Essay - Nation Develops by the End of the 19th Century, the...

Nation Develops

By the end of the 19th century, the United States had not only established itself as a political power but an economic one ***** well. Key factors affecting ***** rise of the American economy can almost all be traced to ***** impact of the Industrial Revolution and the unique ways that revolution played out in ***** United States. Viewing the West as a vast, uncharted terri*****ry, Americans who had previously kept ********** quarters close to the Atlantic Ocean ventured into new lands to seek economic opportunities. The ***** of ***** railroads completely transformed the American economic machine, for ***** only did ***** railroad companies themselves embody the budding success of capitalist enterprise ***** the railroads offered a means to transport goods and services across ***** insurmountable distances. Railroads made it possible for families to cease subsistence farming and instead be able ***** rely on imported foods. The nature of the agricultural industry in ***** Un*****ed ***** therefore changed dramatically in response to industrialization ***** the creation of a c*****sh crop economy. In conjunction with the decline in small family farms, artisan businesses gave way to pressure from large companies run by so-called "robber barons," wealthy and powerful industrialists. The rise of industry precipitated the ***** of urbanization, which in turn prompted America to open its doors to new immigrants, ***** were chiefly employed as unskilled laborers. Cheap labor, a laissez faire business-friendly ***** environment, and technological innovation all spurned ********** industrial and ***** growth.

The rise ***** American ***** stemmed from a series of technological innovations including Eli Whitney's cotton gin and modular musket; the sewing machine; and the steel plow. *****novations that made possible the rapid production of goods helped stimulate economic *****: ***** more ***** were produced, the more ***** sold. Technology also lowered ***** cost of ***** and ensured the rapid and reliable creation of large quantities ***** product. "So impressed were foreigners with these methods of manufacture that they called them the "***** system of *****ion," ("The Roots of American Economic Growth"). Technological innovations also led to ***** transformation of the ***** ***** labor and work in the United States.

The factory model replaced ***** artisan model of employment, resulting in several major social revolutions. For instance, large numbers ***** Americans moved to urban centers in search of *****. Urbanization centralized the ***** of production, through ***** co-location of manufacturing technologies within one factory and ***** the ***** of workers within the *****. As more Americans moved to urban centers, fewer ran family *****; agriculture had become a big business too. The r*****ilroads facilitated urbanization in many **********: by mak*****g it easier for ********** to move from rural to urban areas; and by making it easier to t*****sport raw materials from ***** areas or abroad to ***** city *****. The rise of *****ization in America also fav*****ed immigration, for immigrants were able to take advantage ***** the plethora of work opportunities ***** one central area. Family ***** and small artisan shops provided the main