chicago is the product of modern capitalism, and, like other great commercial centers, is unfit for human habitation. " --Eugene V. Debs
The demand for factory labor changed the demographic make up of the country as well. Workers were drawn from the countryside, away from farm life, to America's growing cities. Former agricultural workers were brought into city-life, often against their wishes, creating a new host of problems for the country.
19th century cities were dangerous, over-crowded, and polluted. Periodic outbreaks of disease swept through these cities regularly, killing many thousands. Urban gangs exploded in size and aggression, while homelessness became a serious concern.
The development of the steam engine allowed for the creation of new machinery, which could further increase production. These new steam engines were used to replace human and animal muscle power for the production of goods. as a result, larger and larger amounts of goods were being produced at higher quality than ever before. To facilitate this new type of production the Factory System was developed.
The Factory System and Taylorism
Factories were developed across the United States. In the past, workers produced their goods at home or in local workshops. However, the machines of the period required a central location and thus workers had to be brought to them. Because the machines were so precise, they set the pace of work, meaning that workers had to accommodate their tools, not the other way around.
This process was further exacerbated by the development of Scientific Management, known as Taylorism. First developed by Frederick Taylor, Taylorism was a program in which factory work was regimented by the scientific process. Each job was broken down into specific components, with the worker being instructed on each step.
Urbanization and Working Life
"Chicago is the product of modern capitalism, and, like other great commercial centers, is unfit for human habitation. " --Eugene V. Debs
The demand for factory labor changed the demographic make up of the country as well. Workers were drawn from the countryside, away from farm life, to America's growing cities. Former agricultural workers were brought into city-life, often against their wishes, creating a new host of problems for the country.
19th century cities were dangerous, over-crowded, and polluted. Periodic outbreaks of disease swept through these cities regularly, killing many thousands. Urban gangs exploded in size and aggression, while homelessness became a serious concern.
The Railways
The development of the railroad was of tremendous importance to the United States. Given how large the United States was the railroads were a way to bind the nation together. Further, it allowed for the transportation of resources across the United States, in effect creating a national market. Resources from all across the United States flowed to newly-built factories (mostly situation in the northeast) where they were converted into a variety of goods.
Assignments
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 1
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 2
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 4
Assignment: Captains of Industry or Robber Barons
The development of the railroad was of tremendous importance to the United States. Given how large the United States was the railroads were a way to bind the nation together. Further, it allowed for the transportation of resources across the United States, in effect creating a national market. Resources from all across the United States flowed to newly-built factories (mostly situation in the northeast) where they were converted into a variety of goods.
Assignments
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 1
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 2
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 13, Sec 4
Assignment: Captains of Industry or Robber Barons
The Gilded Age
The term Gilded Age came from American novelist Mark Twain. The term 'gilded' refers to a base metal (like lead, iron, etc.) that is covered in gold to give it the appearance of value.
What Twain meant was that the time period was a period of corruption, violence, and economic insecurity.
Assignments
Assignment: Industrialization and Inequality
Viewing Guide: BBC: Marx and Marxism
Mini-DBQ: Class Conflict
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 15, Sec 1
Project: Class Stratification Rules
Project: Class Stratification Worksheet
Project: Peanut Gallery, Gilded Age
Viewing Guide: Tesla vs Edison
The term Gilded Age came from American novelist Mark Twain. The term 'gilded' refers to a base metal (like lead, iron, etc.) that is covered in gold to give it the appearance of value.
What Twain meant was that the time period was a period of corruption, violence, and economic insecurity.
Assignments
Assignment: Industrialization and Inequality
Viewing Guide: BBC: Marx and Marxism
Mini-DBQ: Class Conflict
Chapter Assignment: Chapter 15, Sec 1
Project: Class Stratification Rules
Project: Class Stratification Worksheet
Project: Peanut Gallery, Gilded Age
Viewing Guide: Tesla vs Edison