British Agricultural and Industrial Portfolio Guidelines Great changes in the factory system and labor started to occur during the industrial revolution in
England. Most of the people in England during that time period depended on agricultural work in
order to survive. Many of them worked on farms and sometimes at home in order to earn more
money. However, during the industrial revolution, things started to change. Factories were made,
and therefore, people didn’t have to work on farms anymore. Instead, they moved to cities in order
to get jobs in the factories. Some of the concepts that gave great impacts to the individuals, the
community, and the world were the invention of the water frame and the cotton gin, as well as the
forced labor of women and children.
Water frame was one of the concepts that had effects on
individuals and the community during the industrial
revolution. The water frame was created in 1769 by Richard
Arkwright in England. This invention was the improvement
from the spinning jenny. Arkwright used water power as a
source in order to create threads. This machine created
stronger threads than any of the previous inventions. The
invention of the water frame had a significant effect on the
individuals and the society. Many individuals who were skilled
in producing threads by hand lost their jobs. The machines
took over them since machines worked much faster even
compared to the skilled hands. People who also worked in the
factory with spinning jennies lost their jobs because water
frames produced stronger threads than spinning jennies.
Therefore, threads made by spinning jennies no longer made much profit. Throughout the work in
factories, the society earned a lot more money compared to the agricultural work. They were able
to receive higher incomes because many more good quality threads were produced faster and
much more efficiently through the use of water frames. Overall, the invention of water frame had
great impacts on individuals and the community throughout the industrial revolution.
The cotton gin was another key concept that affected both the society
and the world throughout England during the time period of industrial
revolution. In 1794, the cotton gin was created by Eli Whitney in
England. The cotton gin was able to take the seeds out of cotton by
using the machine. Before the cotton gin was created, people had to
take the seeds out of cotton by hand and that was time consuming.
However, that process was industrialized thanks to Eli Whitney’s
invention. The invention affected the society because the cotton gin
worked 10 times faster than did the hands. Therefore, the less time
and labor it took for the process of taking the seeds out of the cotton,
the fewer workers they required for that process. As a result, it
allowed more people to work on the cotton fields rather than in
factories. Another great impact on the society was that because the
cotton gin was a very the simple machine, before Eli Whitney could
get a patent for his invention, many people copied his work. The
community was able to create their own cotton gin and never had to buy it. As well as the society,
the impacts of the cotton gin didn’t stop within the country. It also gave influences on the great big
world. Since England was able to produce more cotton than it had ever produced, it allowed more
cotton exports to the countries around the world. Although cotton gin helped the society and the
earth, it also had some consequences on some countries. In the world, slavery was gradually
starting to end because the owners didn’t have enough income in order to keep the slaves alive.
However, right at that time, the cotton gin was created and it lead to great incomes to many people
in the country. From 1770 to 1870, the cost of cotton increased from 600,000 pounds to
38,800,000 pounds. According to CN Trueman, by 1803, 10 billion dollars was earned by the
exportation of cotton. (2015) Thus, owners eventually had more than enough money to keep the
1 British Agricultural and Industrial Portfolio Guidelines slaves with them. As you can see above, cotton gin brought great changes to the society and the
world during the industrial revolution.
Finally, forced labor for women and children was another concept
that affected the individuals and the society. Many children and
women were forced to work in the factories instead of working on the
farms and were still paid less than the men. Children were considered
to be the perfect workers in the factories because they weren’t strong
or educated enough to argue with the owners. In addition, because the
children are small, many workers are able to fit in the factories, and
owners wanted as many workers working in their factory with low
wages. The forced labor of children and women affected the
individuals in a negative way. Many workers, especially children were
in danger every time they worked in the factory because their arms or
legs could get stuck in the machines and lead them to injuries or even
deaths. Also in the factories, chemicals and toxins were used that had
negatively affected their health. As well as the individuals, the concept
of children and women’s forced labor impacted the society. By 1835,
60% of the people working in the cotton textile were women and kids. According to McNuse
(2000), “In 1835, 40% of mill workers were under 18 years of age, and 16% were under 13.” The
wages of the women workers were around $3.00 to $3.50 per week. Yet, this income was still
higher than the profit they earned from the agricultural work. Since they could earn more income,
people moved into the city looking for a job. Due to this movement, there was a great population
increase in Manchester that was considered to be one of the most popular cotton textile
manufacturers. In Manchester, the population grew from 5000 to 200,000 in 130 years. (Tim
McNuse, 2000) All in all, women and children’s forced labor was extremely influential to the
individuals and the society.
To conclude, the invention of water frames and cotton gin lead to changes that affected the
individual, community, and the world. As well as those two inventions, forced labor of women and
children during the industrial revolution also had impacts on the individuals and the society. These
inventions and changes gradually improved over time and have finally reached what we have now,
thanks to the inventions and changes that occurred throughout the industrial revolution in England.
2 British Agricultural and Industrial Portfolio Guidelines Bibliography
Arkwright | Enlightenment! Retrieved November 24, 2015, from
https://enlightenmentderbyshire.wordpress.com/tag/arkwright/
The Cotton Industry and the Industrial Revolution - History Learning Site. Retrieved November 23,
2015, from
http://historylearningsite.co.uk/britain-1700-to-1900/industrial-revolution/the-cotton-indu
stry-and-the-industrial-revolution/
Tim McNuse (2000). MP3403 The Age of Progress USA: Milliken Publishing Company
Poor William's Almanack, March 14, 2015, Immortality. Retrieved November 24, 2015, from
http://poorwilliam.net/al-031415.html
Radio Free Tunes Weblog. Retrieved November 24, 2015, from
https://radiofreetunes.wordpress.com/tag/child-labor-laws/
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