Industrial Revolution Quiz 1

In the nineteenth century, the availability of the resources in this list resulted in--

• an increase in the number of factories in the Northeast

• the development of industrial labor unions in the South

• an increase in the number of immigrants moving to the South

• the expansion of commercial agriculture in the Northeast

Which of the following best completes the table above?

• Immigration expands the labor force.

• The government seizes control of factories.

• Overland trade routes become obsolete.

• A scarcity of raw materials causes prices to rise.

How did the development of the factory system encourage urbanization.

• Manufacturers produced goods to export overseas.

• Labor unions were formed to protect mill workers.

• Workers moved closer to manufacturing centers.

• Industrialists invested in cotton plantations.

These environmental modifications were made in order to construct --

• permanent housing for immigrants in urban areas

• canals that linked the Midwest to the Northeast

• a transcontinental railroad

• a harbor on the Mississippi River

The introduction of interchangeable parts led directly to the --

• formation of the patent system

• creation of labor unions

• use of mass-production techniques

• eight-hour workday

Like many inventors, Whitney (who died in 1825) could not have foreseen the ways in which his invention would change society for the worse. The most significant of these was the growth of slavery. While it was true that the cotton gin reduced the labor of removing seeds, it did not reduce the need for slaves to grow and pick the cotton. In fact, the opposite occurred. Cotton growing became so profitable for the planters that it greatly increased their demand for both land and slave labor. In 1790 there were six slave states; in 1860 there were 15. From 1790 until Congress banned the importation of slaves from Africa in 1808, Southerners imported 80,000

Africans. By 1860 approximately one in three Southerners was a slave.

— The Eli Whitney Museum

Based on the excerpt, what were the effects of the cotton gin on American society?

• It led to a rapid decline in the use of slaves as a source of labor in the South

• Although it was a labor-saving device, it actually led to an expansion of slavery.

• Fewer slaves were needed after its invention since they no longer had to pick the sticky seeds from raw cotton by hand.

• Just as many slaves were needed to clean the cotton as previously because the cotton gins frequently broke down.

What effect did technological advances such as the steamboat, cotton gin, and the introduction of interchangeable parts have on the American economy?

• They lowered the average quality of American manufactured goods.

• They decreased the number of American manufactured goods.

• They reduced the need for unskilled workers in manufacturing.

• They brought down the price of many manufactured goods.