Name: ________________________________________
American Industrial Revolution
Directions: Read the passage about the American Industrial Revolution and Samuel
Slater. On page two, write details from the passage that are important in explaining the
American Industrial Revolution.
The American Industrial Revolution
Samuel Slater, born in Belper, Derbyshire, England in June, 1768, is credited with
being the Father of the American Industrial Revolution. Slater apprenticed in
England at a cotton mill with machinery developed by Richard Awkwright and rose
to be the superintendent learning all about the machines used in the mills.
Slater felt the textile industry had reached its peak in England and so secretly
emigrated to America. Here, with backers from Providence, Rhode Island, Slater
built the first successful water powered textile mill in Pawtucket, RI, on the
Blackstone River, in 1793. The mill was powered by a waterwheel.
By the time other businesses entered the industry, Slater’s ideas had become the
model. Later known as the Rhode Island System, Slater hired whole families,
including children, to work in his mills. These families generally lived in company
housing, shopped in company stores, and went to company schools and churches
nearby. The Blackstone River’s steep drops and numerous falls allowed for
perfect conditions for the building of small, rural textile mills around which grew
small villages, such as Slatersville, found in North Smithfield, RI. Workmen came
from all over to learn about Samuel Slater’s machines so they could set up their
own mills.
Slater Mill created cotton thread until 1829, and then was continuously occupied
until 1921 with various owners
and renters who changed its
structure to suit whatever
enterprise they pursued; such
as jewelers’ tools, coffin trimmings,
cardboard, and bicycles.
© www.HaveFunTeaching.com
Name: ________________________________________
American Industrial Revolution
Directions: Read the passage about the American Industrial Revolution. On page
two, write details from the passage that are important in explaining the American
Industrial Revolution.
© www.HaveFunTeaching.com