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Image Courtesy of
American Memory
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Subject Areas |
History and Social Studies
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U.S. History - African-American |
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U.S. History - Colonial America and the New Nation |
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U.S. History - Women's Rights/History |
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Time Required |
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New Workplace, New Technology, New Consumers: Four or five 45-minute classes.
Americans at Work Before the Civil War: Three or four 45-minute classes, depending on how many interviews are conducted. |
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Skills |
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Interpreting census data
Interpreting first-hand accounts
Interviewing
Supporting a position with evidence
Collaboration |
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Additional Data |
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Date Created: 08/26/02 |
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Was There an Industrial Revolution? New Workplace, New Technology, New Consumers
IntroductionIn the decades before the Civil
War—a period sometimes dubbed the First Industrial Revolution—a significant number
of inventions and innovations appeared, transforming American life. A telegraph
system allowed information to flow from place to place more quickly than the speed
of a horse. A transportation system based largely on steam power allowed goods
to be shipped great distances at reduced expense. Also of great consequence was
the development of the “American system of manufactures”; this system, in which
individual workers were responsible for only part of a finished product, helped
make store-bought goods more affordable. As a result, people began to buy goods
from stores rather than making them—the American consumer was born. Impressive
achievements to be sure, but revolution means dramatic, rapid change. Are the
changes that took place in manufacturing and distribution during this period best
described as a "revolution" or as steady change over time? What research tools
can help students judge the nature of change during the First
Industrial Revolution? Can answers be found in census data? This lesson provides
students with the opportunity to form, revise, and research questions for an investigation
of the First Industrial Revolution, using resources available on EDSITEment-reviewed
websites and links. Note: This lesson
may be taught as a stand-alone lesson or in combination with the complementary
EDSITEment lesson plan Was
There an Industrial Revolution? Americans at Work Before the Civil War. Guiding
Questions: What changes occurred in the United
States during the period of industrialization before the Civil War? What facts
indicate whether early industrialization was a revolutionary or evolutionary process? Learning
Objectives- Cite census data indicating whether
early industrialization was a revolutionary process.
- List and describe
some inventions and innovations of the early period of industrialization.
- Explain
how the lesson's simulation demonstrates changes in the workplace due to The American
system of manufactures.
- Take a stand (and support it with evidence) that
technology underwent the greatest change before or after the Civil War.
- State
reasons to support a position that early industrialization was or was not a revolution.
Preparing to Teach this Lesson- Review
the lesson plan. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and other useful websites.
Download and print out selected documents and duplicate copies as necessary for
student viewing.
- This lesson
requires that students use a computer to access the statistics available from
the United States Historical
Census Browser, a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website History
Matters. Tips on how to use the Census Browser are found below in Part 5.
Take a few minutes to become familiar with what could very well be a useful tool
for other lessons in your classroom.
- If students can make the distinction,
comparisons to more modern times should be made between the technology of the
First Industrial Revolution and that of the height of the Industrial Age (the
1950s, for example). Comparisons to the Information Age are less apt.
- For
further reading, consult the Recommended
Reading provided here as a PDF file.
Suggested
Activities
1. Hand-made and
Store-Bought Goods 2. A New
Mode of Production: the American system of manufactures 3.
Craft and Factory Simulation Activities 4.
Analyzing the Products of Industry 5.
Analyzing Census Data 6.
Class Discussion and Debate 1.
Hand-made and Store-Bought Goods Establish
an anticipatory set; share with the class the following selected Newspaper
Ads from 1840 (Alton Telegraph, Illinois), found on the EDSITEment resource
At Home in the Heartland:
By 1840, goods people had
previously made for themselves were sold cheaply enough at stores to make the
purchase worthwhile. 2.
A New Mode of Production: the “American system of manufactures” One
of the reasons store-bought goods became inexpensive was the development of the
American system of manufactures, in which individual workers made only part of
a finished product. This differed from earlier practices, in which someone skilled
in a craft, toiling at home or in a shop, started with raw materials and worked
through the entire creative process alone. Share
with the class the brief article The
Two Countries That Invented the Industrial Revolution from Internet
Modern History Sourcebook, an extension of the EDSITEment resource Internet
Medieval History Sourcebook. By 1851,
the U.S. began to be known internationally for its manufacturing. If desired,
share with the class the following brief article, which expands on this fact:
Engines of Change
from the Smithsonian National Museum
of American History, a link from EDSITEment resource American
Studies at the University of Virginia. 3.
