Transcript The American Journey, Ch. 8: The Northeast: Building Industry

The American Journey, Ch. 8:
The Northeast: Building Industry
Section 1:
Economic Growth
The Industrial Revolution
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Good used to be made primarily at home and
by hand.
In the mid-1700’s, people began building
factories along rivers.
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Why?
Water power drove large machines that could
do more work more quickly.
This was the beginning of the Industrial
Revolution, first in England, but eventually in
America.
The Industrial Revolution
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The Industrial Revolution really caught on in New
England (Northeast U.S.).
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Why?
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Poor soil for farming
More money for machinery
Many rushing rivers
Near many resources like coal and wood
Many ports
Large population = lots of workers
Capitalism
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In America, our economic system is called
capitalism.
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In capitalism, people put their capital (money) into
business and hope to make $$!
Capitalism is also called free enterprise.
Americans are free to work and shop where
they like, and businesses and consumers
freely compete for customers and good prices.
Technology
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The Industrial Revolution depended on
technology—scientific discoveries that simplify
work.
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Spinning jenny
Water frame
Power loom
Cotton gin
In 1790, Congress created the first patent, the
legal ownership and sole rights to profit for an
invention.
Technology
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In 1814, Francis Cabot Lowell put all the stages
of cloth making under one roof.
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This was called the factory system.
Eli Whitney created the first interchangeable
parts, identical parts that could be quickly
swapped out and replaced.
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Just like all the pieces in your cell phone or the dogs
they used to play Lassie.
…or cast members on Jersey Shore. Zing!
Changing Economy
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Most Americans were still farmers, however.
Northern farms were small and locally-traded.
Southern farms, however, were huge.
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The Industrial Revolution and its inventions allowed
cotton production to increase 10,000% (3,000
bales/year  300,000 bales/year)!
Also, cities grew larger as industry created more
jobs and money.
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Especially cities near water!
Cities
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Older cities like New York, Boston, and Baltimore
became economic and trade centers.
Newer cities like Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and
Louisville benefitted from being on rivers.
Most buildings were wood or brick.
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There were no sewers, so the risk of diseases like
cholera and yellow fever was huge.
Also, fire was a great threat.
But cities offered jobs and steady wages.
The American Journey, Ch. 8:
The Northeast: Building Industry
Section 2:
A System of
Transportation
Increasing Population
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According to a 1790 census—official population
count—the U.S. had 4 million people.
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By 1820 it had increased to 10 million, and many were
moving west.
It was a very hard, very long journey.
Congress approved funds for turnpikes, toll
roads, and a National Road connecting Ohio to
the East.
River Travel
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When road didn’t work, many people used rivers
for travel.
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In 1807, Robert Fulton piloted a steamboat with
a powerful engine from New York to Albany in 32
hours.
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Trouble is, most rivers flowed North-South, not EastWest, and travelling upstream was very hard.
It would have taken four days with a sailboat.
Fulton ushered in the era of steamboats,
powerful boats that could travel against currents.
Canals
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Although steamboats were great, what if there
wasn’t a river?
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In 1825, the Erie Canal linked the Atlantic Ocean
with the Great Lakes
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We built canals!
This gave the Midwest access to the sea.
The canal had locks, compartments where water level
could be raised or lowered.
By 1850, the U.S. had 3,500 miles of canals
linking the country.
Expansion!
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With rivers, canals, and roads, the nation became
easier to draw together.
Between 1791-1803 four new states joined the
Union: Vermont, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio.
The Western frontier was easier to connect to the
East coast.
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In the 1820’s-1840’s, Congress began to establish a
national postal system and home deliveries.
Junk mail followed soon after, no doubt.
The American Journey, Ch. 8:
The Northeast: Building Industry
Section 3:
The North’s People
Working Conditions
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As more was manufactured, more was expected
of workers.
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1840 average workday = 11.4 hrs.
Factory work was dangerous, and accidents like loss
of limbs or digits and maiming were extremely
common.
Buildings were often stiflingly hot or freezing cold.
Managers were more interested in $$, and no laws
protected workers.
Trade Unions
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Workers began to organize into trade unions,
organizations of workers with the same trade.
Many workers also organized strikes, refusing to
work until conditions improved.
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But this was illegal, and they could be fired or jailed.
It wasn’t until 1842 that Massachusetts gave workers
the right to strike.
African-American & Women Workers
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Although slavery was largely gone from the
North, prejudice and discrimination still
remained.
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Segregation was widespread in jobs and school
Many women took jobs in factories.
