Steel Production
In 1850, the Bessemer process developed in England, allowing for a more efficient
process in the production of steel. This development, along with the use of steam
power, fueled the energy and transportation phases of the industrial revolution. As the
Bessemer process made its way to the United States, steel production was used to
manufacture equipment, tools, and railroads. The steel used in manufacturing
equipment spurred even more industrialization following the Civil War. Eventually,
structures like suspension bridges such as the 1883 Brooklyn Bridge were constructed,
and skyscrapers followed soon after. The use of steel led to quicker and more efficient
transportation systems, which had a significant impact on the economy. Cheaper
transportation lowered the cost of goods, which increased demand for those items. To
meet this demand, factories used an assembly line, a method in which individual
workers worked on the same task over and over rather than building one item from start
to finish. This was a much more efficient means of production, which also lowered the
cost of goods. As a result, many Americans were able to afford items that had
previously only been available to the wealthy.
Agriculture
The 1862 Homestead Act gave individual homesteaders who paid a nominal fee and
resided on the land for five years the opportunity to claim 160 acres of non-occupied
surveyed public land as their own. Technological advances in agriculture were
important to homesteaders’ success. In 1837, John Deere created the first steel plow,
which allowed farmers settling in the Great Plains region to cut through the dense
prairie soil easily. By 1875, the first riding plow was invented, allowing farmers to plow
larger areas of land than before. Additionally, the invention of Cyrus McCormick’s
mechanical reaper, which cut and bundled grain, required fewer workers. More efficient
technology reduced the number of farm jobs available, which caused workers to move
to the cities. Demand for food led to the growth of commercial agriculture as farmers
worked to meet this demand. While farmers benefitted from the railroads they used to
ship their crops to the cities, they were often at odds with railroad companies over the
high rates they were charged to store and haul their crops.
Electric Power
The development of electric power by Thomas Edison in 1879 changed the way people
lived and worked. The light bulb led to longer workdays because laborers were no
longer limited to working during daylight hours. By 1900, industries began to use
electricity to run machines. This led to an increase in the number of factories and the
growth of cities as people left their farms seeking factory work. Electricity lit streetlights,
which made the streets safer. Electric streetcars made travel easier in cities. Electricity
powered appliances such as washing machines, toasters, electric irons, and vacuum
cleaners, which made life easier for women who did most of the domestic work.
Railroads
The federal government subsidized the growth of the railroad industry by providing land
grants to railroad companies between 1850 and 1870. The private companies sold the
land to settlers to finance construction of the railroads. In 1869, the Union Pacific and
Central Pacific railroads met in Utah, completing the first transcontinental railroad in
the nation. This provided faster transportation between the east and west coasts. The
ability to move goods, resources, and people had a significant effect on the economy.
Demand for goods spurred the growth of factories and businesses, creating jobs and
putting more people to work. By 1883, refrigerated railroad cars carried meat and farm
products to eastern urban markets while manufactured goods headed west. Massproduced factory items were available in urban department stores or through mail-order
catalogs such as Sears and Roebuck for those living in rural areas. Western settlement
and business-friendly government policies like land grants to railroads, protective tariffs,
lack of industry regulation, and low corporate taxes helped create a national economy.
Henry Ford
In 1908, Henry Ford began manufacturing the Model T automobile. By 1913, he
streamlined the process by introducing the first moving assembly line, which
maximized production in the automotive industry. The assembly line allowed Ford to
produce cars that were much more affordable. By 1927, the Ford Motor Company had
produced 15 million Model T cars. In addition to revolutionizing the automobile industry
with the use of the assembly line, Henry Ford introduced the concept of the eight-hour
workday. Reducing the workday for his employees allowed Ford to run three shifts of
workers on his assembly lines. He also increased his workers’ wages to $5 per day—
double the existing pay rate. Ford’s increase in wages made it possible for his
employees to purchase the cars they produced. The convenience of automobile
transportation provided Americans with the ability to live and travel where they wanted.
The automobile industry eventually fueled the growth of suburbs because residents had
the means of traveling into the city.
Airplanes
The beginnings of aviation took place on December 17, 1903, when Orville and Wilber
Wright completed the first successful airplane flight. In 1927, Charles Lindbergh
became the first person to successfully cross the Atlantic Ocean in a plane. By 1928,
forty-eight airlines were in operation. World War I was the first time airplanes were
used in war. During World War I, aircraft primarily flew reconnaissance missions,
though eventually some had machine guns attached. Advancements during and after
the war made planes safer and more effective. Many WWI pilots served as leaders
during World War II, bringing their knowledge of flight tactics to train another generation
of pilots. During World War II, fighter pilots flew aircraft on short-range and long-range
bombing missions. Helicopters were used alongside airplanes in the Korean and
Vietnam Wars. While planes had long been used for spying, the Cold War era saw the
development of the U2 spy plane and eventually the Stealth bomber. By the end of the
twentieth century, unmanned planes called drones became another tool of warfare.
Atomic Weapons
As World War II began in 1939, President Roosevelt learned from Albert Einstein that
German scientists had successfully split an atom and might be on their way to
developing a nuclear weapon. This led President Roosevelt to accelerate the
Manhattan Project, which developed and detonated the first atomic bomb in the New
Mexico desert. World War II ended when Japan surrendered after the U.S. dropped
atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. President Harry S.