Craft and Factory Simulation Activities Now,
students will attempt to gauge the level of change in pre-Civil War America. How
great was the change from the craft system to the factory? To demonstrate to the
class the differences between the craft approach typical of colonial manufacture
and the American system of manufactures developed by Eli Whitney (among others)
for his armory, conduct the following simulation, which is taken from the lesson
"Workers on the Line," offered by the Tsongas
Industrial History Center, an educational partnership of the University of
Massachusetts Lowell Graduate School of Education and Lowell National Historical
Park (and a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website Whole
Cloth). If desired, share with the class the following information, also from
the "Workers on the Line" lesson, which is available for download from the Tsongas
Center's online Curriculum Materials
Page: Cottage Industries to Factory Production
Before the Industrial Revolution, most goods were created by hand by craftsmen
classified into three categories: apprentice, journeyman, and master craftsman.
A master craftsman was a person who had mastered all the techniques and skills
of a given craft. After many years of practice, he was regarded as an expert who
then passed along his knowledge and skills to apprentices, young boys who spent
many years under his direction. A journeyman was a craftsman who had completed
apprenticeship but did not yet have the experience or skill to be designated a
master. A craftsman knew the whole process of creating an object; for example,
each woodcrafter knew how to create a chair from start to finish.
With
the advent of the Industrial Revolution, the job of creating an object became
broken down into many steps, each of which was done by a different person. In
the case of the wooden chair, one person might lathe the legs, another would create
the seat, another would make the arms and back, and all the parts would then go
to yet other people who would assemble them. The advantages were that single tasks
could usually be done over and over faster than when one person did everything
start to finish.
—"Workers
on the Line", p. 6 (NOTE: This is a PDF document.) Download, copy,
and distribute to students the “In-line
Skate” sheet on page 1 of the PDF file (see Preparing
to Teach This Lesson, above, for download instructions), but before you begin
the Craft Simulation Activity, below, allow students to set standards for what
is an acceptable finished product. For example: Can you establish a margin of
error for the cutting-out process? What are the minimum coloring standards? When
establishing the "standard time," only count the time involved in making skates
that met the standards. Explain that they are each a craftsperson
who will assemble the skates start to finish. They must be cut out, blades glued
on, and colored to the best of their ability. Each will be asked to track the
amount of time it takes to complete the task. After everyone has completed the
skates, compile and average the different times it took all the students to complete
the task. This will be the "standard" time it takes to produce in-line skates
by hand. Point out the differences in "quality" among the hand-created skates.
Are there some who have apparently mastered the craft of making in-line skates
and some who still need some time as apprentices?
—"Workers
on the Line", p. 6 (NOTE: This is a PDF document.) Next, conduct
the Factory Simulation Activity. Divide the class into three to five efficient
groups to create five production lines. Assign tasks to different students on
the line: - Cutting out the right blade
- Cutting out the left blade
- Cutting out the right boot
- Cutting out the left boot
- Gluing
the blade to the right boot
- Gluing the blade to the left boot
- Coloring
the boots
- Inspecting the final product, putting aside rejects, keeping
the line moving
(NOTE: Depending on the size of your group, combine the
following tasks: 1+2, 3+4, 5+6.) Using the "standard"
of time determined during the craft lesson, see how many skates can be created
during the same amount of time. Do the same activity again and see which of the
production lines can produce even more skates…
—"Workers
on the Line", p. 8 (NOTE: This is a PDF document.) …after
allowing the groups to meet briefly to discuss improving efficiency. Now, have
each student complete the “Craftsmen
Versus Factory Line Chart” on page 2 of the PDF file (see Preparing
to Teach This Lesson, above, for download instructions). Discuss
the results and the personal feelings students had about the two methods. Here
are some guiding questions: - What were
some of the major differences between the two methods?
- Why was the factory
method so attractive from a business standpoint?
- How would consumers
be affected by this new method?
- How would workers accustomed to the craft
method feel about working in a factory? Why?
