After the civil war between 1865 and 1920, the United States experienced an industrialization revolution that show it become an industrialized nation and which affected the United States in many aspects both positively and negatively.
The industrial revolution between1865 to 1920 influenced three major aspects of the United States which are the economy, society and politics (Norton, Sheriff, Blight & Chudacoff, 2011). The increase in production capacity of the United States during the industrial revolution caused its economy to expand. The expanding economy changed the small American society into a booming urban industrial state which was mostly facilitated by the immigration of people. Through the machine production, the United States was able to produce a mass quantity of various products which they exported and hence continued economy expansion (Norton, Sheriff, Blight & Chudacoff, 2011). Through the economic expansion, the majority of the United States citizens were able to secure jobs and make a way to live which created a higher standard of living among the people.
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Further, society was a significant aspect of the industrial revolution in the United States as industries to produce goods were built while roads, railways, and air transport systems were established to facilitate distribution of goods to various states and countries (Shultz, 2014). Also, the majority of American farmers in the Southern States left farming and migrated to booming industrial states of north to find jobs in factories. This meant that iron and steel to use in factories were in high demand as the nation was becoming industrialized and depended less on agriculture. In addition, many family businesses operating as the sole business were incorporated into registered companies (Norton, Sheriff, Blight & Chudacoff, 2011).
The United States politics was also another aspect of the industrial revolution. The politicians of the time cared less about the poor people they were meant to serve as they shifted their interest towards businesses which helped and funded them to thrive politically (Shultz, 2014). Also, politicians become very corrupt as they awarded major contracts to their friends, those who funded their political ambitions and those who gave out bribes to be awarded various government opportunities which made them get a bad reputation from the people.
The industrial revolution affected many groups including the farmers, women, Immigrants, African Americans and middle and lower class people (Shultz, 2014). Lower and middle-class groups were affected by industrialization because there emerged a professional class of those employed in top positions in industries hence the lower and middle-class people were discriminated against. Immigrants were also victims of the industrialization as they were being paid less money for labor than what their fellow Americans were earning. Also, immigrants especially the Chinese gold miners were subjected to discriminative tax with an exclusion act being passed to prevent the Chinese immigrants into the United States (Norton, Sheriff, Blight & Chudacoff, 2011).
The industrial revolution worked well for women who were deemed as house wife before the civil war. However, after the civil war women were allowed to work in factories and through women’s right activists, they were allowed to vote a right which they had long been denied to them (Shultz, 2014). Farmers, on the other hand, were significantly affected by industrialization as the United States shifted from the agricultural economy an industrial economy. The farmers were also barred from using slave labor which adversely affected their farming activities. Further, the end of civil war and the beginning of industrialization also ended the slave labor which comprised of African Americans as they were allowed to work in factories (Norton, Sheriff, Blight & Chudacoff, 2011). Child labor also thrived in the factories as many children ran away from their home to work in numerous emerging factories where labor was extensively needed.
The life of average working Americans was greatly affected by the industrial revolution. The working conditions in numerous factories were poor, people worked for long hours, and the workers were also being paid little money which could barely sustain them. Further, the factories where people worked were always overcrowded as the factories aimed to produce a large quantity of products which posed a safety concern for the workers (Shultz, 2014). The workers were sometimes also forced to live in factories quarters so as to be able to meet work demand of working long hours a day.
References
Norton, M. B., Sheriff, C., Blight, D. W., & Chudacoff, H. (2011). A People and a Nation: A History of the United States, Volume II: Since 1865 . Cengage Learning.
Shultz, K.M. (2014). HISTORY: Volume 2. Cengage Learning
