Industrial Revolution in the United States

[9][10] The du Pont family emigrated to the United States due to repercussions from the French Revolution, bringing with them expertise in chemistry and gunpowder.

[11][12] In the late 1700s, Robert Fulton of Pennsylvania proposed plans for steam-powered vessels to both the United States and British governments.

Having developed significant technical knowledge in both France and Great Britain, Fulton returned to the United States, working with Robert R. Livingston to open the first commercially successful steamboat operating between New York City and Albany.

An important example is Alexander Hamilton's proposal of the "American School" ideas which supported high tariffs to protect U.S.

[23] This idea was embraced by the Whig Party in the early 19th century with their support for Henry Clay's American System.

This plan, proposed shortly after the War of 1812, promoted not only protective tariffs, but also canals and roads to support the movement of manufactured goods around the country.

However, Jeffersonians saw this bank as an unconstitutional expansion of federal power, so when its charter expired in 1811, the Jeffersonian-dominated Congress did not renew it.

With these banks, states were able to support internal transportation improvements, such as the Erie Canal, which stimulated economic development.

[29] This was partly due to a transportation revolution happening at the same time, low population density areas of the U.S. were better able to connect to the population centers through the Wilderness Road and the Erie Canal, with steamboats and later rail transport, leading to urbanization and an increased labor force available around larger cities, including Chicago, Philadelphia, and New York City, and labor force shortages elsewhere as workers fled to these highly populated cities.

Also, quicker movement of resources and goods around the country drastically increased trade efficiency and output while allowing for an extensive transport base for the U.S. to grow during the Second Industrial Revolution.

[32] While this demonstration was later proved to be fake, it popularized the idea of interchangeable parts, and Eli Whitney continued using the concept to allow relatively unskilled laborers to produce and repair weapons quickly and at a low cost.

In addition to making production faster, the assembly line eliminated the need for skilled craftsmen because each worker would only do one repetitive step instead of the entire process.

[34] The first Industrial Revolution had a profound effect on labor in the U.S. Companies from the era, such as the Boston Associates, would recruit thousands of New England farm girls to work in textile mills.