Industrial Revolutionary Inventions Impact
Sarah Wirick

            The Industrial Revolution of the late 1700s, produced many technological advancements and inventions.  Pre-Revolutionary life was difficult, filthy, unstable, and miserable.  The invention of the  steam engine and the  spinning jenny made life more enjoyable, easier, and cleaner, with a steadier, increasing population.
 
              In Europe in 1790, "the population was 145 million.  The population might grow, but eventually war, famine, or disease would force the numbers back down" (Clare, 6).  With the expansion of trade abroad, merchants found goods were needed faster and in higher quantities.  The demand for the traditional goods grew.  Designers and inventors put their creativity to use on the goods in everyday life for "clothing, buttons, toys, china, furniture, rugs, kitchen utensils, candlesticks, brassware, silverware, pewter ware, glassware, jewelry, soap, beer, wines, and foodstuffs" (Kagan, 382).  Increasingly, merchants turned to guilds in the Cottage Industry to satisfy demands.  This is the beginning of the departmentalization of work.
 
               Before the Industrial Revolution, the family depended on their farm to survive. The farm produced, if the family was lucky, enough to live on until the next growing season.  The family worked together to survive.  But, during the 1700s,  the population in Europe increased steadily without a notable decrease.  Farmers were forced to take risks in order to feed  the increasing population.  Tenant farming became less common, and the consolidation of farms increased.  Farmers found consolidation increased efficiency and gave them more time to experiment with new crops.  Potatoes were transplanted to Europe where they flourished.  Potatoes could be planted in less fertile land, cooked in a variety of ways, provided the body with many nutrients, and one potato could be cut up and in turn be planted to produce many potato plants.
 
                The implementation of crop rotation, the prosperity of potatoes, and consolidation of farms increased income per family.  Inventions in agriculture no longer required the work of every child to preserve the farm.  This freed the sons to pursue other employment opportunities.  Increased income meant a dowry for the daughters earlier.  Daughters thus marriedsooner and started families of their own.  Better nutrition with the advancements in refrigeration, preservation, and preparation of food meant that people became healthier.  The infant mortality rate dropped dramatically due to the homogenization and pasteurization of milk.  

 
The first significant invention to come out of the Industrial Revolution was the  spinning jenny.
 
 
                James Hargreaves patented it in 1767.  The traditional method of spinning thread on one spindle at a time was abandoned with the invention of the spinning jenny.  The spinning jenny was several machines combined into one which performed "the work of several laborers simultaneously"  (Online ).  The spinning jenny "originally allowed 16 spindles to be spun simultaneously. By the end of the century, its capacity had been increased to 120 spindles" (Kagan, 385).  Inventions made life easier in the late 1700s, but workers  were sometimes outraged.  The spinning jenny combined several jobs, and therefore decreased the need for as many employees.  "Hargreaves had his house destroyed by an angry  mob of workers" (Langley, 11).  Subsequently, improvements on the spinning jenny moved jobs out of the home and into factories.

                Spinning jennies helped to alleviate the demand for high quality, low-priced, fashionable clothing.  As the spinning jenny became more common, a wider variety in clothing was available.  Fashion was no longer limited to upper-class.  The poor could afford to buy clothes produced in the factories and were of higher quality.  Women could afford to wear fabrics once considered pricey, because advancements in the clothing industry provided these fabrics at a much lower price. For example,
 
fashion went from this, in early 1600s:                                              to this, in the middle 1700s :

                                                      
 
  


                 Another significant invention born in the Industrial Revolution was the  steam engine.
 
 
                 James Watt led the way in using steam to power pumps, mills, and ultimately, transportation.  He built onto Thomas Newcomen's idea of using a steam powered engine to pump water from the mines in 1712.  The flaw with Newcomen's engine was that it only had one piston and required large amounts of engird to perform its task.  Newcomen's engine was seen as inefficient and therefore was only used to pump water from the mines.  However, when James Watt was asked to repair one of Newcomen's engines, he began to tinker with it and eventually in 1769, he introduced an improved steam engine.  Watts' engine "added a separate chamber called a condenser, where the steam was cooled" (Langley, 18). This decreased the amount of energy input needed to perform the task.
 
