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Descriptive Essay: The Industrial Revolution and its Effects

The Industrial Revolution was a time of great age throughout the world. It represented major change from 1760 to the period 1820-1840. The movement originated in Great Britain and affected everything from industrial manufacturing processes to the daily life of the average citizen. I will discuss the Industrial Revolution and the effects it had on the world as a whole.

The primary industry of the time was the textiles industry. It had the most employees, output value, and invested capital. It was the first to take on new modern production methods. The transition to machine power drastically increased productivity and efficiency. This extended to iron production and chemical production.

It started in Great Britain and soon expanded into Western Europe and to the United States. The actual effects of the revolution on different sections of society differed. They manifested themselves at different times. The ‘trickle down’ effect whereby the benefits of the revolution helped the lower classes didn’t happen until towards the 1830s and 1840s. Initially, machines like the Watt Steam Engine and the Spinning Jenny only benefited the rich industrialists.

The effects on the general population, when they did come, were major. Prior to the revolution, most cotton spinning was done with a wheel in the home. These advances allowed families to increase their productivity and output. It gave them more disposable income and enabled them to facilitate the growth of a larger consumer goods market. The lower classes were able to spend. For the first time in history, the masses had a sustained growth in living standards.

Social historians noted the change in where people lived. Industrialists wanted more workers and the new technology largely confined itself to large factories in the cities. Thousands of people who lived in the countryside migrated to the cities permanently. It led to the growth of cities across the world, including London, Manchester, and Boston. The permanent shift from rural living to city living has endured to the present day.

Trade between nations increased as they often had massive surpluses of consumer goods they couldn’t sell in the domestic market. The rate of trade increased and made nations like Great Britain and the United States richer than ever before. Naturally, this translated to military power and the ability to sustain worldwide trade networks and colonies.

On the other hand, the Industrial Revolution and migration led to the mass exploitation of workers and slums. To counter this, workers formed trade unions. They fought back against employers to win rights for themselves and their families. The formation of trade unions and the collective unity of workers across industries are still existent today. It was the first time workers could make demands of their employers. It enfranchised them and gave them rights to upset the status quo and force employers to view their workers as human beings like them.

Overall, the Industrial Revolution was one of the single biggest events in human history. It launched the modern age and drove industrial technology forward at a faster rate than ever before. Even contemporary economics experts failed to predict the extent of the revolution and its effects on world history. It shows why the Industrial Revolution played such a vital role in the building of the United States of today.

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Essay on Industrial Revolution

Students are often asked to write an essay on Industrial Revolution in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

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100 Words Essay on Industrial Revolution

What was the industrial revolution.

The Industrial Revolution was a big change in how things were made. Before, people made goods by hand at home. Then, machines in big buildings called factories started doing this work. This change began in Britain in the late 1700s and spread to other countries.

Changes in Technology

New machines could spin thread much faster than by hand. The steam engine was also invented. This could power machines and move trains and ships. These inventions made making things and moving them around quicker and cheaper.

Impact on People

Many people left farms to work in factories in cities. Life became hard for these workers. They worked long hours for little money. But, more goods were made, and over time, people’s lives improved as new jobs were created.

Global Effects

The Industrial Revolution changed the world. Countries with factories got rich and powerful. They used resources from other places to make goods. This led to big changes in trade and made some countries very wealthy.

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250 Words Essay on Industrial Revolution

What was the industrial revolution.

The Industrial Revolution was a big change in the way things were made. Before this time, people made goods by hand at home or in small shops. Around the late 18th century, this changed. Machines began to do the work in big factories. This started in Britain and then spread to other parts of the world.

Changes in Industry

Machines could make things faster and cheaper than humans could by hand. This meant more products could be made and more people could buy them. Steam engines powered these machines, and coal was the fuel. This led to a rise in coal mining and iron production.

Life During the Revolution

Because of factory work, cities grew as people moved there for jobs. This was a big shift from life on farms. Working in factories was hard, and many worked long hours for low pay. The air and water got dirty from the factories, too.

Impact on Society

The Industrial Revolution changed life a lot. Travel became easier with trains and steamships. Communication got better with inventions like the telegraph. People’s lives improved with new goods and technology. But, there were also bad parts, like child labor and pollution.

500 Words Essay on Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a time of big change in how people worked and lived. It started in the late 1700s and went on until the early 1800s. Before this period, most goods were made by hand, and people lived in small villages and worked on farms. But during the Industrial Revolution, machines began to do the work that people and animals used to do. This change began in Britain and then spread to other countries, including the United States and parts of Europe.

New Inventions

One of the most important parts of the Industrial Revolution was the creation of new machines. These machines could make things faster and cheaper than before. For example, the spinning jenny allowed one worker to make several threads at the same time, and the steam engine could power different kinds of machines. Because of these inventions, factories were built where many machines could work together. This was much different from the old way of making things at home or in small workshops.

Life in Factories

Transportation changes.

The Industrial Revolution also changed how goods and people moved from place to place. The steam locomotive made it possible to build railways, which could transport goods and people much faster than horses and carts. Ships also got steam engines, which made travel across oceans quicker and easier. This meant that goods could be sold far away, and it was easier for people to move to new places.

The Industrial Revolution had a big impact on society. It made some people very rich, especially those who owned the factories. But many workers lived in poor conditions and did not get much money. Over time, this led to new laws to protect workers and improve their lives.

Changes in Agriculture

Farming also changed during the Industrial Revolution. New machines like the seed drill and the mechanical reaper made farming more efficient. This meant fewer people were needed to work on farms, so they went to work in the factories instead.

The Industrial Revolution was a time of great change. It made life different in many ways, from how people made things to how they lived and worked. It was not always easy or good for everyone, but it led to the modern world we know today. We still feel the effects of these changes in our daily lives, as the new ways of making and doing things that started back then continue to shape our world.

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Essay on Industrial Revolution

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The Industrial Revolution marks a pivotal period in human history, fundamentally transforming the fabric of society, economy, and technology. Spanning from the late 18th to the early 19th century, it commenced in Britain and gradually proliferated across the globe. This essay delves into the essence, causes, key developments, and profound impacts of the Industrial Revolution, offering insights for students participating in essay writing competitions.

Industrial Revolution

The genesis of the Industrial Revolution can be traced back to Britain, fueled by a confluence of factors including agricultural advancements, population growth, financial innovations, and a surge in demand for goods. Agricultural improvements led to food surplus, supporting a burgeoning population that provided labor and created a market for industrial goods. Moreover, Britain’s political stability, patent laws, and access to vast resources due to its colonial empire set a fertile ground for industrial innovation.

Technological Innovations

At the heart of the Industrial Revolution were groundbreaking technological innovations that revolutionized manufacturing processes. The introduction of the steam engine by James Watt and the development of power looms significantly enhanced productivity, transitioning industries from manual labor to mechanized production. The iron and coal industries also saw major advancements, with the smelting process being vastly improved by Abraham Darby’s use of coke, leading to stronger and cheaper iron.

Impact on Society and Economy

The Industrial Revolution ushered in dramatic social and economic shifts. Urbanization escalated as people flocked to cities in search of employment in factories, giving rise to burgeoning urban centers. While the revolution generated wealth and propelled economic growth, it also introduced stark social disparities and challenging working conditions. Child labor, long working hours, and unsafe environments became prevalent issues, sparking movements for labor rights and reforms.

Impact on Society

• Urbanization: The Industrial Revolution led to a massive shift from rural areas to cities as people moved in search of employment in factories. This urbanization changed the social fabric, leading to the growth of urban centers and the emergence of a new urban working class.
• Labor Conditions: Factory work during the early Industrial Revolution was often characterized by long hours, low wages, and harsh working conditions. This led to labor protests and the eventual emergence of labor unions advocating for workers’ rights.
• Technological Advancements: The Industrial Revolution saw the development of new technologies and machinery that revolutionized production processes. Innovations like the steam engine and mechanized textile mills transformed industries and increased efficiency.
• Social Stratification: The gap between the wealthy industrialists and the working class widened during this period, resulting in increased social inequality. The emergence of a capitalist class and the growth of industrial capitalism contributed to this divide.
• Education and Literacy: The need for a skilled workforce led to greater emphasis on education. Public education systems began to develop, contributing to higher literacy rates among the population.
• Family Life: The traditional family structure evolved as men, women, and children worked in factories. Child labor, in particular, became a contentious issue, eventually leading to child labor laws and reforms.
• Social Reform Movements: The harsh conditions of industrialization fueled various social reform movements, including the women’s suffrage movement, the abolitionist movement, and efforts to improve public health and housing conditions.

Impact on the Economy

• Economic Growth: The Industrial Revolution fueled rapid economic growth as production processes became more efficient, leading to increased output of goods and services.
• New Industries: New industries and sectors emerged, such as textiles, coal mining, iron and steel production, and transportation. These industries became the backbone of the modern economy.
• Global Trade: The Industrial Revolution facilitated global trade by improving transportation and communication networks. The expansion of railways, canals, and steamships allowed for the movement of goods on a larger scale.
• Entrepreneurship: The period saw the rise of entrepreneurship, with individuals and companies investing in new ventures and technologies. Innovators like James Watt and George Stephenson played pivotal roles in the development of steam power and transportation.
• Financial Institutions: The growth of industry led to the expansion of financial institutions, including banks and stock exchanges, to support investment and capital accumulation.
• Capitalism and Market Economies: The Industrial Revolution played a significant role in the development of capitalism and market-driven economies, with private ownership of means of production and the pursuit of profit as driving forces.
• Labor Markets: Labor markets evolved as people migrated to urban areas in search of work. The supply of labor increased, impacting wages, labor laws, and the development of employment contracts.
• Consumer Culture: Mass production and improved transportation made consumer goods more accessible and affordable. This contributed to the rise of consumer culture and the growth of retail markets.

Transportation and Communication Breakthroughs

Transportation and communication underwent transformative changes, shrinking distances and fostering global interconnectedness. The construction of railways and the steam locomotive revolutionized travel and commerce, enabling faster movement of goods and people. Similarly, the telegraph, patented by Samuel Morse, allowed for instantaneous communication over long distances, laying the groundwork for the modern connected world.

Environmental and Global Implications

The Industrial Revolution had profound environmental impacts, with increased pollution and resource exploitation becoming notable concerns. The reliance on coal and the expansion of industries contributed to air and water pollution, foreshadowing contemporary environmental challenges. Globally, the revolution catalyzed industrialization in other countries, altering global trade patterns and establishing new economic hierarchies.