—"Workers
on the Line", p. 8 (NOTE: This is a PDF document.) What are the
connections between the way factories at the height of the Industrial Age were
structured and the process the class just simulated? What are the differences
between an assembly line and the American system of manufactures? What would the
students say was the greater change—from craft to factory (perhaps the essential
change of the First Industrial Revolution), or from factory to assembly line (one
of the essential, though later, innovations of the Second Industrial Revolution)?
4. Analyzing the Products of Industry Talk
about the "in-line skates" students created in Part 3.
Ask them some questions about in-line skates. How many students own them? How
many have ever tried them? When did such skates become popular? When do students
think they were invented? Share with the class an image
of an early version of inline skates, available on the Smithsonian
National Museum of American History, a link from the EDSITEment resource American
Studies at the University of Virginia. Ask students if they recognize the
object. Tell them these skates were created in 1823. Now
share the text about the
skates with the class. Inline skates have not changed that much in almost
200 years! That would seem to indicate that the greatest change in inline skating
took place in 1823, when they were invented (albeit in England), or perhaps in
1863, when an American innovation started a craze in roller skating. When students
take a look at some inventions and innovations of the First Industrial Revolution,
will they find that the greatest changes took place then or between then and the
height of the Industrial Age? If desired,
share with the class either or both of the following timelines to give students
a sense of the chronology: Divide the class into five
groups. The students' task is to identify essential similarities and differences
between the technology of the pre-Civil War period and that of the height of the
Industrial Age, using EDSITEment resources and links as well as other materials
available in the classroom or library. To summarize their findings, groups can
use the chart “Two
Technologies: The First Industrial Revolution Versus the Industrial Age” on
page 3 of the PDF file (see Preparing
to Teach This Lesson , above, for download instructions). Unless otherwise
noted, the images and texts cited below are from the Smithsonian
National Museum of American History, a link from EDSITEment resource American
Studies at the University of Virginia. You can click on most Smithsonian images
for enlargements. (NOTE: Some students may find it useful to see Industrial Age
versions of similar inventions. Links to some images from the EDSITEment resource
American Memory—in bold
font, with approximate dates of photographs—are included below the image of the
object from the Industrial Revolution.) Factories
and Machines Transportation
- Steam Engine
- Trains
- Steamboats
Scientific/Commercial Instruments and Innovations
Agriculture - Life
on the Farm, a link from the EDSITEment resource History
Matters (NOTE: Consider only the years 1800-1860.)
- Eli
Whitney's Cotton Gin, from Smithsonian
National Museum of American History
- Cotton
Gin, from The American Experience,
a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website Internet
Public Library
- Cotton
Gin (1938), from American
Memory
- John
Deere Plow 1830s, from Smithsonian
National Museum of American History
- Plow
Between (1945 and 1982), from American Memory
- American
Westward Migration: The Steel Plow, from Smithsonian
National Museum of American History
- McCormick
Reaper (invented 1831, in widespread use after 1847), from The
American Experience, a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website Internet
Public Library
- Reaper
/Harvester (1936), from American
Memory
Communication Have groups share their results. Did most ratings
indicate great or small change since 1860 (with "small change" implying that the
greatest change occurred before 1860)? This exercise had a built-in bias in that
all of the objects existed prior to 1860. What contemporary inventions and innovations
would students say represent the most significant change from the pre-Civil War
era? Which of these belong to the Industrial Age (which began to end sometime
after World War II), and which belong to the current Information Age (only comparisons
to Industrial Age inventions and innovations are applicable in this comparison)?
5 Analyzing Census Data Review
with students the proper use of the United
States Historical Census Browser, available via a link from the EDSITEment
resource History Matters. Introduce
the census browser and allow students to practice with it until they are able
to use it on their own. Here are some basic instructions, using the 1840 census.
Be aware that there are differences in categories between census years. - From
the home page of the United States
Historical Census Browser, access the available data for any desired year
by clicking on the particular year on the left-hand side of the page.
- Once
you have arrived at the category page, use the special directions for making multiple
selections from a pick list (MAC COMPUTERS: Depress the Apple/Command Key
while selecting from the pick lists; PC/WINDOWS COMPUTERS: Depress the Control
Key while selecting from the pick lists.) to select two categories under the
heading Population—"Total Population" and "Total No. Free Males." Click "Browse
1840 Data."
- You have arrived at the data page. Move down the page to
locate the "Total Population" and "Total No. Free Males" for every state in the
Union and for the nation as a whole at that time.
