Ch. 11 Key Terms and People
1.
KEY
Samuel Slater and the Industrial Revolution (pp. 330-331) –
Slater was a British mechanic who left England to go to America. There was a law that
made it illegal for plans for the mills to leave England. Slater memorized the plans for a
British textile mill and sold them to Moses Brown, who built the first mill in America.
The Industrial Revolution was a time of great change in the way goods were made.
Machines replaced hand tools, new sources of power were discovered, and there was a
gradual shift from agriculture to manufacturing.
Samuel Slater is often considered the father of the American Industrial Revolution.
2.
Spinning Jenny (331) – A machine invented in 1764 that could spin several threads at
once, speeding up the process of making cloth.
3.
Capital/Capitalist (331) – money to invest in a business venture/someone who invests
money in a business venture hoping to make a profit.
4. Factory System (331) – Brought workers and machines together to make goods. For
example, spinning and weaving were done in the same factory to make the process of
making cloth faster and more efficient. This would give the factory owners bigger
profits. Factory workers earned daily or weekly wages. They worked a set number of
hours each day. Working conditions could be unpleasant and dangerous.
5. Eli Whitney and Interchangeable Parts (332) - Eli Whitney was a gun manufacturer
from CT, and an inventor. He wanted to speed up the making of guns by having
machines make each part. That way, they would all be the same, and could be used on
any gun “interchangeably.” Interchangeable parts would save time and money because
products would not have to be “custom made.” He was able to convince members of the
government (who bought many of his guns) that his idea was a good one. The invention
of interchangeable parts led to the creation of the assembly line.
6. Lowell Girls – This factory was in Lowell, MA. Teenage girls from the area were hired
to work in the mill. They lived in boarding houses on the property, and many rules were
passed to keep them safe. Many worked for a few years before they married, and most of
the money they made was sent home to their families. Although the work was difficult
and the hours were long, these girls got a chance to live on their own, and have some
spending money and independence.
7. Urbanization – the movement of people from farms to cities. (From rural to urban
areas). This was a result of the creation of factories and the need for workers, which led
to the growth of cities.
8. Turnpike and Corduroy Road –
A turnpike was a “toll road.” The companies who built the roads collected tolls from
travelers. A large pole, or pike, blocked the road at various points along the road. When
the wagon driver paid the toll, the toll collector turned the pike and the wagon could pass.
A corduroy road was a road built of logs, usually in swampy areas where wagons would
get stuck in the mud. The lines of logs looked like corduroy cloth. These roads kept
wagons from sinking, but the ride was bumpy and noisy.
9.
Lancaster Turnpike – This was the best built road for its time. It was built in 1790, and
connected Lancaster and Philadelphia, PA. The road was set on a bed of gravel, so water
drained off quickly. The road was topped with flat stones to make a smooth ride.
10. National Road – This was the first time that Congress approved funds for road building.
The road was begun in 1811 and completed in 1818 (delayed because of the War of
1812). It connected Cumberland, MD, to Wheeling, VA (now WV). The road eventually
extended to Illinois. This encouraged settlers to move west.
11. John Fitch – In 1787, he showed members of the Constitutional Convention how the
newly invented steam engine could power a boat. He opened a ferry service on the
Delaware River, but failed to make a profit.
12. Robert Fulton and the Clermont – Fulton launched his own steamboat, the Clermont,
in 1807. He began a ferry service on the Hudson River, running from New York City to
Albany. His boat made the 300 mile round trip in 62 hours, which was a speed record.
Steamboats ferried passengers up and down the Atlantic coast. Steamboats on rivers in
the west gave farmers a faster and cheaper way to ship their goods.
13. DeWitt Clinton and the Erie Canal – Canals were first built to help boats get around
waterfalls, or link rivers to nearby lakes. New Yorkers wanted to build a canal to link the
Great Lakes and the Hudson River, to let western farmers ship their goods directly to the
port of New York, and bring business to towns along the route. Some people thought the
idea was ridiculous, and called it “Clinton’s ditch,” referring to the New York governor
who supported the idea. He convinced the state legislature to provide money for the
project. Work began in 1817, and most of the digging was done by hand. New
equipment was developed to make the work faster. The canal was finished in 1825, and
was a great success. Shipping costs dropped 90%, and made New York City an
important trading center. Other states also built canals, which created important links
between western farmers and eastern ports.