Cultural and Intellectual Responses

The Industrial Revolution also sparked a rich cultural and intellectual response, inspiring movements such as Romanticism, which critiqued the era’s industrialization and its disconnect from nature. Philosophers and economists, including Karl Marx and Adam Smith, analyzed its implications on class relations and economic systems, offering divergent perspectives on industrial capitalism.

The Second Industrial Revolution

Following the initial wave of industrialization, a Second Industrial Revolution emerged in the late 19th century, characterized by further technological advancements in steel production, electricity, and chemical processes. Innovations such as the internal combustion engine and the harnessing of electricity for lighting and motors opened new avenues for industrial and societal development.

Challenges and Reforms

The Industrial Revolution’s darker facets, such as exploitative labor practices and environmental degradation, elicited calls for reform. The establishment of labor unions and the enactment of laws to improve working conditions and limit child labor were critical steps towards addressing these issues. These reforms laid the groundwork for modern labor rights and environmental consciousness.

Legacy and Continuing Influence

The legacy of the Industrial Revolution is enduring, laying the foundations for modern industrial society and shaping the contemporary world. Its innovations spurred continuous technological progress, setting the stage for the information age and the current technological revolution. Moreover, it has left lasting imprints on societal structures, economic practices, and global relations.

In conclusion, The Industrial Revolution was not merely a period of technological innovation; it was a profound transformation that redefined human society, economy, and the environment. Its multifaceted impacts, from spurring economic growth and global interconnectedness to introducing social challenges and environmental concerns, underscore its complexity and significance. As students delve into the intricacies of the Industrial Revolution, they uncover the roots of modern society and the ongoing evolution shaped by this pivotal era in human history. This exploration not only enriches their understanding of the past but also offers valuable lessons for addressing the challenges and opportunities of the future.

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Essay on Industrial Revolution

Introduction to the Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a pivotal moment in history, radically reshaping societies, economies, and landscapes worldwide. Beginning in the late 18th century, this era of rapid technological advancement and urbanization marked a profound departure from agrarian lifestyles. For example, the mechanization of textile production in Britain revolutionized manufacturing methods, resulting in unprecedented economic growth and social change. As steam-powered factories proliferated, traditional modes of living gave way to the relentless march of progress. This essay explores the complex impact of the Industrial Revolution, analyzing its causes, consequences, and long-term influence.

Historical Context

• Pre-Industrial Society : Before the Industrial Revolution, most societies were agrarian, with most people living in rural areas and working in agriculture .
• Technological Limitations : Most manufacturing was done in small-scale workshops using hand tools, limiting production capacity and efficiency.
• Limited Transportation : The need for efficient transportation systems made moving goods and people over long distances difficult.
• Cottage Industry : Some manufacturing processes were decentralized and conducted in homes (known as the cottage industry), but there was a need to improve this on a larger scale and broader scope.
• Feudalism and Guilds : Feudal social structures and guilds controlled much of the economic and social life, restricting innovation and economic growth.
• Mercantilism : Economic policies were often based on mercantilist principles, emphasizing exporting more than importing and accumulating precious metals.
• Enlightenment Ideas : The Enlightenment brought new ideas about science, reason, and individualism, setting the stage for questioning traditional practices and systems.

Significance of the Industrial Revolution

• Economic Transformation : Agrarian economies gave way to industrialized ones during the Industrial Revolution, which resulted in unheard-of economic development and wealth creation.
• Technological Advancement : It introduced groundbreaking innovations such as the steam engine, mechanized textile production, and transportation systems, laying the foundation for modern industrial and technological progress.
• Urbanization : As factories and industrial hubs grew, many people moved from rural to urban areas, accelerating urbanization and changing the demographic picture.
• Social Change : The Industrial Revolution brought about profound social transformations, including the emergence of the working class, changes in family structures, and new patterns of consumption and leisure.
• Global Impact : Industrialization spread from its birthplace in Britain to Europe, North America, and eventually the rest of the world, reshaping global trade patterns and contributing to colonial expansion.
• Environmental Impact : While facilitating unprecedented production and consumption, industrialization also led to environmental degradation, including pollution, deforestation, and resource depletion.
• Political Ramifications : The rise of industrial capitalism challenged traditional power structures, leading to political reforms, labor movements, and the rise of new ideologies such as socialism and communism.
• Cultural Shifts : The Industrial Revolution influenced cultural production, including literature, art, and music, reflecting the social and economic changes of the era and shaping modern cultural sensibilities.

Pre-Industrial Society

• Environmental Impact : While facilitating unprecedented production and consumption, industrialization also led to environmental degradation, including pollution, deforestation , and resource depletion.

Catalysts of Change

• Technological Innovations : The development of new technologies, such as the steam engine, mechanized looms, and the spinning jenny, revolutionized production processes, increasing efficiency and output.
• Economic Factors : Changing economic conditions, including the rise of capitalism, the accumulation of capital, and the demand for cheaper and more abundant goods, created incentives for innovation and investment in industrial ventures.
• Social and Political Developments : Shifts in social structures and political systems, such as the decline of feudalism, the rise of urban centers, and changes in labor relations, provided fertile ground for the emergence of industrialization.
• Access to Resources : The availability of resources, including coal and iron ore, provided the necessary raw materials for industrial production, while access to markets facilitated the distribution and sale of goods.
• Colonial Expansion : Colonial empires gave access to new markets, raw materials, and investment opportunities, resulting in economic growth and industrial development in colonial powers.
• Scientific Advancements : Advances in science and engineering, as well as applying scientific principles to industry, fueled innovation and technological progress, accelerating the pace of change.
• Trade and Globalization : Increasing interconnectedness through trade networks and globalization facilitated the diffusion of ideas, technologies, and capital, contributing to the spread of industrialization beyond its initial development centers.

Industrialization Spreads

• Britain Leads the Way : The Industrial Revolution originated in Britain in the late 18th century, driven by abundant natural resources, a skilled workforce, and a conducive political and economic environment.
• Europe and North America : Industrialization spread rapidly to other parts of Europe, including France, Germany, and Belgium, and North America, particularly the United States and Canada, where it fueled economic growth and urbanization.
• Global Implications : The spread of industrialization had profound global implications, as European powers established colonial empires and introduced industrial technologies to colonies in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
• Colonial Industrialization : Colonies became centers of raw material extraction and production for the industrialized world, contributing to global trade networks and economic interdependence.
• Asia and Latin America : Industrialization also took root in certain regions of Asia, such as Japan, India, and China, as well as in countries in Latin America, albeit to varying degrees and with different trajectories influenced by local conditions and historical factors.
• Impact on Global Economy : The spread of industrialization reshaped the global economy, leading to shifts in wealth and power, the emergence of new economic centers, and increased competition for resources and markets.
• Technological Diffusion : Advances in transportation and communication facilitated the diffusion of industrial technologies and knowledge, accelerating the pace of industrialization worldwide.
• Social and Cultural Changes : Industrialization brought about significant social and cultural changes in societies worldwide, including urbanization, changes in family structure, and shifts in values and lifestyles.

Impact of the Industrial Revolution on Society

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• Urbanization and Population Growth : The growth of factories and industrial centers caused widespread migration from rural areas to urban centers, resulting in fast urbanization and the establishment of large populations in cities.
• Social Stratification and Class Conflict : Industrialization created a new class structure, with industrial capitalists, factory owners, and managers at the top and a working class of laborers and factory workers at the bottom, leading to increased social stratification and class conflict.
• Changing Gender Roles : Industrialization reshaped traditional gender roles as women entered the workforce in large numbers, particularly in factories and mills, challenging traditional notions of women’s roles in society.
• Child Labor and Exploitation : The demand for cheap labor in factories led to the widespread exploitation of children, who were employed in hazardous working conditions and often subjected to long hours and low wages.
• Urban Poverty and Poor Living Conditions : Industrialization led to urban poverty and slums because cities struggled to provide adequate housing, sanitation, and public services for their growing populations .
• Labor Movements and Unionization : The harsh working conditions and labor exploitation in factories spurred the rise of labor movements and the formation of labor unions, which fought for better wages, working hours, and conditions for workers.
• Education and Social Reform : Industrialization led to increased emphasis on education and social reform, as reformers sought to address the social problems and inequalities caused by industrialization through initiatives such as public education, social welfare programs, and labor laws.
• Family Dynamics : Industrialization transformed family dynamics as families migrated to cities in search of work, leading to changes in family structure, roles, and relationships, as well as new challenges in balancing work and family life.
• Cultural Shifts : Industrialization brought about cultural shifts, as urbanization, mass production, and technological advancements influenced art, literature, music, and popular culture, reflecting the social and economic changes of the era.

Economic Transformation

• Rise of Capitalism : The Industrial Revolution marked the ascendance of capitalism as the dominant economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production, profit motive, and market competition.
• Factory System and Mass Production : The development of the factory system enabled the mass production of goods on a scale never before seen, leading to increased efficiency, lower costs, and the production of a wide variety of consumer goods.
• Division of Labor : Industrialization introduced the concept of division of labor, where tasks were broken down into smaller, specialized tasks performed by different workers, increasing productivity and efficiency.
• Expansion of Markets : Industrialization expanded markets for goods, both domestically and internationally, as transportation networks improved and global trade increased, leading to economic growth and prosperity.
• Labor Exploitation and Working Conditions : While industrialization brought economic growth, it also led to labor exploitation, with long hours, low wages, and poor working conditions in factories and mines.
• Technological Advancements : Technological innovations that revolutionized production processes and communication, such as the steam engine, mechanized looms, and the telegraph, were the driving forces behind industrialization.
• Impact on Agriculture : Industrialization also profoundly impacted agriculture, with the mechanization of farming leading to increased agricultural productivity and the migration of rural populations to urban areas in search of work.
• Formation of Business Corporations : The Industrial Revolution saw the rise of large business corporations, which became dominant players in the economy, controlling vast resources and influencing government policies.
• Income Inequality : Industrialization led to income inequality, as industrial capitalists amassed wealth while many workers struggled to make ends meet, leading to social unrest and calls for reform.

