The Industrial Revolution

​The Industrial Revolution

​Terms and Names

Industrial Revolution Great increase in machine production that began in England in the 18th century

enclosure Large closed-in field for farming

crop rotation Planting a different crop in a different field each year

industrialization Process of developing machine production of goods

factors of production Conditions needed to produce goods and services

James Watt mathematical instrument maker who increased the efficiency of the steam engine

factory Building where goods are made

entrepreneur Person who organizes, manages, and takes on the financial risk of a business enterprise

urbanization City building and the movement of people to cities

middle class A social class of skilled workers, professionals, business people, and wealthy farmers

stock Right of ownership in a company called a corporation

corporation Business owned by stockholders who share in its profits but are not responsible for its debts

​How did the Industrial Revolution begin?

The Industrial Revolution was the great increase in production that began in England during the 18th century. Before the Industrial Revolution, people made most goods by hand. By the middle of the 1700s, more and more goods were made by machines.

The Industrial Revolution began with an agricultural revolution. In the early 1700s, large landowners in Britain bought much of the land that had been owned by poorer farmers. The landowners collected these lands into large fields closed-in by fences or hedges. These fields were called enclosures. Many poor farmers who lost their lands became tenant farmers. Others gave up farming and moved to the cities.

New farm methods made farmers more productive. For example, Jethro Tull invented a seed drill that made planting more efficient. Farmers also practiced crop rotation. Crop rotation is the practice of planting a different crop in a different field each year.

​The increase in farm output made more food available. People enjoyed better diets. The population of Britain grew. Fewer farmers were needed to grow food. More people began to make goods other than food. The growth in the number of people in cities to work in factories helped create the Industrial Revolution.

For several reasons, Britain was the first country to industrialize. Industrialization is the process of developing machine production of goods.

Great Britain had all the resources needed for industrialization. These resources included coal, water, iron ore, rivers, harbors, and banks. Britain also had all the factors of production that the Industrial Revolution required. These factors of production included land, labor (workers), and capital (wealth).

​What inventions helped change business?

The Industrial Revolution began in the textile industry. Several new inventions helped businesses make cloth and clothing more quickly. Richard Arkwright invented the water frame in 1769. It used water power to run spinning machines that made yarn. In 1779, Samuel Compton invented the spinning mule that made better thread. In 1787, Edmund Cartwright developed the power loom. The power loom was a machine that sped up the cloth-making process.

These new inventions were large and expensive machines. Business owners built large factories to house and run these machines. These factories were built near rivers because these machines needed water power to run them.

​The invention of the steam engine in 1705 brought in a new source of power. The steam engine used fire to heat water and produce steam, which drove the engine. James Watt improved steam-driven engines so that they could work better and faster. An entrepreneur paid Watts to keep improving his engines.

At the same time, improvements were being made in transportation. Robert Fulton, an American, invented the first steam-driven boat. This invention allowed people to send goods more quickly over rivers and canals

​Starting in the 1820s, steam brought a new burst of industrial growth. George Stephenson, a British engineer, set up the world’s first railroad line. It used a steamdriven locomotive. Soon, railroads were being built all over Britain.

The railroad boom helped business owners move their goods to market more quickly. It created thousands of new jobs in several different industries. The railroad had a deep effect on British society. For instance, people could now travel throughout the country more quickly.

​How did industrialization change people’s ways of life?

Industrialization brought many changes to the British people. More people could use coal to heat their homes, eat better food, and wear better clothing.

Another change was urbanization— city building and the movement of people to cities. For centuries, most people in Europe had lived in the country. By the 1800s, more and more people lived in cities, where they had come to find jobs.

​Living conditions were bad in crowded cities. Many people could not find good housing, schools, or police protection. Filth, garbage, and sickness were part of life in the slums. A person in a city could expect to live 17 years. In the countryside, a person could expect to live 38 years.

Working conditions were also bad. The average worker spent 14 hours a day on the job, 6 days a week. Many workers were killed or seriously injured in accidents.

​Who were the members of the middle class?

Some people’s lives were improved in the new economy. The Industrial Revolution created new wealth for the middle class, which included skilled workers, professionals, business people, and wealthy farmers. People in the middle class enjoyed comfortable lives in pleasant homes. This class began to grow in size. Some people grew wealthier than the nobles who had been in control for many centuries.

The Industrial Revolution had many good effects. It created wealth. It created jobs for workers and overtime helped many of them live better lives. It produced better diets, better housing, and better clothing at lower prices.

​How did industrialization begin in the United States?

Other countries began to industrialize after Great Britain. The United States was one of the first. Like Britain, the United States had a great deal of coal and water to create power. There was also plenty of iron. In addition, the immigrants that came to the United States created a large supply of workers.

The United States also benefited from conflict with Britain. During the War of 1812, Britain stopped shipping goods to the United States. As a result, American industries began to make many of the goods that Americans wanted.

In the United States, industrialization began in the textile industry. In 1789, Samuel Slater, a British worker, brought the secret of Britain’s textile machines to North America. Slater built a machine to spin thread.

​In 1813, a group of Massachusetts investors built textile factories in Waltham, Massachusetts. Just a few years later they built even more factories in the Massachusetts town of Lowell. Thousands of workers, mostly young girls, came to these towns to work in the factories.

American industry first grew in the Northeast. In the last decades of the 1800s, industrial growth spread to other areas of the nation. This boom was fueled by large supplies of coal, oil, and iron. New inventions, including the electric light, also helped. As in Britain, railroad building was also a big part of American industrial growth.

Businesses needed huge sums of money to do big projects. To raise money, companies sold stock. Stocks are shares of ownership in a company. All those who held stock were part owners of the company. This form of business organization is called a corporation.

​How did industrialization change the world?

The Industrial Revolution changed the world. Countries that industrialized gained more wealth and power than those that did not. The countries of Europe soon began to take advantage of lands in Africa and Asia.

The Europeans wanted to use these lands as sources of raw materials for their factories. European merchants saw the people on other continents as little more than markets for European goods. The European nations took control of the lands in many areas of the world outside of Europe. This practice is called imperialism.

The Industrial Revolution that took place in the1700s and 1800s changed life forever in the countries that industrialized. Problems caused by industrialization led to movements for social reform.