Write your abstract here. Science, technology and natural resources, were
the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution in the United
States. The telephone, the new
steel, railroads and electricity in
general led to the shift from a rural country to a technological and
industrial America. Because of many inconveniences that were posed upon
the American people during the 1800''s, such as impractical
farming techniques, ample communication, and poor transportation resources,
caused great minds and inventors to come together and create new
materials and methods that aided in the creation of an industrialized
country.
The Creation of Steel
One of the pioneers of the industrialization of America was Andrew
Carnegie. He wasn''t skilled in the process of making steel, but he
invested
large amounts of capital to install Bessemer converters in
factories. The Bessemer converter transformed wrought
iron (pig iron)
into steel by blowing cold air through the vessels and then through the
molten iron, ridding the iron of any impurities which made it mandible
and weak, forming steel. This process was a very simple one where
unskilled workers were able to operate it with ease. One of the very
first Bessemer converters was installed in Carnegie''s own Edgar
Thompson Steel Works in Braddock P.A. The factory was able to produce a
great amount of steel which cost less by the ton. McClure''s magazine
documented the results:
"Out of each pot roared alternately a ferocious geyser of saffron
and sapphire
flame, streaked with deeper yellow. From it a light
streamed -- a light that flung violet shadows everywhere and made the
gray outside rain a beautiful blue. A fountain of sparks arose,
gorgeous as ten thousand rockets, and fell with a beautiful curve, like
the petals of some enormous flower. Overhead the beams were glowing
orange in a base of purple. The men were yellow where the light struck
them, violet in shadow.... The pot began to burn with a whiter flame.
Its fluttering, humming roar silenced all else.... A shout was heard,
and a tall crane swung a gigantic ladle under the converting vessel,
which then mysteriously up-ended, exploding like a cannon a prodigious
discharge of star-like pieces of white-hot slag.... Down came the
vessel, until out of it streamed the smooth flow of terribly beautiful
molten metal. As it ran nearly empty and the ladle swung away, the
dropping slag fell to the ground exploding, leaping viciously, and the
scene became gorgeous beyond belief, with orange and red and green
flame."
This mass production of steel stimulated the growth of many other
industries, such as the first trans-continental railroad which used
165,000 miles of steel. Newly settled urban
areas were now showered
with towering skyscrapers made of sturdy steel foundations. The new
steel created an environment that attracted people in rural areas to
move to urban areas that looked like promising new worlds to former
farmers and immigrants leaving their failed attempts at trying to keep
up with farming. Steel was being used in rural agricultural areas for
the creation of steel machines that helped farmers do large jobs in
half the time it took by hand. In turn, farming turned into more of an
industry than a single man or family operation. The new machines and
expensive equipment used for farming cost thousands of dollars,
resulting in large debt to farmers who tried to transform their small
operations into high product production operations. Only operations
which had the help of wealthy investors survived.
Industrial Crutch
What is it that these industries depend on? They must have a good
transportation system to bring them raw materials to factories and to
distribute finished products. Thus they started building canals between
mines and factories, then a road surface, and finally the rail road
industry was developed. George Stephenson developocket; the
first steam powered locomotive. Also, the American Engineer Robert
Fulton developed a way to use steam power for ships. The postal system
was also introduced by the British. The overall success of these
industries depended upon many other sources besides their own skill, to
sell their goods.
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