Chapter 21: The Revolution in Energy and Industry

Introduction: The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain around the 1780's and continued on until around 1850. It modified much of the human experience and transformed the social class structure and the way people though about class.

Chapter Objective: Throughout this chapter I hope to accomplish learning about some significant people to this time period as well as some interesting inventions.

Essential Question: Who invented the spinning jenny and the water frame and why were they important inventions?
         - The spinning jenny was created by James Hargreaves and the water frame was created by Richard Arkwright. They were important because they revolutionized how thread and wool were spun, making the whole process faster and more efficient.

Richard Arkwright: 
     - Richard Arkwright was born in 1732 to parents who were too poor to send him to school. Arkwright became a barber's apprentice as a young ambitious man, and in 1762 he started a wig-making business. While traveling across the country collecting discarded hair for his wigs, Arkwright met John Kay and Thomas Highs. Together the threesome produced the "spinning frame" which produced much stronger thread than James Hargreaves "spinning-jenny". As this invention was too large for human hands, a water wheel was employed in their place. This invention then became known as the "Water-Frame". Arkwright after a long and successful life, finally laid to rest in 1792.

Thomas Malthus:

     - Thomas Malthus, an economist best known for his theories on population growth, was born in 1766. Malthus attended Cambridge University and received a master's degree. In 1805 he became a professor at the East India Company's college and in 1824 he was elected into the Royal Society of Literature. Malthus was known for his work 'An Essay on the Principle of Population' which stated that population would always grow faster than food supply. Malthus's thought processes were highly opposed during his time period, but became more popular later on. Malthus died in 1834.

William Wordsworth:

     - William Wordsworth, a British poet who ushered in the Romantic Movement, was born in 1770. He grew up in the Lake District which gave him a love for nature and a vivid imagination. While growing up, Wordsworth travelled through revolutionary France, and on his second tour he had an affair with Annette Vallon. From this affair came an illegitimate child. In 1795 Wordsworth composed his masterpiece "Lyrical Ballads" and in 1805 he composed "The Prelude". William Wordsworth died in 1850.

Eli Whitney and the Cotton Gin (1793):

     - In 1793, Eli Whitney, an American inventor, invented the Cotton Gin. Whitney's Cotton Gin revolutionized the US's cotton industry, creating a more efficient way to produce mass loads of cleaned cotton. This creation made it possible for American slaves to produce up to ten times more cotton per day which created a lot more profit for Southern states. Eli Whitney did not receive a great profit off of this invention because of patent issues. Whitney was credited as a "pioneer of American manufacturing".
     - While Whitney was creating the Cotton Gin in America, the Louvre was being opened in Paris. The Louvre may not be an invention, but it was just as significant as the invention that made cleaning cotton more efficient. As more slaves were being employed to work on cotton plantations, more artists could now show off their work in France.

Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804):
     -In 1803 President Thomas Jefferson sought out someone to traverse the unknown land in the West past the "great rock mountains". Meriwether Lewis and William Clark having been chosen, set out on their journey in 1804 from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. After what ended up being a 2 year journey, Lewis and Clark returned their findings to Jefferson in 1806. William Clark brought back detailed maps that he had drawn up that helped expeditions after theirs to further explore the Western Frontier. The Lewis and Clark Expedition turned out to be quite successful for President Jefferson.
     -While Lewis and Clark were out exploring the Americas, Richard Trevithick was busy at work in Southern Wales. In 1804 Trevithick built the first commercial steam locomotive, proving that steam engines with smooth wheels can haul substantial loads. These two can be connected across continents because Lewis and Clark were paving the way for new innovations in exploration in the West while Trevithick was paving the way for new innovations in locomotives.

Picturing the Past: 
    - Around 1815 and afterwards, women's dress became increasingly more complicated and layered as they became valued more for their ladylike gentility. Rather than work in factories, women were now being expected to stay home and manage the home and attend to the husband. Slowly, but surely society was moving into a "bread-winner homemaker" gender separation. This photo portrays the complexity of women's dress as well as the increasing cleanliness and etiquette expected of women during this period.

 Self Reflection:
      -This chapter wasn't my favorite as the Industrial Revolution did not seriously interest me, but seeing some of the inventions created during this time was neat and I liked how the women's role in society started to change. I did enjoy learning about the steam engines though because that was pretty interesting and I think trains are aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The factory system also didn't really interest me either, but I liked that children finally got employed less hours by law in the end of the chapter and women did not have to work in the mines anymore.