22.3—Industrial Revolution

Industry Grew and Spread to New Lands

Engineers built roads and canals.

n      Best way to travel in England was by boat.

n      Good harbors and rivers.  Had to transport goods between rivers by horse-drawn wagon.

n      To solve this problem, the British built miles of canals to connect these rivers.  Cut the cost of transportation.

n      John McAdam—invented the “macadam” surface for better roads.  Large stones for drainage covered by a smooth layer of crushed rock. (Early 1800’s)

Railway Age Began

n      For centuries, horses had pulled carts of iron and coal along railway tracks in and around mines.

n      Richard Trevithick—invented a steam engine small enough and powerful enough for a locomotive.  Pulled 10 tons of iron over 10 miles. (1804)

n      George Stephenson—builder/designer of steam powered locomotives.  Opened up the world’s first railroad line.  27 miles from a coalfield to a port on the North Sea. (1825)

n      Soon, another track was laid from port of Liverpool to the city of Manchester (heart of spinning and weaving industry). (1830)

n      Competition for best locomotive to drive this track.  Winner was the Rocket, designed by Stephenson.  Hauled 13 tons going more than 24 mph.

Railroads Spread Across England

n      Liverpool-Manchester line becomes very popular.

n      British business people began building lines all over England.

n      Owners of the canals and freight wagon lines are driven out of business.

Railroads Had Far-Reaching Effects

1)     Encouraged industrial growth—gave manufacturers a fast, cheap way to transport both raw materials and finished products.

2)     Provided millions of new jobs.

3)     Farmers could send milk and fruit to distant cities.  Boost in agriculture.

4)     Gave people new attitudes about travel.

Industrialization Spread to Other Countries

n      Britain wanted to keep the secrets of industrialization to itself.  Against British law for engineers, mechanics, and toolmakers to leave the country.

n      U.S.A.

·        Samuel Slater—disguised himself as a farmer and boarded a ship headed for the U.S. (1789)

·        Built a spinning machine from memory.  Rhode Island businessman Moses Brown built a factory for his machines. 

·        Factory made only thread.  The thread was given to weavers who worked in their homes.

n      Europe

·        French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars had disrupted Europe, so that Great Britain had a great head start in the Industrial Revolution.

·        William Cockerill—British carpenter who escaped to Belgium and began making cotton-spinning machines.  His sons opened factories that produced steam engines, locomotives, and other machinery.

22.4—Industrial Revolution

Industry Changed Ways of Life

More People Lived in Cities

n      Most of Europe’s urban areas at least doubled in population.

n      More factories®more jobs®more people in cities

n      New industrial cities virtually popped up over night—Manchester.  Little thought or planning given to housing, sanitation, or education.

Industrial Revolution Changed Working Conditions

n      Work hours depended on a bell or whistle, not on the season or the weather.

n      Very consistent.  About 14 hours a day.  6 days a week.

n      Factories were dangerous.  Dirty and not well lit.  Machines injured workers frequently.

n      Coal mines also very dangerous.  Frequent accidents, damp conditions and constant breathing of coal.

Child Labor

n      6 and 7 year olds working long hours in factories or mines.

n      Especially useful in mines.  Small size allowed them to move through narrow tunnels.  “Trappers” 

n      Orphan children had it the worst.  Employment for room and board.  Seldom fed properly.

n      Factory Act of 1833—put limits on child labor.

n      Children had to work still, to help support the family.

Middle Class Expands

n      Factory owners, shippers and merchants belong to the middle class.  These folks are making a lot of money now. Some are wealthier than landowners and aristocrats.

n      Gradually, a middle class that was neither rich nor poor began to emerge.  Gov’t employees, doctors, lawyers, factory managers, etc.

Class Tensions

n      Working people could not vote.  Only wealthy landowners.

n      Workers began urging reform through unions.  Union--  a group who speaks for all workers in a particular trade.

n      Unions bargained for better working conditions and higher wages.  If owners refused demands, the union would strike.