- Click on "Graph States"
for a graph of total population. Use the drop-down menu to choose "Total No. Free
Males" for graphing.
- Under "Find Proportions," select "Total No. Free
Males" as the enumerator and "Total Population" as the denominator by clicking
on each once. Click on "Revise State Table" to see a third column that provides
the ratio.
- You can also re-sort the data and add new categories as desired.
- Click "New Census Year" to return to the home page.
- Starting
with 1820, economic categories begin to appear, but they are not consistent from
year to year.
Working in their groups, students should obtain data on
each topic indicated below, using the census years shown: - Longevity, 1800-1860
- Literacy/Education, 1840-1860
- Manufacturing, 1820, 1840-1860
- Agriculture, 1820, 1840-1860
- Slave and Free Black Populations,
1790-1860, and Slave Ownership, 1790, 1860
Before
they get to work, have students decide how a radical change in the economy (expected
to be seen as an improvement in quality of life) might be reflected in their topic
area. For example, if the standard of living is improving, we would expect an
improvement in longevity. Changes in slave population and ownership is a thorny
category, because slave owners might consider possession of more slaves an improvement
in standard of living, while those enslaved certainly would not. Students need
to take such matters into account as they work with the data. Each
group should explore the data for some time and then form research questions.
What are they going to look for and how will they work with the data? Students
can expect their questions to change a bit as they become more familiar with the
census browser. Does the census data indicate
that great change occurred between 1790 and 1860? Does the data indicate that
a large number of people benefited from the changes that took place? Students
should organize their information in terms of findings and conclusions. If desired,
provide each group with the appropriate chart from the following list of charts,
available on pages 4-9 of the PDF file (see Preparing to
Teach This Lesson, above, for download instructions): - Longevity
Findings
- Literacy Findings
- Manufacturing Findings
- Agriculture
Findings
- Slave/Free Black Findings
- Slave Ownership Findings
Ample
room has been provided on each chart for questions, but let students know that
not every space for every year must be filled. 6
Class Discussion and Debate Have each group
share its findings with the class. After all have finished, everyone should take
a stand—was the First American Industrial Revolution really a revolution? If desired,
let any disagreement among students lead to a class debate. Extending
the Lesson
Selected EDSITEment Websites- American
Memory
[http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ammemhome.html] - American
Studies at the University of Virginia
[http://xroads.virginia.edu/] - At
Home in the Heartland
[http://museum.state.il.us/exhibits/athome/] - History Matters
[http://historymatters.gmu.edu]
- David
Johnson Recalls the Shoemakers' Shops
of Lynn, Massachusetts [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6382/]
- "Factories are talked
about as schools of vice:
Elias Nason Considers Careers" [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5831/]
- "The Happiest Laboring
Class in the World:
Two Virginia Slaveholders Debate Methods of Slave
Management, 1837" [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5801/] - "I
Must of Course Have Something of My Own Before
Many More Years Have Passed
Over My Head: Sally Rice Leaves the Farm," 1838 by Sally Rice [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5789/]
- I Was a Cabinet Maker
by Trade, 1825-1835
[http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5818/] - Lowell
Girls Go on Strike, 1836
[http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5714/] - Manager
N. B. Gordon Tends to the Union Cotton
and Woolen Manufactory in Mansfield,
Massachusetts, 1829 [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5792/] - "The
Natural Tie Between Master and Apprentice
has been Rent Asunder: An Old
Apprentice Laments Changes in the Workplace," 1826 [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6622/]
- The Canal Boat: Nathaniel
Hawthorne
Travels the Erie Canal (1835) [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6212/]
- "No One Ever Hurried
During 'Cake-time':
Work and Leisure a New York Shipyard," 1835 [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6218/]
- "So Cheapened the White
Man's Labor:
White Artisans Contest the Labor of Black Workers," 1838
[http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6376/] - "They
Must Work Harder Than Ever:
A Working Man Remembers Life in New York
City," 1830s [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5839/] - "The
