Samuel Slater: Joining The Industrial Revolution

The transformation from manual labor to machinery became known as the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution first took place in England between the 18th and 19th centuries. It was the period during which fundamental changes took place in agriculture, transportation, textiles and metal manufacture, economic policies, and the social structure. America wasn’t so quick to join the revolution. This is due to several important factors. During this time the settlers were trying to develop the land and form communities in the colonies, which were still newly established. Another reason for the delay was that America was still trying to pay back creditors for the debt it had acquired during the war. Because of this, there wasn’t plenty of capital streaming through the economy. The main focus was on growing the nation itself. Before America could catch up with the British economically, it needed a more defined class structure. The main component to creating this division was education. People who were already economically prosperous in America started to look for ways to improve the quality of
They even enacted laws that banned the selling of machinery to foreign markets. Tactics like this let them hold onto their high status while keeping up their thriving society. One important figure in the Industrial Revolution of the United States was Samuel Slater. Originally from England, Slater was the apprentice of Jedediah Strutt who was considered to be a pioneer in the field of textile technology. After his nearly seven-year apprenticeship was over Slater decided to emigrate to the United States. He knew that his keen insight and background would help him secure a prosperous future in America and kept his background a secret from British authorities. By 1793, Slater and his partners had built the first successful textile mill in the United