Technological Advancements

• Steam Power : The invention and widespread use of the steam engine revolutionized the industry, enabling factories to be powered by steam and significantly increasing transportation efficiency through steam-powered trains and ships.
• Mechanization of Textile Production : Innovations such as the spinning jenny, water frame, and power loom mechanized textile production, leading to the rapid growth of the textile industry and the availability of cheap clothing.
• Iron and Steel Production : The advancement of new techniques for iron and steel production revolutionized construction and manufacturing, facilitating the creation of bridges, railways, and buildings on an unprecedented scale.
• Transportation Revolution : The Industrial Revolution saw the development of steam-powered locomotives and railways, significantly improving transportation efficiency and connectivity and facilitating the movement of goods and people over long distances.
• Communication Revolution : Samuel Morse’s invention of the telegraph revolutionized communication, enabling messages to be sent quickly over long distances and transforming business, government, and personal communication.
• Chemical Innovations : Advances in chemistry led to the development of new materials, such as plastics and synthetic dyes, revolutionizing manufacturing and consumer goods production.
• Machine Tools : The invention of machine tools such as lathes and milling machines revolutionized manufacturing, enabling the mass production of precision parts and components.
• Electrical Revolution : The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the harnessing of electricity for industrial use, leading to the development of electric lighting, motors, and appliances, transforming daily life and industry.
• Medical and Scientific Advances : The Industrial Revolution also saw significant advancements in medicine and science, such as the development of vaccines, the germ theory of disease, and the understanding of electricity, laying the groundwork for future scientific and medical discoveries.

Cultural and Intellectual Shifts

• Urbanization and the Rise of Urban Culture : The migration of people from rural areas to cities led to the emergence of urban culture, characterized by new forms of entertainment, leisure activities, and social interactions in urban centers.
• Literary and Artistic Movements : The Industrial Revolution gave rise to literary and artistic movements such as Romanticism and Realism that explored the changes brought about by industrialization in themes like nature and the human condition.
• Educational Reforms : The need for an educated workforce led to educational reforms, including expanding public education and establishing schools and universities to provide workers with the skills needed for industrial jobs.
• Scientific Advancements : Significant advancements in science and technology, such as the emergence of new scientific theories like Darwin’s theory of evolution and the application of scientific principles to industry and medicine, coincided with the Industrial Revolution.
• Rise of Consumer Culture : The expansion of mass production and the accessibility of affordable consumer goods contributed to the emergence of consumer culture, with advertising and marketing assuming a central role in influencing consumer preferences and behaviors.
• Social Reform Movements : The harsh working conditions and social inequalities of the Industrial Revolution spurred the rise of social reform movements, including labor unions, women’s rights movements, and movements for social justice and equality.
• Philosophical and Political Ideologies : The Industrial Revolution gave rise to new philosophical and political ideologies, such as socialism, communism, and liberalism, which sought to address the social and economic challenges of the era and envision alternative visions of society.
• Impact on Religion : The Industrial Revolution profoundly impacted religion, challenging traditional beliefs and practices through scientific discoveries, technological advancements, and evolving social conditions.
• Cultural Exchange and Globalization : The Industrial Revolution facilitated cultural exchange and globalization, as ideas, goods, and people traveled more freely across borders, leading to the spread of cultural influences and the emergence of a more interconnected world.

Responses and Resistance

• Labor Movements and Unionization : Workers organized into labor unions to advocate for better wages, working conditions, and rights. Strikes, protests, and collective bargaining were common tactics used by labor movements to challenge the power of industrial capitalists.
• Luddite Movement : The Luddites were groups of workers who protested against introducing new machinery and technology in the textile industry, fearing that it would lead to job losses and exploitation. They engaged in acts of sabotage and destruction of machinery as a form of resistance.
• Government Regulation and Reform : In response to social and labor unrest, governments enacted labor laws and regulations to safeguard workers’ rights and enhance working conditions. These reforms included limits on working hours, safety regulations, and the establishment of minimum wage laws.
• Socialism and Communism : Socialism and communism are political ideologies advocating for collective ownership of means of production and redistribution of wealth to address social inequalities. Socialist and communist movements sought to challenge the power of industrial capitalists and create a more equitable society.
• Mutual Aid Societies : Workers formed mutual aid societies and cooperatives to provide support and assistance to each other in times of need, such as illness, injury, or unemployment. These organizations helped strengthen solidarity among workers and provide a safety net without government support.
• Religious and Ethical Responses : Religious and ethical movements, such as the Social Gospel movement, emphasized the moral imperative to address social injustices and improve the lives of the working poor. These movements often worked alongside labor unions and social reformers to advocate for social change.
• Artistic and Cultural Resistance : Artists, writers, and intellectuals employed their work to scrutinize the Industrial Revolution’s social and economic inequalities and raise awareness about the challenges faced by the working class. Literature, art, and music often depicted the struggles and hardships faced by workers in industrial society.
• International Solidarity : Workers’ movements and labor unions forged alliances and solidarity networks across national boundaries to support one another’s struggles and exchange resources and information. Global labor conferences and congresses were held to coordinate efforts and advocate for workers’ rights on an international scale.

Legacy of the Industrial Revolution

• Economic Transformation : The Industrial Revolution laid the foundation for modern industrial economies, shifting societies from agrarian to industrial and setting the stage for unprecedented economic growth and development.
• Technological Advancements : The Industrial Revolution introduced revolutionary technologies that transformed industry, transportation, and communication, leading to the modern world of machinery, factories, and global interconnectedness.
• Urbanization and Population Shifts : The Industrial Revolution spurred the expansion of cities and the emergence of urban centers as hubs for industry, commerce, and culture.
• Social and Political Changes : The Industrial Revolution brought about significant social and political changes, including the rise of capitalism, the emergence of new social classes, and the expansion of democracy and political rights.
• Environmental Impact : The Industrial Revolution had a profound impact on the environment, leading to pollution, deforestation, and other forms of environmental degradation that continue to affect the planet today.
• Labor Rights and Social Welfare : The Industrial Revolution spurred movements for labor rights and social welfare, leading to the establishment of labor laws, minimum wage regulations, and other protections for workers.
• Globalization : The Industrial Revolution was a key driver of globalization, connecting distant parts of the world through trade, transportation, and communication networks and shaping the modern global economy.
• Cultural and Intellectual Shifts : The Industrial Revolution influenced cultural and intellectual developments, leading to new artistic movements, scientific discoveries, and philosophical and political ideologies impacting society today.
• Inequality and Social Justice : The Industrial Revolution also deepened inequalities and social injustices, leading to ongoing debates and struggles over issues such as wealth distribution, labor rights, and environmental sustainability.

The Industrial Revolution is a transformative epoch in human history, reshaping societies, economies, and landscapes across the globe. Its legacy is profound, laying the foundation for modern industrialized societies and shaping the course of modernization, urbanization, and globalization. While it brought unparalleled economic growth and technological advancement, it also presented substantial social and environmental challenges, including urban poverty, environmental degradation, and labor exploitation. As we reflect on its impact, it is essential to learn from the past, striving to address its legacies of inequality and environmental damage while harnessing its innovations for a more sustainable and equitable future.

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Uprisings against a new economic structure imposed by the Industrial Revolution gave rise to the insult “luddite.”

Industrial Revolution: Essay & Important Notes

Britain-a center of industrial revolution.

The early industries in Britain were small-scale and unsophisticated. In fact, the textile industry, the most prominent industry in Britain was a “cottage industry.” In the early 1700s, industrial development was very slow because of limited sources of power. Old technologies of power like waterwheels, windmills, and horsepower were the only sources available.

With a large number of spinners, dyers, and weavers in England, the country became the center of the industrial revolution.

Innovations in the 18 th and 19 th Centuries

In the mid-eighteenth century, several innovations were made that brought about major changes in the manner in which the industries in England operated. Changes in steam technology and the invention of the steam engine changed how the industry was powered.

The introduction of the steam engine allowed steam power to be used across different industries in Britain including paper, flour, cotton mills, ironworks, distilleries, and waterworks. The use of steam engines improved the quality of metals and also enabled the industries to get the most essential raw material coal quickly and efficiently.

The next big innovation was the power loom that changed the face of the textile industry. The use of power loom enabled the production of cheap and light cloth in a large quantity. Additionally, the availability of constant power allowed the industry to work for longer hours stably to enhance productivity.

Despite the technological advancement, the factories remained places where accidents frequently took place. The factories also employed children and the workers were required to abide by strict disciplinary practices.

Another major improvement was in the transport system used in Britain. With the help of steam engines and new techniques for road-building, the road and rail networks during the industrial revolution underwent major changes. The improvement in the transport system reduced the traveling time. Communication was also improved with the invention of railroad signaling as well as the telegraphy system.

Impacts of Industrial Revolution

The industrial revolution brought about major changes in the economic and social aspects. Some of the major impacts were:

• The adoption of the factory system wherein manufacturing was concentrated in large and centralized establishments.
• The use of water and steam power improved the power supply to the industries and mechanized the processes of cloth weaving.
• The wealth was widely distributed and this increased international trade.
• Cities grew larger, but these were usually dirty.
• Managerial hierarchies were developed to oversee the work in factories and the concept of division of labor was introduced.
• The population in urban areas increased as more and more people moved to cities to earn a living.
• With increased production, the products became cheaper to buy and the factory owners became the rich strata of society.
• The establishment of laws to protect factory workers.
• Increased pollution and urban crowding.

Pollution in Industrial Revolution

The industrial revolution in many ways helped to shape the society that it is today and led to developments and innovations that are still used in the different nations of the world.

Important Notes

• The industrial revolution was an era in the 18 th and 19 th centuries that brought about a change in which the industries operated.
• The revolution began in Europe and later shifted to the United States.
• The inventions like steam power and steam engine improved the production capacity of the industries.
• Transport and communication systems improved during the industrial revolution.
• The industrial revolution improved the financial and social conditions of people.

Increased pollution and population were major cons of the industrial revolution.

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The Industrial Revolution in Britain: an Epoch of Innovation and Change

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Published: Dec 12, 2018

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Table of contents

The catalysts of change, technological advancements and innovations, social transformations and challenges, hook examples for industrial revolution essay.

• A Time Machine: Imagine stepping into a time machine and journeying back to the heart of the 18th century. Join me as we explore the revolutionary transformation that swept through Britain during the Industrial Revolution.
• An Intriguing Quote: Charles Dickens once wrote, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” These words encapsulate the paradox of the Industrial Revolution. Let’s delve into the profound changes and challenges it brought to British society.
• A Tale of Innovation: From steam engines to cotton mills, the Industrial Revolution was a hotbed of innovation. Explore with me how these technological advancements reshaped the British landscape and economy.
• A Social Revolution: Beyond machinery, the Industrial Revolution unleashed a social upheaval. Join me in unraveling the impact on workers, families, and the dynamics of class during this transformative period.
• A Global Perspective: The Industrial Revolution not only altered Britain but also had ripple effects around the world. Discover how this pivotal moment in history shaped global trade, imperialism, and the course of human progress.