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They were largely barred from unions and benefits.
In 1845, Sarah G. Bagley, a weaver, formed the
Lowell Female Labor Reform Organization and
tried to petition Congress for a 10-hour day, but her
petition was ignored because she was a woman.
Growth of Cities & Immigration
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By 1860, New York City had 800,000 people—
the nation’s largest population.
Cities all over the nation grew as people looked
for jobs.
Immigration, the movement of people into a
country, was rampant.
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Most immigration was from Ireland, due to a huge
potato famine—a shortage of food.
Employers were happy to have immigrants—they
could pay less and offer no benefits.
Growth of Cities & Immigration
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Most Irish immigrants were very poor.
German immigrants, many Jewish, were often able to
afford more land.
Because of this, they could settle on the frontier
instead of in crowded slums like the Irish.
As immigrants settled, they brought their
languages, customs, and religion.
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Catholicism was previously unfamiliar to America.
Growth of Cities & Immigration
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Unfortunately, Americans who had once
welcomed immigrants began to resent them for
taking jobs.
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People opposed to immigration were nativists.
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Anti-European discrimination became common.
They believed immigrants were dirty criminals who
stole American jobs.
Anti-Catholic nativists formed a political party:
The American Party.
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When asked about their party, they said, “I know
nothing,” so they came to be called “Know-Nothings.”
The American Journey, Ch. 8:
The Northeast: Building Industry
Section 4:
Reforms and Reformers
Utopias
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Writers like Henry David Thoreau wanted
America to live out its Declaration’s creed:
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“…all men are created equal…”
They called for creation of utopias, communities
based upon the “perfect society” where all
people would be treated equally.
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Few of these communities ever lasted long.
The Second Great Awakening
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In the early 1800’s, religious fervor grew in what
was called The Second Great Awakening.
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Church membership grew.
Many people converted to Christianity at revivals,
frontier Christian camp meetings.
Religious reformers sought to change the nation and
the world for the better.
One of the main movements was against
alcohol, a campaign called temperance.
Education Reform
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In the early 1800’s, Horace Mann began to
reform American education.
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He lengthened the school year to 6 months, improved
curricula, doubled salaries, and trained teachers better
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He’s your favorite person in the world!   
In 1839, he founded the nation’s first normal school,
a teacher-training school.
Education Reform
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By the 1850’s, most people agreed that schools
should be publicly funded, teachers should be
trained, and students should attend.
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Many new colleges opened, too.
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Most girls didn’t, though.
Most did not admit women or minorities, however.
Others focused on school reform for deaf, blind,
and mentally-handicapped people.
Dorothea Dix visited prisons and worked to
improve prison conditions.
Developing an American Culture
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In the 1820’s, Americans began to look to their
own country—instead of Europe—for art and
culture.
Transcendentalists were a group of American
writers and thinkers who stressed the
relationship between humans and nature, and
the importance of individual conscience.
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Henry David Thoreau went to jail instead of paying a
$1 voting tax that might have supported the MexicanAmerican War.
Developing an American Culture
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Other distinctly American writers:
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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Edgar Allan Poe
Walt Whitman (Leaves of Grass)
Emily Dickinson
Harriet Beecher Stowe (Uncle Tom’s Cabin)
The American Journey, Ch. 8:
The Northeast: Building Industry
Section 5:
The Women’s
Movement
Seneca Falls Convention
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Many women worked to end slavery, and then
began to recognize their own position.
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Many women abolitionists also fought for women’s
suffrage (voting rights) and other rights.
Quakers were among the strongest advocates.
Seneca Falls Convention
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April 19, 1850: 400 women meet in Seneca Falls,
N.Y.
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It was organized by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth
Cady Stanton and was called The Seneca Falls
Convention.
They issued the Declaration of Sentiments and
Resolutions, based on the Declaration of
Independence.
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They called for an end to laws that discriminated against
women.
They called for equal opportunities for women in jobs.
They also called for women’s suffrage.
Women’s Rights Movement
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Susan B. Anthony called for equal pay for
women and coeducation for girls and boys.
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Anthony and Stanton worked together for women’s
suffrage, though it did not happen until 1920.
The Industrial Revolution changed American life.
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Most men now left the home to go to work.
Women mostly tended the house and children.
Women’s Rights Movement
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Many women, however, felt that women should
get educated.
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Mary Lyon founded Mt. Holyoke Female Seminary—
the first women’s higher-education school in America.
Many states began giving women property rights
and co-guardianship of their children.
Elizabeth Blackwell became the first famous
female doctor.