Truman’s decision to drop the atomic bomb initiated an arms race with the Soviet
Union. The use of nuclear fission was not limited to weapons. Following World War II,
the focus shifted to using this technology as a power source because it is much cleaner
than burning fossil fuels.
Radio and Television
Technological innovations in communications improved people’s access to information.
By the 1920s, the radio provided a way for individuals to gain information, but it also
served as a form of entertainment as sports, music, and drama programs became
available. President Franklin D. Roosevelt turned to the radio during the Great
Depression and World War II to inform and reassure Americans about events in the
nation and the world. He delivered a series of evening radio addresses called fireside
chats. By the 1950s, television became more affordable and began to replace the radio
as a form of entertainment as well as a new source of news and information. Television
played a role in increasing public disillusionment over the Vietnam War as the press
aired war footage and reported military setbacks. Today people receive information
twenty-four hours a day via radio, television, and the Internet.
Computer Management
Although Henry Ford began the concept of controlling inventory in the 1920s, this
process gained momentum in the 1970s when the Japanese Toyota Company
embraced the concept of “just in time inventory.” This involves producing inventory
only as there is demand for it. Companies no longer needed to have large inventories
on hand, which reduced waste and allowed companies to pass on savings to
consumers. Companies increased productivity by developing more efficient models of
manufacturing and production. For example, “time-study analysis” involves examining
a specific job to find out the most efficient way to accomplish it. The increased use of
computers in the workplace made it easier to track and respond to fluctuations in
inventory. Computers also made it possible to use robotics in manufacturing. The use
of robotics not only improved efficiency, but in some cases made the workplace safer
because robots could complete dangerous tasks. Changes such as these have forced
American workers to develop a different skill sets than previously required.
Satellites
In 1957, the Soviets sparked the space race when they launched Sputnik, the first
artificial satellite. Although this event increased tensions between the United States
and the Soviet Union, the research that resulted from the drive to be the first to send a
human into space benefited Americans. One of the benefits included increased federal
government funding of educational initiatives in math and science. Scientists created
many products we use today, including Ziploc bags, Velcro, freeze dried foods, and
insulation, as they prepared for astronauts to go into space. Alan Shepard became the
first American in space when the U.S. launched a successful manned exploration in
1961. In 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the moon. Today,
satellite technology transmits all types of data including those used in global positioning
products such as GPS, making it possible to locate places anywhere on the globe.
Cellphones
In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, providing the first opportunity
for individuals to hear and speak to one other over long distances. This invention
brought people closer together. As individuals sought new ways to communicate, the
free enterprise system allowed the telecommunications industry to develop innovations
to meet consumers’ needs. The first cordless phones were introduced in the 1970s.
By 1983, the first cellphone small enough to carry entered the market. Developments
like the 2007 iPhone revolutionized access to information by providing the power of a
computer in a hand-held device. Satellite technology enables GPS to operate in our
phones as well.
Internet and Personal Computers
As the computer industry evolved, new technology contributed to increased economic
development and improved communication. In 1959, the first integrated computer
circuit was developed. This resulted in large mainframe computers becoming available
to businesses in the 1960s. The military played a role in increased communication
when the Department of Defense developed the first computer network in 1969. This
network, a result of government research and initiatives and private industry, became
what we know today as the Internet. The personal computer industry began with Steve
Job’s release of the first Apple computer in 1976. By 1985, Bill Gates founded
Microsoft, a company that provided the operating software for most personal
computers. On August 6, 1991, the public was first able to access the “world wide
web.” The use of the Internet improved our quality of life by making it easier to obtain
information.
Polio Vaccine
Advances in science and medicine have often been driven by researchers’
determination to meet society’s current needs. In 1901, following the death of his
grandson from scarlet fever, John D. Rockefeller founded the Rockefeller Institute for
Medical Research to research the underlying causes of the disease. The flu pandemic
of 1918 that killed between 3-5% of the world’s population prompted researchers to
examine how to prevent its spread. In addition to an understanding of the use of
quarantining the ill, the research also produced the concept of sterilization. In 1921,
Franklin D. Roosevelt contracted polio. As a result, he founded the National
Foundation for Infantile Paralysis in 1938, now known as the March of Dimes. This
organization focused on researching the causes of polio and helping those with the
disease. By 1955, Dr. Jonas Salk developed a polio vaccine to stop the spread of this
infectious disease. Continued research and advances in medicine provide hope that
cures may one day be found for many more diseases.
Petroleum Based Products
The oil industry began in the United States in 1859 when a petroleum entrepreneur
drilled the first oil well in Pennsylvania. By 1870, John D. Rockefeller formed the
Standard Oil Company. In addition to providing kerosene for lamps and fuel for
automobiles, the petroleum industry became an integral part of the products we use on
a daily basis, including items such as Vaseline, mascara, dyes, and many synthetic
fibers. By 1939, the DuPont Company started commercial production of nylon, which
was used to make stockings for women. This product had to be rationed during World
War II, as the demand for petroleum resources increased. By the 1950s, new products
developed, including both acrylic and polyester, which are used to create items from
dresses to countertops. The widespread use of petroleum products in industrialized
countries has caused widespread concerns about negative environmental impact.