Works Cited

• Investopedia. (2021). American Dream.
• Locke, J. (1690). Two Treatises of Government.
• Rousseau, J. J. (1762). The Social Contract.
• The Constitution of the United States. (n.d.).
• The Declaration of Independence. (1776).
• Pew Research Center. (2021). Global views on morality. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2021/06/24/global-views-on-morality/
• Smith, B. (2003). The First Amendment Center.
• Tocqueville, A. D. (1835). Democracy in America. Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/815/815-h/815-h.htm
• United Nations. (n.d.). Human Rights.
• United States Census Bureau. (2021). Educational Attainment in the United States: 2020. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2021/demo/education-2021.html

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• Characteristics of the Industrial Revolution

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• Table Of Contents

In the period 1760 to 1830 the Industrial Revolution was largely confined to Britain . Aware of their head start, the British forbade the export of machinery , skilled workers, and manufacturing techniques. The British monopoly could not last forever, especially since some Britons saw profitable industrial opportunities abroad, while continental European businessmen sought to lure British know-how to their countries. Two Englishmen, William and John Cockerill , brought the Industrial Revolution to Belgium by developing machine shops at Liège (c. 1807), and Belgium became the first country in continental Europe to be transformed economically. Like its British progenitor, the Belgian Industrial Revolution centred in iron , coal , and textiles .

France was more slowly and less thoroughly industrialized than either Britain or Belgium. While Britain was establishing its industrial leadership, France was immersed in its Revolution , and the uncertain political situation discouraged large investments in industrial innovations . By 1848 France had become an industrial power, but, despite great growth under the Second Empire , it remained behind Britain.

Other European countries lagged far behind. Their bourgeoisie lacked the wealth, power, and opportunities of their British, French, and Belgian counterparts. Political conditions in the other nations also hindered industrial expansion. Germany , for example, despite vast resources of coal and iron, did not begin its industrial expansion until after national unity was achieved in 1870. Once begun, Germany’s industrial production grew so rapidly that by the turn of the century that nation was outproducing Britain in steel and had become the world leader in the chemical industries. The rise of U.S. industrial power in the 19th and 20th centuries also far outstripped European efforts. And Japan too joined the Industrial Revolution with striking success.

The eastern European countries were behind early in the 20th century. It was not until the five-year plans that the Soviet Union became a major industrial power, telescoping into a few decades the industrialization that had taken a century and a half in Britain. The mid-20th century witnessed the spread of the Industrial Revolution into hitherto nonindustrialized areas such as China and India .

The technological and economic aspects of the Industrial Revolution brought about significant sociocultural changes. In its initial stages it seemed to deepen labourers’ poverty and misery. Their employment and subsistence became dependent on costly means of production that few people could afford to own. Job security was lacking: workers were frequently displaced by technological improvements and a large labour pool. Lack of worker protections and regulations meant long work hours for miserable wages, living in unsanitary tenements, and exploitation and abuse in the workplace. But even as problems arose, so too did new ideas that aimed to address them. These ideas pushed innovations and regulations that provided people with more material conveniences while also enabling them to produce more, travel faster, and communicate more rapidly.

Despite considerable overlapping with the “old,” there was mounting evidence for a “new” Industrial Revolution in the late 19th and 20th centuries. In terms of basic materials, modern industry began to exploit many natural and synthetic resources not hitherto utilized: lighter metals , rare earths , new alloys , and synthetic products such as plastics , as well as new energy sources. Combined with these were developments in machines , tools , and computers that gave rise to the automatic factory . Although some segments of industry were almost completely mechanized in the early to mid-19th century, automatic operation, as distinct from the assembly line , first achieved major significance in the second half of the 20th century.

Ownership of the means of production also underwent changes. The oligarchical ownership of the means of production that characterized the Industrial Revolution in the early to mid-19th century gave way to a wider distribution of ownership through purchase of common stocks by individuals and by institutions such as insurance companies. In the first half of the 20th century, many countries of Europe socialized basic sectors of their economies. There was also during that period a change in political theories: instead of the laissez-faire ideas that dominated the economic and social thought of the classical Industrial Revolution, governments generally moved into the social and economic realm to meet the needs of their more complex industrial societies. That trend was reversed in the United States and the United Kingdom beginning in the 1980s.

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The industrial revolution: past and future.

May 1, 2004

Article Highlights

Industrial revolutions spark unprecedented population and production growth

Global growth rates and income inequality temporary

Poverty reduced best when poor nations discover productive potential

We live in a world of staggering and unprecedented income inequality. Production per person in the wealthiest economy, the United States, is something like 15 times production per person in the poorest economies of Africa and South Asia. Since the end of the European colonial age, in the 1950s and ’60s, the economies of South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong have been transformed from among the very poorest in the world to middle-income societies with a living standard about one-third of America’s or higher. In other economies, many of them no worse off in 1960 than these East Asian “miracle” economies were, large fractions of the population still live in feudal sectors with incomes only slightly above subsistence levels. How are we to interpret these successes and failures?

Economists, today, are divided on many aspects of this question, but I think that if we look at the right evidence, organized in the right way, we can get very close to a coherent and reliable view of the changes in the wealth of nations that have occurred in the last two centuries and those that are likely to occur in this one. The Asian miracles are only one chapter in the larger story of the world economy since World War II, and that story in turn is only one chapter in the history of the industrial revolution. I will set out what I see as the main facts of the economic history of the recent past, with a minimum of theoretical interpretation, and try to see what they suggest about the future of the world economy. I do not think we can understand the contemporary world without understanding the events that have given rise to it.

I will begin and end with numbers, starting with an attempt to give a quantitative picture of the world economy in the postwar period, of the growth of population and production since 1950. Next, I will turn to the economic history of the world up to about 1750 or 1800, in other words, the economic history known to Adam Smith, David Ricardo and the other thinkers who have helped us form our vision of how the world works. Third, I will sketch what I see as the main features of the initial phase of the industrial revolution, the years from 1800 to the end of the colonial age in 1950. Following these historical reviews, I will outline a theoretical structure roughly consistent with the facts. If I succeed in doing this well, it may be possible to conclude with some useful generalizations and some assessments of the world’s future economic prospects.

The world economy in the postwar period

Today, most economies enjoy sustained growth in average real incomes as a matter of course. Living standards in all economies in the world 300 years ago were more or less equal to one another and more or less constant over time. Following common practice, I use the term industrial revolution to refer to this change in the human condition, although the modifier industrial is slightly outmoded, and I do not intend to single out iron and steel or other heavy industry, or even manufacturing in general, as being of special importance. By a country’s average real income, I mean simply its gross domestic product (GDP) in constant dollars divided by its population. Although I will touch on other aspects of society, my focus will be on economic success, as measured by population and production.

Our knowledge of production and living standards at various places and times has grown enormously in the past few decades. The most recent empirical contribution, one of the very first importance, is the Penn World Table project conducted by Robert Summers and Alan Heston. 1 This readily available, conveniently organized data set contains population and production data on every country in the world from about 1950 or 1960 (depending on the country) to the present. The availability of this marvelous body of data has given the recent revival of mathematical growth theory an explicitly empirical character that is quite different from the more purely theoretical investigations of the 1960s. It has also stimulated a more universal, ambitious style of theorizing aimed at providing a unified account of the behavior of rich and poor societies alike.

As a result of the Penn project, we now have a reliable picture of production in the entire world, both rich and poor countries. Let us review the main features of this picture, beginning with population estimates. Over the 40-year period from 1960 through 2000, world population grew from about 3 billion to 6.1 billion, or at an annual rate of 1.7 percent. These numbers are often cited with alarm, and obviously the number of people in the world cannot possibly grow at 2 percent per year forever. But many exponents of what a friend of mine calls the “economics of gloom” go beyond this truism to suggest that population growth is outstripping available resources, that the human race is blindly multiplying itself toward poverty and starvation. This is simply nonsense.

There is, to be sure, much poverty and starvation in the world, but nothing could be further from the truth than the idea that poverty is increasing. Over the same period during which population has grown from 3 billion to 6.1 billion, total world production has grown much faster than population, from $6.5 trillion in 1960 to $31 trillion in 2000. (All the dollar magnitudes I cite, from the Penn World Table or any other source, will be in units of 1985 U.S. dollars.) That is, world production was nearly multiplied by five over this 40-year period, growing at an annual rate of 4 percent. Production per person—real income—thus grew at 2.3 percent per year, which is to say that the living standard of the average world citizen more than doubled. Please understand: I am not quoting figures for the advanced economies or for a handful of economic miracles. I am not excluding Africa or the communist countries. These are numbers for the world as a whole. The entire human race is getting rich, at historically unprecedented rates. The economic miracles of East Asia are, of course, atypical in their magnitudes, but economic growth is not the exception in the world today: It is the rule.

Average figures like these mask diversity, of course. Figure 1 shows one way to use the information in the Penn World Table to summarize the distribution of the levels and growth rates of population and per capita incomes in the postwar world. It contains two bar graphs of per capita incomes, one for 1960 and the other for 1990 (not 2000). The horizontal axis is GDP per capita, in thousands of dollars. The vertical axis is population. The height of each bar is proportional to the number of people in the world with average incomes in the indicated range, based on the assumption (though, of course, it is false) that everyone in a country has that country’s average income. The figure shows that the number of people (not just the fraction) in countries with mean incomes below $1,100 has declined between 1960 and 1990. The entire world income distribution has shifted to the right, without much change in the degree of income inequality, since 1960. At the end of the period, as at the beginning, the degree of inequality is enormous. The poorest countries in 1990 have per capita incomes of around $1,000 per year compared to the U.S. average of $18,000: a factor of 18. This degree of inequality between the richest and poorest societies is without precedent in human history, as is the growth in population and living standards in the postwar period.

A great deal of recent empirical work focuses on the question of whether per capita incomes are converging to a common (growing) level, or possibly diverging. From Figure 1 it is evident that this is a fairly subtle question. In any case, it seems obvious that we are not going to learn much about the economic future of the world by simple statistical extrapolation of events from 1960 to 1990, however it is carried out. Extrapolating the 2 percent population growth rate backward from 1960, one would conclude that Adam and Eve were expelled from the garden in about the year 1000. Extrapolating the 2.2 rate of per capita income growth backward, one would infer that people in 1800 subsisted on less than $100 per year. Extrapolating forward leads to predictions that the earth’s water supply (or supply of anything else) will be exhausted in a finite period. Such exercises make it clear that the years since 1960 are part of a period of transition, but from what to what? Let us turn to history for half the answer to this question.

