In the early 1800's, over 80 percent of theUnited States labor force was engaged in agriculture. Sophisticated technologyand machinery were virtually nonexistent. People who lived in the cities andwere not directly involved in trade often participated in small cottageindustries making handcrafted goods. Others cured meats, ran bakeries, orotherwise produced needed goods and commodities. Blacksmiths, silversmiths,candle makers, and other artisans worked in their homes or barns, relying onhelp of family members or apprentices.
Perhaps no single phenomenon brought morewidespread and lasting change to the United States society than the rise ofindustrialization. Industrial growth hinged on several economic factors. First,industry requires an abundance of natural resources, especially coal, iron ore,water, petroleum, and timber all readily available on the North Americancontinent. Second, factories demand a large labor supply. Between the 1870'sand the First World War (1914-1918), approximately 23 million immigrantsstreamed to the United States, settled in cities, and went to work in factoriesand mines. They also helped build the vast network of canals and railroads thatcrisscrossed the continent and linked important trade centers essential toindustrial growth.
Factories also offered a reprieve from thebackbreaking work and financial unpredictability associated with farming. Manyadults, poor and disillusioned with farm life, were lured to the cities bypromises of steady employment, regular paychecks, increased access to goods andservices, and expanded social opportunities. Others were pushed there when newtechnologies made their labor cheap or expendable; inventions such as steelplows and mechanized harvesters allowed one farmhand to perform work thatpreviously had required several, thus making farming capital-intensive ratherthan labor-intensive.
TheUnited States economy underwent a massive transition and the nature of work waspermanently altered. Whereas cottage industries relied on a few highly skilledcraft workers who slowly and carefully converted raw materials into finished productsfrom start to finish, factories relied on specialization. While factory workwas less creative and more monotonous, it was also more efficient and allowedmass production of goods at less expense.
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