Treatment of the Help in Those Days Was Cruel:
Hiram Munger Remembers
Factory Life" by Hiram Munger (early 19th century) [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5830/]
- "We Call on You to Deliver
Us from the Tyrant's Chain:
Lowell Women Workers Campaign for a Ten-Hour
Workday" (circa 1845) [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6217/] - "Are
We Nothing But Living Machines? A New York
Sewing Woman Protests Wages
and Working Conditions," 1863 [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6539/] - "Elevate
Us to a Free and Independent Position:
William J. Brown (a free black)
Looks for Work," 1831 [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/6537/] - Liberty
Rhetoric and 19th Century Women
[http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/liberty.html]
- Drawing
of a Mill Girl, from the Cover of
the Lowell Offering, 1840 [http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/graphics/lowell.gif]
- Fabric
Label for Merrimack Power Loom
Jeans Yardage, c. 1830 [http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/graphics/merrjean.jpg]
- Timetable
of the Lowell Mills
[http://scholar.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/graphics/ttable.jpg]
- Tintype
of Two Woman Weavers, 1860
(Merrimack Valley Textile Museum) [http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/graphics/spinners.jpg]
- Title
Page of the Lowell Offering, 1840
[http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/americanstudies/ lavender/graphics/loffer.jpg]
- Life on the Farm
[http://www.agclassroom.org/teacher/history/life_farm.htm] - United
States Historical Census Browser
[http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/stats/histcensus/]
- Internet
Medieval History Sourcebook
[http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook.html]
- Internet
Public Library [http://www.ipl.org]
- The
American Experience
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/index.html] - Anesthesia
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_5.html] - Cotton
Gin
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_1.html]
- McCormick
Reaper
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_3.html]
- Sewing
Machine
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_7.html]
- Steam
Engine
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_2.html]
- Technology
Timeline
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/telephone/timeline/ f_timeline.html]
- Telegraph
[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/lincolns/nation/ gal_tech_4.html]
- Links
to the Past [http://www.cr.nps.gov/]
- Whole
Cloth
[http://invention.smithsonian.org/centerpieces/whole_cloth/index.html] - Alexander
Telfair, "Plantation Rules," from Ulrich Phillips, ed.,
Plantation and
Frontier, Volume 1 (New York, Burt Frantlin, 1910) [http://www.si.edu/lemelson/centerpieces/whole_cloth/u2ei/ u2materials/prules.html]
- Plantation
Management, De Bow's xiv
(February 1853): 177-8 [http://www.si.edu/lemelson/centerpieces/whole_cloth/u2ei/ u2materials/deBow.html]
- Regulations
to Be Observed by All Individuals
Employed in the Lewiston Mills [http://www.si.edu/lemelson/centerpieces/whole_cloth/u2ei/ u2images/act9/Lew_rules.html]
- Unit
Two: Early Industrialization
[http://www.si.edu/lemelson/centerpieces/whole_cloth/ u2ei/u2materials/act10main.html]
- Tsongas Industrial History Center
[http://www.uml.edu/Tsongas/] (NOTE: According to the Resources Section
of Whole Cloth, the Tsongas Center is an interactive museum about the
Industrial Revolution, geared for students in grades 4-12.) - Curriculum
Materials Page
[http://www.uml.edu/Tsongas/curr.html] - "Workers
on the Line"
[http://www.uml.edu/Tsongas/programs/pdfs/WOL.pdf]
Other Information
Standards Alignment
- NCSS-1
Culture and cultural diversity. more
- NCSS-2
Time, continuity, and change. The ways human beings view themselves in and over time. more
- NCSS-3
People, places, and environments. more
- NCSS-4
Individual development and identity. more
- NCSS-5
Individuals, groups, and institutions. more
- NCTE/IRA-1
Students read a wide range of print and nonprint texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world; to acquire new information; to respond to the needs and demands of society and the workplace; and for personal fulfillment. Among these texts are fiction and nonfiction, classic and contemporary works. more
- NCTE/IRA-3
Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes. more
- NCTE/IRA-7
Students conduct research on issues and interests by generating ideas and questions, and by posing problems. They gather, evaluate, and synthesize data from a variety of sources (e.g., print and nonprint texts, artifacts, people) to communicate their discoveries in ways that suit their purpose and audience. more
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