Comparison to earlier centuries

The striking thing about postwar economic growth is how recent such growth is. I have said that total world production has been growing at over 4 percent since 1960. Compare this to annual growth rates of 2.4 percent for the first 60 years of the 20th century, of 1 percent for the entire 19th century, of one-third of 1 percent for the 18th century. 2 For these years, the growth in both population and production was far lower than in modern times. Moreover, it is fairly clear that up to 1800 or maybe 1750, no society had experienced sustained growth in per capita income. (Eighteenth century population growth also averaged one-third of 1 percent, the same as production growth.) That is, up to about two centuries ago, per capita incomes in all societies were stagnated at around $400 to $800 per year. But how do we know this? After all, the Penn World Tables don’t cover the Roman Empire or the Han Dynasty. But there are many other sources of information.

In the front hall of my apartment in Chicago there is a painting of an agricultural scene, a gift from a Korean student of mine. In the painting, a farmer is plowing his field behind an ox. Fruit trees are flowering, and mountains rise in the background. The scene is peaceful, inspiring nostalgia for the old days (though I do not know when the painting was done or what time period it depicts). There is also much information for an economist in this picture. It is not difficult to estimate the income of this farmer, for we know about how much land one farmer and his ox can care for, about how much can be grown on this land, how much fruit the little orchard will yield and how much the production would be worth in 1985 U.S. dollar prices. This farmer’s income is about $2,000 per year. Moreover, we know that up until recent decades, almost all of the Korean workforce (well over 90 percent) was engaged in traditional agriculture, so this figure of $2,000 ($500 per capita) for the farmer, his wife and his two children must be pretty close to the per capita income for the country as a whole. True, we do not have sophisticated national income and product accounts for Korea 100 years ago, but we don’t need them to arrive at fairly good estimates of living standards that prevailed back then. Traditional agricultural societies are very like one another, all over the world, and the standard of living they yield is not hard to estimate reliably.

Other, more systematic, information is also available. For poor societies—all societies before about 1800—we can reliably estimate income per capita using the idea that average living standards of most historical societies must have been very near the estimated per capita production figures of the poorest contemporary societies. Incomes in, say, ancient China cannot have been much lower than incomes in 1960 China and still sustained stable or growing populations. And if incomes in any part of the world in any time period had been much larger than the levels of the poor countries of today—a factor of two, say—we would have heard about it. If such enormous percentage differences had ever existed, they would have made some kind of appearance in the available accounts of the historically curious, from Herodotus to Marco Polo to Adam Smith.

How then did these traditional societies support the vast accomplishments of the ancient civilizations of Greece and Rome, of China and India? Obviously, not everyone in these societies was living on $600 per year. The answer lies in the role and wealth of landowners, who receive about 30 percent to 40 percent of agricultural income. A nation of 10 million people with a per capita production of $600 per year has a total income of $6 billion. Thirty percent of $6 billion is $1.8 billion. In the hands of a small elite, this kind of money can support a fairly lavish lifestyle or build impressive temples or subsidize many artists and intellectuals. As we know from many historical examples, traditional agricultural society can support an impressive civilization. What it cannot do is generate improvement in the living standards of masses of people. The Korean farmer plowing his field in the painting in my hallway could be in any century in the last 1,000 years. Nothing in the picture would need to be changed to register the passage of the centuries.

If the living standard in traditional economies was low, it was at least fairly equally low across various societies. Even at the beginning of the age of European colonialism, the dominance of Europe was military, not economic. When the conquistadors of Spain took control of the societies of the Incas and the Aztecs, it was not a confrontation between a rich society and a poor one. In the 16th century, living standards in Europe and the Americas were about the same. Indeed, Spanish observers of the time marveled at the variety and quality of goods that were offered for sale in the markets of Mexico. Smith, Ricardo and their contemporaries argued about differences in living standards, and perhaps their discussions can be taken to refer to income differences as large as a factor of two. But nothing remotely like the income differences of our current world, differences on the order of a factor of 25, existed in 1800 or at any earlier time. Such inequality is a product of the industrial revolution.

The beginnings of the industrial revolution

Traditional society was characterized by stable per capita income. Our own world is one of accelerating income growth. The course of the industrial revolution, our term for the transition from stable to accelerating growth, is illustrated in Figure 2, which plots total world population and production from the year 1000 up to the present. I use a logarithmic scale rather than natural units, so that a constant rate of growth would imply a straight line. One can see from the figure that the growth rates of both population and production are increasing over time. The vertical scale is millions of persons (for population) and billions of 1985 U.S. dollars (for production). The difference between the two curves is about constant up until 1800, reflecting the assumption that production per person was roughly constant prior to that date. Then in the 19th century, growth in both series accelerates dramatically, and production growth accelerates more. By 1900 the two curves cross, at which time world income per capita was $1,000 per year. The growth and indeed the acceleration of both population and production continue to the present.

Of course, the industrial revolution did not affect all parts of the world uniformly, nor is it doing so today. Figure 3, based on per capita income data estimated as I have discussed, is one way of illustrating the origins and the diffusion of the industrial revolution. To construct the figure, the countries (or regions) of the world were organized into five groups, ordered by their current per capita income levels. Group I—basically, the English-speaking countries—are those in which per capita incomes first exhibited sustained growth. Group II is Japan, isolated only because I want to highlight its remarkable economic history. Group III consists of northwest Europe, the countries that began sustained growth somewhat later than Group I. Group IV is the rest of Europe, together with European-dominated economies in Latin America. Group V contains the rest of Asia and Africa.

As shown in Figure 3, per capita incomes were approximately constant, over space and time, over the period 1750–1800, at a level of something like $600 to $700. Here and below, the modifier “approximately” must be taken to mean plus or minus $200. Following the reasoning I have advanced above, $600 is taken as an estimate of living standards in all societies prior to 1750, so there would be no interest in extending Figure 3 to the left. The numbers at the right of Figure 3 indicate the 1990 populations, in millions of people, for the five groups of countries. About two-thirds of the world’s people live in Group V, which contains all of Africa and Asia except Japan.

Reading Figure 3 from left to right, we can see the emergence over the last two centuries of the inequality displayed in Figure 1. By 1850 there was something like a factor of two difference between the English-speaking countries and the poor countries of Africa and Asia. By 1900, a difference of perhaps a factor of six had emerged. At that time, the rest of Europe was still far behind England and America, and Japanese incomes were scarcely distinguishable from incomes in the rest of Asia. In the first half of the 20th century, the inequality present in 1900 was simply magnified. The English-speaking countries gained relative to northern Europe, which in turn gained on the rest of Europe and Asia. Notice, too, that per capita income in what I have called Group V, the African and Asian countries, remained constant at around $600 up to 1950. The entire colonial era was a period of stagnation in the living standards of masses of people. European imperialism brought advances in technology to much of the colonized world, and these advances led to increases in production that could, as in British India, be impressive. But the outcome of colonial economic growth was larger populations, not higher living standards.

In the period since 1950, the pattern of world growth has begun to change character, as well as to accelerate dramatically. What was at first thought to be the postwar recovery of continental Europe and of Japan turned out to be the European and Japanese miracles, taking these countries far beyond their prewar living standards to levels comparable to the United States. (There are some miracles in my Group IV, too— Italy and Spain—that are not seen on the figure because they are averaged in with Latin America and the communist world.) The second major change in the postwar world is the beginning of per capita income growth in Africa and Asia, entirely a post-colonial phenomenon. The industrial revolution has begun to diffuse to the non-European world, and this, of course, is the main reason that postwar growth rates for the world as a whole have attained such unprecedented levels.

Figure 4 provides a rough description of the demographic transitions since 1750 that have occurred and are still occurring. The figure exhibits five plotted curves, one for each country group. Each curve connects 10 points, corresponding to the time periods beginning in 1750 and ending in 1990, as indicated at the bottom of Figure 3. (Note that the periods are not of equal length.) Each point plots the group’s average rate of population growth for that period against its per capita income at the beginning of the period. The per capita GDP figures in 1750 can just be read off Figure 3, from which it is clear that they are about $600 for all five groups. Population growth rates in 1750 average about 0.4 percent and are well below 1 percent for all five groups. For each group, one can see a nearly vertical increase in population growth rates with little increase in GDP per capita, corresponding to the onset of industrialization. This, of course, is precisely the response to technological advance that Malthus and Ricardo told us to expect. Then, in groups I to IV a maximum is reached, and as incomes continue to rise, population growth rates decline. In group V—most of Asia and Africa—the curve has only leveled off, but does anyone doubt that these regions will follow the path that the rest of the world has already worn?

Theoretical responses

I have brought the story of the industrial revolution up to the present. Where are we going from here? For this, we need a theory of growth, a system of equations that makes economic sense and that fits the facts I have just reviewed. There is a tremendous amount of very promising research now occurring in economics, trying to construct such a system, and in a few years we will be able to run these equations into the future and see how it will look. Now, though, I think it is accurate to say that we have not one but two theories of production: one consistent with the main features of the world economy prior to the industrial revolution and another roughly consistent with the behavior of the advanced economies today. What we need is an understanding of the transition.

One of these successful theories is the product of Smith, Ricardo, Malthus and the other classical economists. The world they undertook to explain was the world on the eve of the industrial revolution, and it could not have occurred to them that economic theory should seek to explain sustained, exponential growth in living standards. Their theory is consistent with the following stylized view of economic history up to around 1800. Labor and resources combine to produce goods—largely food, in poor societies—that sustain life and reproduction. Over time, providence and human ingenuity make it possible for given amounts of labor and resources to produce more goods than they could before. The resulting increases in production per person stimulate fertility and increases in population, up to the point where the original standard of living is restored. Such dynamics, operating over the centuries, account for the gradually accelerating increase in the human population and the distribution of that population over the regions of the earth in a way that is consistent with the approximate constancy of living standards everywhere. The model predicts that the living standards of working people are maintained at a roughly constant, “subsistence” level, but with realistic shares of income going to landowners, the theory is consistent as well with high civilization based on large concentrations of wealth.

This classical theory is not inconsistent with the enormous improvements in knowledge relevant to productivity that occurred long before the 18th century, improvements that supported huge population increases and vast wealth for owners of land and other resources. Increases in knowledge over the centuries also stimulated a large-scale accumulation of productive capital: shipbuilding, road and harbor construction, draining of swamps, and breeding and raising of animal herds for food and power. Capital accumulation, too, played a role in supporting ever larger populations. Yet under the Malthusian theory of fertility, neither new knowledge nor the capital accumulation it makes profitable is enough to induce the sustained growth in living standards of masses of people that modern economists take as the defining characteristic of the industrial revolution.