                Watts' use of steam power to pump water out of the mines proved to be more efficient.  He formed "a company with Matthew Boulton to manufacture his new engine" (Langley, 18).  Use began slowly due to Watts' refusal to make changes, and Watt lost exclusive patent rights in 1800.  Steam was integrated into the cotton mills to help run them, and quickly became the primary source in every industry in the early 19th century.  Before long, Richard Trevithick mounted a steam engine on iron rails in 1804.  He called this locomotive, "Catch Me Who Can" (Langely, 19).  Although it only reached speeds of 10 miles per hour, this was the beginning of the railroads.  The steam engine was condensed, improved and it became feasible to utilize the power of steam in faster railroads and boats.
 
 
 
 
                 In summary, the industrial revolution was prompted by an explosion in population.  This forced farmers to take risks to feed everyone.  These risks paid off, raising the total family income allowing for an increase in individual freedom to pursue opportunities outside of the family farm.  Inventions and improvements upon inventions accelerated production of high demand products.  The spinning jenny sped up production of cloth, lowered the price of clothing, and raised the level of quality.  The steam engine was applied in every industry by the end of the 19th century and ultimately gave birth to the railroads and steam boats.
 
 

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
Works Cited
Berlanstein, Lenard R. The Industrial Revolution and Work In Nineteenth-Century Europe. London: Routledge, 1992.

Brainard, Rick . "18th Century Family Life." 1998. The Mining Co. 06 Sept. 1997. Available: miningco.com.

Clare, John D., eds. Industrial Revolution. San Diego: Gulliver Books, 1994.

"Clothing for Women of Salem Village."  1998. No listing. (No Date). Available: shawsheen.tec.ma.us.

Godwin, G. Gedney . "Ladies 18th Century Clothing and Accessories: Daydress." 1998. gggodwin. 24 Jan. 1997.
            Available: gggodwin.com.

Halsall, Paul . "Modern History Sourcebook: William Radcliffe: On Power Looms, 1828." 1998. Fordham University.
             Aug. 1997.  Available: frordham.edu.

Hooker, Richard. "The European Enlightenment: the Industrial Revolution." 1998. Wright State University server.
           22 Jan. 1998. Available: wsu.edu.
 
Kagan, Donald, et al. The Western Heritage, Brief Edition, Volume II: Since 1648. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1996.

Kitano, Kevin. "Innovative Inventions." 1998. America On Line. (No Date). Available: members.aol.com.

Langley, Andrew. The Industrial Revolution. New York: Reed International Books Ltd., 1994.
 
Leung, Pearl . "First Wing Gallery: Inventions created during the Industrial Revolution." 1998. bc.ca. (No Date).
               Available: sd45.bc.ca.

Martens, Michael . "James Watt." 1998. West Chester University. June 1996. Available: mmartens@wcupa.edu.

"19th Century Locomotives."  1998. Realmyth. 3 Nov. 1997. Available: realmthy.com.

"Watt's Steam Revolution." 1998. Adventure Encyclopedia. 1998. Available: adventure.com.
 
Why these sites were chosen: 
            Each of the above sites are uniquely important to this web page.  Many contain just a sentence or two that assisted in understanding the effects the steam engine and the spinning jenny had on the industry, economy, and the future of civilization.  Others contain a picture that illustrates an idea, such as Watts' design for the steam engine.  Without his improvements, the horse and buggy might still be the best form of travel.  The books proved to be invaluable resources for information.  And finally, all the above sites are implanted in this page to assist another who is in need of information.  I hope these help any and all.
                                                                                                        --- Sarah Wirick ---

A brief overview of the Industrial Revolution.
Learn more about power looms and spinning jennies.
Learn more about the Industrial Revolution.
Learn more about the inventions.
Learn about James Watt and his steam engine. 

          This is the site I used for the background, chain link line, the line above Works Cited, and the dots used in the Works
          Cited area and in the links area.