The modern theory of sustained income growth, stemming from the work of Robert Solow in the 1950s, was designed to fit the behavior of the economies that had passed through the demographic transition. 3 This theory deals with the problem posed by Malthusian fertility by simply ignoring the economics of the problem and assuming a fixed rate of population growth. In such a context, the accumulation of physical capital is not, in itself, sufficient to account for sustained income growth. With a fixed rate of labor force growth, the law of diminishing returns puts a limit on the income increase that capital accumulation can generate. To account for sustained growth, the modern theory needs to postulate continuous improvements in technology or in knowledge or in human capital (I think these are all just different terms for the same thing) as an “engine of growth.” Since such a postulate is consistent with the evidence we have from the modern (and the ancient) world, this does not seem to be a liability of the theory.

The modern theory, based on fixed fertility, and the classical theory, based on fertility that increases with increases in income, are obviously not mutually consistent. Nor can we simply say that the modern theory fits the modern world and the classical theory the ancient world, because we can see traditional societies exhibiting Malthusian behavior in the world today. Increases since 1960 in total production in Africa, for example, have been almost entirely absorbed by increases in population, with negligible increases in income per capita. Understanding the progress of the industrial revolution as it continues today necessarily entails understanding why it is that Malthusian dynamics have ceased to hold in much of the contemporary world. Country after country has gone through a demographic transition, involving increases in the rate of population growth followed by decreases, as income continues to rise. Some of the wealthiest countries—Japan and parts of Europe—are just about maintaining their populations at current levels. People in these wealthy economies are better able to afford large families than people in poor economies, yet they choose not to do so.

If these two inconsistent theories are to be reconciled, with each other and with the facts of the demographic transition, a second factor needs to work to decrease fertility as income grows, operating alongside the Malthusian force that works to increase it. Gary Becker proposed long ago that this second factor be identified with the quality of children: As family income rises, spending on children increases, as assumed in Malthusian theory, but these increases can take the form of a greater number of children or of a larger allocation of parental time and other resources to each child. Parents are assumed to value increases both in the quantity of children and in the quality of each child’s life. 4

Of course, both the quality-quantity trade-off in Becker’s sense and the importance of human capital are visible well before the industrial revolution. In any society with established property rights, a class of landowners will be subject to different population dynamics due to the effect their fertility has on inheritances and the quality of lives their children enjoy. Such families can accumulate vast wealth and enjoy living standards far above subsistence. For the histories of what we call civilization, this deviation from a pure Malthusian subsistence model is everything. For the history of living standards of masses of people, however, it is but a minor qualification. Similarly, in any society of any complexity, some individuals can, by virtue of talent and education, formal or informal, acquire skills that yield high income, and as the Bachs and the Mozarts can testify, such exceptions can run in families. For most societies, though, income increases due to what a modern economist calls human capital are exceptional and often derivative, economically, from landowner wealth.

For a landless family in a traditional agricultural economy, the possibilities for affecting the quality of children’s lives are pretty slight. If there is no property to pass on, an additional child does not dilute the inheritance of siblings. Parents could spend time and resources on the child’s education in the attempt to leave a bequest of human capital. All parents do this to some degree, but the incentives to do so obviously depend on the return to human capital offered by the society the parents live in. Where this return is low, adding the quality dimension to the fertility decision may be only a minor twist on Malthusian dynamics. In short, neither the possibility of using inheritable capital to improve the quality of children’s lives nor the possibility of accumulating human capital needs to result in fundamental departures from the predictions of the classical model.

But these additional features do offer the possibility of non-Malthusian dynamics, and the possibility has promise because the process of industrialization seems to involve a dramatic increase in the returns to human capital. People are moving out of traditional agriculture, where the necessary adult skills can be acquired through on-the-job child labor. More and more people are entering occupations different from their parents’ occupations that require skills learned in school as well as those learned at home. New kinds of capital goods require workers with the training to operate and to improve upon them. In such a world a parent can do many things with time and resources that will give a child advantages in a changing economy, and the fewer children a parent has, the more such advantages can be given to each child.

It is a unique feature of human capital that it yields returns that cannot be captured entirely by its “owner.” Bach and Mozart were well paid (though neither as well as he thought he deserved), but both of them provided enormous stimulation and inspiration to others for which they were paid nothing, just as both of them also gained from others. Such external effects , as economists call them, are the subject matter of intellectual and artistic history and should be the main subject of industrial and commercial history as well. These pervasive external effects introduce a kind of feedback into human capital theory: Something that increases the return on human capital will stimulate greater accumulation, in turn stimulating higher returns, stimulating still greater accumulation and so on.

On this general view of economic growth, then, what began in England in the 18th century and continues to diffuse throughout the world today is something like the following. Technological advances occurred that increased the wages of those with the skills needed to make economic use of these advances. These wage effects stimulated others to accumulate skills and stimulated many families to decide against having a large number of unskilled children and in favor of having fewer children, with more time and resources invested in each. The presence of a higher-skilled workforce increased still further the return to acquiring skills, keeping the process going. Wouldn’t such a process bog down due to diminishing returns to skill-intensive goods? Someone has to dig potatoes, after all. It might, and I imagine that many incipient industrial revolutions died prematurely due to such diminishing returns. But international trade undoubtedly helped England attain critical mass by letting English workers specialize in skill-demanding production while potatoes were imported from somewhere else.

Whatever the importance of human capital accumulation in the original industrial revolution, there is no doubt that rapid improvement in skills is characteristic of its diffusion in the modern world economy. Nancy Stokey estimates that the major stimulus of the North American Free Trade Agreement to economic growth in Mexico will be not the inflow of physical capital (though that is considerable), but the increased accumulation of human capital that will be stimulated by the higher rate of return the new physical capital will induce. 5 Post-NAFTA Mexico is increasingly an economy that assigns high rewards to training and technological skills.

Generalizations from experience

Economically, the 60 years since the end of World War II have been an extraordinary period. The growth rates of world population, production and incomes per capita have reached unprecedented heights. As a result of the combination of poor countries with very little income growth and wealthy countries with sustained growth, the degree of income inequality across societies has reached unprecedented levels. None of this can persist. This, I think, is the main lesson of the broader history of the industrial revolution, as viewed by modern growth theory.

I have interpreted this period as the beginning of the phase of the diffusion of the sustained economic growth that characterizes the European industrial revolution to the former colonies of the non-European world. The rapid growth of non-European nations (and some of the poorer European ones) is mainly responsible for the extraordinarily rapid growth of world production in the postwar era. But enough other societies have been largely left out of this process of diffusion that the degree of inequality among nations remained about the same in 1990 as it was in 1960. As those economies that have joined the modern world catch up to the income levels of the wealthiest countries, their growth rates of both population and income will slow down to rates that are close to those that now prevail in Europe. We have seen these events occur in Japan; they will follow in country after country.

At the same time, countries that have been kept out of this process of diffusion by socialist planning or simply by corruption and lawlessness will, one after another, join the industrial revolution and become the miracle economies of the future. The income growth rates in these catch-up economies may be very high, but as fewer and fewer countries remain in this category, the effect on world averages will shrink. If so, then world population growth will attain a peak and begin shrinking toward less than 1 percent, and world production growth will similarly cease to rise and will fall back toward 3 percent. In other words, we will see a world that, economically, looks more and more like the United States.

What do history and economic theory have to say about factors that will accelerate this process of catching up? What policies for Pakistan or Nigeria would materially affect the likelihood of an economic miracle? For backward economies, dealing on a day-to-day basis with more advanced economies is the central element in success. No successes have been observed for autarchic, produce-everything-ourselves strategies (though such strategies can possibly work well for a few years: think of Russia in the 1920s or India in the 1950s). Trade has the benefit of letting a smaller country’s industries attain efficient scale, but I think an even more important factor is the need to get up to world standards, to learn to play in the big leagues. The only way learning and technology transfer can take place is for producers to compete seriously internationally. Learning-by-doing is perhaps the most important form of human capital accumulation.

Macroeconomic policy, however, does not appear to be of central importance to growth. Korea, Brazil and Indonesia have all enjoyed rapid growth under inflationary policies (though others—Argentina, Chile and, again, Brazil—have had the opposite experience). Of course, in all these cases, inflation has arisen from monetary expansion to cover fiscal deficits. Certainly, I do not want to endorse inflation—it is an unnecessary waste of resources with no positive side effects—but this seems to be a largely separate issue from growth. It is always a mistake to think of everything as interconnected (though, of course, everything is, in some sense): I think it is more fruitful to break a problem down into manageable pieces and address the pieces one at a time.

Of the tendencies that are harmful to sound economics, the most seductive, and in my opinion the most poisonous, is to focus on questions of distribution. In this very minute, a child is being born to an American family and another child, equally valued by God, is being born to a family in India. The resources of all kinds that will be at the disposal of this new American will be on the order of 15 times the resources available to his Indian brother. This seems to us a terrible wrong, justifying direct corrective action, and perhaps some actions of this kind can and should be taken. But of the vast increase in the well-being of hundreds of millions of people that has occurred in the 200-year course of the industrial revolution to date, virtually none of it can be attributed to the direct redistribution of resources from rich to poor. The potential for improving the lives of poor people by finding different ways of distributing current production is nothing compared to the apparently limitless potential of increasing production.

Recommendations for Further Reading

For a good introduction to the way economists today are using theory to measure the importance of different sources of economic growth, see Stephen L. Parente and Edward C. Prescott, Barriers to Riches (Cambridge: MIT Press), 2000. I’ve used this book in class at Chicago, with good success. My students also enjoyed the more anecdotal treatment in William Easterly, The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists’ Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics (Cambridge: MIT Press), 2002. [See review in the September 2003 Region .]

Michael Kremer’s 1993 paper “Population Growth and Technological Change: One Million B.C. to 1990,” Quarterly Journal of Economics (107: 681–716) stimulated everyone who thinks about economic growth. So did Lant Pritchett’s “Divergence, Big Time” in the 1997 Journal of Economic Perspectives (11: 3–18) and Jeffrey D. Sachs and Andrew Warner, “Economic Reform and the Process of Global Integration,” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity , (1995): 1–118. Though published in professional journals, all of these papers have much to offer the nontechnical reader.

—Robert Lucas

1 A good description is available in: Robert Summers and Alan Heston, “The Penn World Table (Mark 5): An Expanded Set of International Comparisons, 1950–1988.” Quarterly Journal of Economics , 105 (1991): 327–368. The latest versions of the tables are available at pwt.econ.upenn.edu .

2 The sources for these and many other figures cited in this section are given in Chapter 5 of my Lectures on Economic Growth (Cambridge: Harvard University Press), 2002.

3 Robert M. Solow, “A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth.” Quarterly Journal of Economics , 70 (1956): 65–94.

4 Gary S. Becker, “An Economic Analysis of Fertility.” In Richard Easterlin, ed., Demographic and Economic Change in Developed Countries . Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1960. See also Robert J. Barro and Gary S. Becker, “Fertility Choice in a Model of Economic Growth.” Econometrica , 57 (1989): 481–501.

5 Nancy L. Stokey. “Free Trade, Factor Returns, and Factor Accumulation.” Journal of Economic Growth , 1 (1996): 421–448.

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Industrial Revolution in the United States Essay

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Introduction

The industrial revolution in america, impacts of the industrial revolution in america, americans reaction towards the industrial revolution, works cited.

The industrial revolution refers to the time period in which changes in production processes had extreme impacts on man’s social, economic, and cultural status. The changes were realized in sectors such as agricultural, manufacturing, and transport, among other sectors. This paper seeks to discuss the subject of the industrial revolution in the United States. The paper will look into the development of the industrial revolution in the United States, the changes that were caused by the revolution, and the reactions that Americans had towards the industrial revolution.

The industrial revolution was a period of transformation from reliance on human beings in production processes to great dependence on machines to produce commodities. The revolution is believed to have originated from Great Britain before spreading through Europe and then to other parts of the world. The British industrial revolution was also directly and almost instantly spread to British colonies, which were at the time run as its territories. The revolution’s transformation of economic operations from human labor to employment of machines was characterized by transformation in economies in which traditional agricultural practices were, for example, replaced by industrial processes.

Machines that were invented played an important role in removing people from their jobs and replacing them with machines that did the jobs in a better way and also produced products of better utility to people. The developments due to the revolution were also characterized by the invention of better transportation means that were more affordable and accessible. People were basically contained around their homesteads with major duties being either farming or performing duties in homesteads before the revolution, which later changed events in the then American societies as professions changed from the earlier farming into industrial jobs. Vast resources that were available in the United States contributed to the quick industrialization that was realized in the country (Brezina 4).

One of the immediate impacts of the industrial revolution was the transformation of the American economy from being agriculturally based on being an industrial economy. Consumptions were previously direct agricultural products. The introduction of machines into the economy, however, transformed the system into industrial production focused. Agricultural products were transformed into forms of more refined products, and other industrial production processes were established.

The industrial revolution also had the impact of job losses among the American people in the agricultural farms in which they were employed as manual laborers. The introduction of machines in the agricultural sector, which were more efficient as compared to human labor, led to the displacement of people from their jobs in the agricultural sector as their positions were then taken by machines. The revolution can, therefore, be said to have caused unemployment among the American people, at least at the time it was being launched in the country (Brezina 8).

Loss in artistic skills was also experienced following the emergence of industrialization in the United States. The wave of people that moved people from their rural farms in order to take up jobs in industries affected artisans who followed the mass, abandoned their tools, and moved to take industrial jobs factories. Their positions were then taken by unskilled people who had just moved to the profession to fill the gap that was left by the artist who had left for the industrial jobs. The industrial revolution also changed the social structure that was previously dominant in America. Parents moved to take jobs in industries, thereby reducing the socially family-based environment that had existed before the revolution (Brezina 51).

The revolution that invaded American society led to a number of transformations in the nature of the American people in their society. A number of reactions to the changes caused by the industrial revolution were evident in terms of behavior and social set up. In reaction to the industrial revolution, significant changes were realized in the nineteenth century regarding the structure and nature of American society. Henry Bellows, for example, outlined some characteristic features that were realized in America towards the middle of the nineteenth century. The economic changes that were realized following the wave of the industrial revolution forced Americans to work harder and for longer hours in order to sustain their family needs.

Bellow expressed the concern that following the revolution, “lawyer must confine himself to his office” (Bellows 95) and “the physician must labor day and night” (Bellows 95) in his duty. Americans generally reacted to changed conditions by increasing their efforts at work. Another form of reaction to the wave of revolution was the attitude of ambitious gains that people developed. This could be attributed to the lower wages that resulted from industrialization. Another evident reaction, as represented by Bellow, was the affinity or desire that people developed for money. He described the then society as “doomed tradesmen” who could “mistake money for the kingdom of heaven” (Bellows 96). These, among others, were reactions towards industrialization.

The industrial revolution that was experienced in the United States of America in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries had great effects on the American people and, as a result, led to a number of reactions by Americans to the impacts of the revolution.

Bellows, Henry. The Influence of the Trading Spirit upon the Social and Moral Life of America . New York: Wiley and Putnam, 2009. Print.

Brezina, Corona. The Industrial Revolution in America: A Primary Source History of America’s Transformation into an Industrial Society . New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, 2005. Print.

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Industrial Revolution Essay

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British Industrial Revolution

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The British Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) brought innovative mechanisation and deep social change. The process saw the invention of steam-powered machines, which were used in factories in ever-growing urban centres. Agriculture remained important, but cotton textiles became Britain 's top export, capital replaced land as an indicator of wealth, and the labour force diversified to include many more women and children.

Defining a 'Revolution'

Dating the precise beginning and end of the Industrial Revolution in Britain is problematic. Historians do not all agree on precise dates as the 'revolution' was not a single dramatic event or even a series of them, but, rather, a long and gradual process of mechanisation of industry and agriculture, which in turn caused a number of important and long-lasting social changes, chief amongst them being accelerated urbanisation across Britain. The generally agreed range of the mid-18th century to the mid-19th century is useful but misses important, even necessary developments beforehand (for example, the increased efficiency in agriculture) and the continuation of machine inventions (such as the telephone) afterwards. Research published in 2024 by the University of Cambridge focussed on occupations and supports a start date for the 'revolution' as some point in the 17th century.

The term 'industrial revolution', coined by the historian Arnold Toynbee in 1884, is misleading since this process of change was neither quick nor driven by popular uprisings. In addition, the word 'industrial' denies the importance of significant changes in rural life through this period. What is more certain is that the imperfect label 'Industrial Revolution' does capture the idea that tremendous changes occurred so that the countryside, cities , and working life of the late 19th century would have seemed incredible to a visitor from the late 16th century. The author Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) noted that the steam-powered railways alone, probably the most visible element of the 'revolution' for most people, brought more change than any other development since the Norman conquest of England in 1066.

The Industrial Revolution happened first in Britain, and so, when referring to that country alone, it is often called the First Industrial Revolution. Where this mechanisation and urbanisation spread to other countries, it is called the Second Industrial Revolution, for example, in France from 1830, Germany from 1850, and the United States from 1865.

Causes of the Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution began in Britain for a number of reasons. There was an efficient agricultural system that could feed a booming population. With its coalfields, Britain had abundant cheap fuel and, in 1700, was already skilled in mining, producing 80% of the coal in Europe . Another knowledge advantage for Britain was the use of coke as a fuel to make high-quality iron. Coke is made from baking coal in a furnace to remove as many impurities as possible. The first working blast furnace employing coke was used in 1709 at Coalbrookdale in Shropshire, a works owned by Abraham Darby (1678-1717). Britain, then, had both the material to make machines and the fuel to power them even before the Industrial Revolution proper began.

Labour in Britain was relatively expensive because of the expanding agricultural system, which was now using more and more enclosed land (land requisitioned for farming from common land). Farms needed more labourers, but fewer were available as urbanisation developed, and so wages rose. This fact meant that inventors had a profit motive to design machines that could reduce labour. Capitalists were given favourable conditions by governments to invest in these inventions and Britain's trade empire , particularly that established by the East India Company , could be used to exploit such innovations by providing markets for manufactured goods. There was, too, a trend for people to leave the countryside to find work, and this was exploited and accelerated by business owners able to set up machine-based factories, particularly textile mills. Once the urbanisation ball was rolling at a certain pace, inventions accelerated the 'revolution' as more machines were invented to make even better machines, and so mechanisation surged on. The railways continued the process by creating even more demand for coal, iron, and steel. The pace of urbanisation increased further, and a new middle-class consumer market was created, which drove demand for more innovation and more products. While some other countries had some of these causal factors in place, none had as many as Britain.

Inventors & Machines

The Steam Engine

Water, wind, and muscle power had long been harnessed for heavy machinery such as windmills and waterwheels. These early machines allowed business owners to replace the old cottage industry model, where, for example, skilled weavers worked in their own homes, with a factory system where a number of unskilled workers lived on the premises and operated the machines. The catalyst for even greater change was the invention of the steam engine. Steam power was first developed so that pumps could drain mine shafts and allow deeper mining. The steam pump was patented in 1698 by Thomas Savery (c. 1650-1715). In 1710, Thomas Newcomen (1664-1729) adjusted Savery's design and made the machine more efficient. Newcomen's machine could suck 5,000 gallons (22.7 K litres) every hour out of a 153-foot (46.6 metres) deep mine shaft. The problem was the amount of fuel needed for the machine. In 1769, the Watt steam engine , designed by James Watt (1736-1819) with developments added by Matthew Boulton (1728-1809), answered the market's demand for a powerful engine that could be used anywhere. By 1800, Britain boasted over 2,500 steam engines, most of them used in mines, cotton mills, and factories. This compares to 200 engines in France and fewer than 10 in the USA. Other inventors came along and added to the power capabilities of the steam engine so that, by the 1830s, they could be used to drive trains and steamships.

Transportation

The steam-powered railways revolutionised travel and Britain itself. On 27 September 1825, the Locomotion 1 train invented by George Stephenson (1781-1848) transported the first railway passengers from Stockton to Darlington in the northeast of England . In 1829, George Stephenson's son, Robert Stephenson (1803-1859), created the Rocket , and he entered it in the Rainhill Trials. The Trials were competitions designed to find the best locomotive for use on the railway line connecting Manchester to Liverpool, which opened in 1830. In 1838, Birmingham was connected to London; in 1841, passengers could take the Great Western Railway line from the capital to Bristol. By 1845, there was a line from Manchester to London, which took eight hours of travel (the old stagecoaches would have taken 80 hours). The railways were booming. By the 1870s, there were over 15,000 miles (24,000 km) of rail lines, with trains carrying over 300 million passengers and over 150 million tonnes of goods each year.

Steam-powered shipping followed the trains. The engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) used a steam engine to power his giant ships the SS Great Western (1838), the innovative propellor-driven SS Great Britain (1843), and the SS Great Eastern (1858), the largest ship in the world at 692 feet (211 m) long. These ships and others crossed the Atlantic faster than ever before (10 days compared to 32 using just sail), and soon ambitious new routes to India and Australia were established.

From the 1790s, steam-powered machines were used with such success in the textile industry that by 1835 around 75% of cotton mills were using steam power. A series of machines had been invented which revolutionised how cotton was cleaned, spun, and woven. These devices were the flying shuttle (John Kay, 1733), spinning jenny (James Hargreaves, 1764), waterframe (Richard Arkwright, 1769), spinning mule ( Samuel Crompton, 1779), power loom (Edmund Cartwright, 1785), cotton gin (Eli Whitney, 1794), and Robert's loom and self-acting mule (Richard Roberts, 1822-5). Because of the mechanised factory system, the British "cotton mill of 1836 was so efficient that it could out-compete hand spinning anywhere in the world" (Allen, 187).

Some people protested at the increasing mechanisation. The period between 1811 and 1816 was particularly problematic for factory owners. The Luddites broke into factories and smashed the machines that had taken away their livelihoods. However, in the longer term, many more jobs were created in the factories than had been available in the old cottage industries. By 1830, one in 80 Britons worked in a textile mill.

Agriculture

The Industrial Revolution is often described as a move from an agrarian society to an industrial one, but agriculture remained an important sector of the British economy . Farming expanded to meet a growing population through the process of enclosure. In 55 years from 1760 to 1815, over 7 million acres (28,300 km²) of British communal land was enclosed. Better fertilisers improved crop yields. New breeding methods improved livestock.

The mobility and fuel efficiency of the Watt steam engine meant that farmers could use various machines anywhere and precisely when they were needed. Andrew Rodgers invented the winnowing machine in 1737 (which separated the wheat from the chaff). In 1787, Andrew Meikle (1719-1811) invented the first steam-powered threshing machine (which separated the grain from the husk). Steam-powered machines could uproot trees that blocked fields and drain waterlogged areas to make them arable. Machine-made tools were cheaper, had better cutting edges, and lasted longer than previously. Mass production allowed farmers to repair their machines with spare parts, rather than replace them entirely.

All of these factors made food cheaper for everyone. British agricultural products, along with imports, were able to feed a population which had risen from 6 million in 1750 to 21 million in 1851. A downside was that as farming became more productive, rents rocketed, which meant many small-scale farmers were forced to move elsewhere or try a different profession. Just like the Luddites, some protested violently at mechanisation. The Swing Riots of 1830 to 1832 saw a short-lived spurt of machine wrecking in the countryside. While it was true that people left rural areas to find new work and new lives in cities, many remained. In 1841, "just over 1 in 5, 22 percent of the country's workforce, worked on the land" (Shelley, 44).

Other Inventions

Other important inventions during the Industrial Revolution included Harrison's marine chronometer , invented by John Harrison (1693-1776) in 1770, which allowed navigators to accurately measure longitude. The world's first cast iron bridge was built across the River Severn in Shropshire by Abraham Darby III (1750-89), opened to the public in 1781. Frederick Albert Winsor (1763-1830) demonstrated in London in 1807 his new invention of street lights which used coal gas, a tremendously useful substance that was also used for home heating and cooking. The milling machine was invented around 1818, but, typical of many inventions in this period where ideas were shared, borrowed, and stolen, it is difficult to pin down exactly who invented it. The machine cut pieces of metal like bolts and nuts that would have been near-impossible to do by hand. Portland cement was a fast-setting cement invented in 1824 by Joseph Aspdin (1778-1859). The telegraph machine was invented in 1837 by William Fothergill Cook (1806-1879) and Charles Wheatstone (1802-1875), and it revolutionised communication. The steam hammer was developed in 1839 by James Nasmyth (1808-1890) and allowed huge metal pieces to be uniformly bent, essential for large steam engines, bridges, and ships. Finally, the Bessemer converter, invented by Henry Bessemer (1813-1898) in 1856, allowed for a much cheaper production of steel, which is stronger and lighter than iron.

The Positive Impact of the Industrial Revolution

The impact of the British Industrial Revolution was dramatic. Steam-powered machines reduced production costs, made profits higher, and permitted mass-produced consumer goods to be cheaper. The transport revolution continued this trend because a single train could carry 20 times the cargo of a canal boat and reach its destination eight times faster. Mechanisation and the railways created a boom in the coal mining, iron, and steel industries. There was a whole raft of new jobs available, such as in the railway stations, on construction sites, and in the factories. Women gained more financial independence; women comprised over half the workforce in textile factories. Most people could afford a train excursion to the seaside once a year. The telegraph meant the speed of communication vastly increased.

Literacy improved thanks to the opportunities for basic schooling increasing and books becoming cheaper thanks to papermaking and printing machines. People in cities married younger and had more children. Life expectancy rose because of better diet and new vaccinations but much depended on a person's job, and infant mortality rates could be high in some periods.

The urban middle class expanded to around 25% of the population by 1800, and they were often able to live in the more pleasant leafy suburbs of cities. The middle classes could frequent the ever-increasing number of shops that stocked an increasingly wide range of goods from across Britain and its empire. They were enticed to spend their disposable income through new marketing strategies like mass advertising and elegant showrooms like those of the potter Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795). The middle classes could employ servants and send their children to better schools or private tutors. The standard of living rose for most people during the Industrial Revolution, on average by around 30%, but only from the 1830s was this the experience of the lower classes.

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The Negative Impact of the Industrial Revolution

The benefits of the 'revolution' came at a cost. Traditional industries like handweaving and stagecoaches were all but destroyed by the arrival of steam power. The demand for cheap labour was insatiable as the profit motive became more important to more business owners. From 1800 to 1850, children composed between 20-50% of the mining workforce, working on average from the age of eight. Exploited with lower pay but the same 12-hour shifts as adults, child labour was used in every industry. An 1851 commission found that "one-third of children under the age of 15 worked outside the home" (Horn, 57). These children too often lived short and uneducated lives.

The factories offered many new jobs, but much of the work was unskilled, dull, and repetitive. The pay was regular, but the working day was ruled by the clock. There was no minimum wage, salaries were not related to inflation, and employees faced the ever-present threat of instant dismissal. Factory workers had few transferable skills, and so they were stuck at their level of work. Further, opening a business now required significant capital to invest in machinery so that one's product could be competitively priced. In addition, in the factory system, where workers concentrated only on a specific part of the production process, workers had little sense of achievement in the finished article, something they might have done in the old domestic system where a worker worked alone on a single item.

A Gallery of 30 Industrial Revolution Inventions

For men, women, and children, factories were dangerous and unhealthy places. Cotton mills were always kept dark and damp to protect the cotton threads, a situation detrimental to the lungs of the workers. Mines had a similar hazard and others. Machines were dangerous and could cause serious injury when pieces broke off or when fast-moving parts trapped fingers and limbs. Factories were noisy, and workers often suffered from impaired hearing. The common use of toxic substances like lead and mercury was another health hazard. Managers imposed strict rules and dished out fines. Attempts to form trade unions met with a total ban from the government from 1799 and 1824. Gradually, there were reforms from the 1830s, and working conditions and workers' rights did improve as working days were limited to 10 hours and employers were obliged to pay more attention to hygiene and safety in the workplace.

Urbanisation greatly accelerated during the Industrial Revolution. The 1851 census revealed that, for the first time, more people were living in towns and cities than in the countryside. This trend caused unique problems. Cities became cramped, and workers often lived in cheap housing, with families sharing properties. The streets were polluted by a lack of sanitation. In 1837, 1839, and 1847, there were typhus epidemics. In 1831 and 1849, there were cholera epidemics. The air was polluted, too, with so many factories belching out smoke from their coal furnaces. Crime rose, although largely only petty crime, as the urban poor grew in number and escaping justice became easier in the anonymity of large cities. The state made a half-hearted attempt to help the unemployed by offering the workhouse, an institution that deliberately offered a worse life than even the lowest-paid labourer could gain in case it became an attractive alternative to employment. Despite all the problems, urbanisation continued so that by 1880 only 20% of Britain's population lived in rural areas, and land ownership was concentrated in just 5% of the population.

The Spread of the Industrial Revolution

Other countries caught up with Britain. Ideas in technology, industry, and farming easily crossed borders. Some countries with very cheap labour or expensive fuel had to wait until the machines became cheaper and more efficient. The spread of the railways was a good indicator of this process. In the United States, the first working railroad was completed in 1833 (New York to Philadelphia). The first railway line in Continental Europe was completed in Belgium in 1835 (Brussels to Malines). By 1870, Canada, Australia, India, and most of Europe had joined in the railway mania. So it was with other innovations. By the 20th century, whether directly or indirectly, few states in the world remained unaffected by the tentacles of 'progress' the Industrial Revolution put forth.

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Bibliography

• Allen, Robert C. The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective . Cambridge University Press, 2009.
• Armstrong, Benjamin. Britain 1783-1885. Hodder Education, 2020.
• Corey, Melinda & Ochoa, George. The Encyclopedia of the Victorian World. Henry Holt & Co, 1996.
• Guardian UK - Latest research findings on the start of the Industrial Revolution
• Hepplewhite, Peter. All About the Industrial Revolution. Wayland, 2016.
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• Humphries, Jane. Childhood and Child Labour in the British Industrial Revolution . Cambridge University Press, 2011.
• Shelly, C. et al. Industrialisation and Social Change in Britain. PEARSON SCHOOLS, 2016.
• Yorke, Stan. The Industrial Revolution Explained. Countryside Books, 2005.

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Presentation U.S. History Primary Source Timeline

In the decades following the Civil War, the United States emerged as an industrial giant. Old industries expanded and many new ones, including petroleum refining, steel manufacturing, and electrical power, emerged. Railroads expanded significantly, bringing even remote parts of the country into a national market economy.

Industrial growth transformed American society. It produced a new class of wealthy industrialists and a prosperous middle class. It also produced a vastly expanded blue collar working class. The labor force that made industrialization possible was made up of millions of newly arrived immigrants and even larger numbers of migrants from rural areas. American society became more diverse than ever before.

Not everyone shared in the economic prosperity of this period. Many workers were typically unemployed at least part of the year, and their wages were relatively low when they did work. This situation led many workers to support and join labor unions. Meanwhile, farmers also faced hard times as technology and increasing production led to more competition and falling prices for farm products. Hard times on farms led many young people to move to the city in search of better job opportunities.

Americans who were born in the 1840s and 1850s would experience enormous changes in their lifetimes. Some of these changes resulted from a sweeping technological revolution. Their major source of light, for example, would change from candles, to kerosene lamps, and then to electric light bulbs. They would see their transportation evolve from walking and horse power to steam-powered locomotives, to electric trolley cars, to gasoline-powered automobiles. Born into a society in which the vast majority of people were involved in agriculture, they experienced an industrial revolution that radically changed the ways millions of people worked and where they lived. They would experience the migration of millions of people from rural America to the nation's rapidly growing cities.