Though many people in Britain had begun moving to the cities from

rural areas before the Industrial Revolution, this process accelerated

dramatically with industrialization, as the rise of large factories turned
smaller towns into major cities over the span of decades. This rapid
urbanization brought significant challenges, as overcrowded cities
suffered from pollution, inadequate sanitation and a lack of clean
drinking water.

Meanwhile, even as industrialization increased economic output

overall and improved the standard of living for the middle and upper
classes, poor and working class people continued to struggle. The
mechanization of labor created by technological innovation had made
working in factories increasingly tedious (and sometimes dangerous),
and many workers were forced to work long hours for pitifully low
wages. Such dramatic changes fueled opposition to industrialization,
including the “Luddites,” known for their violent resistance to changes
in Britain’s textile industry.

In the decades to come, outrage over substandard working and living

conditions would fuel the formation of labor unions, as well as the
passage of new child labor laws and public health regulations in both
Britain and the United States, all aimed at improving life for working
class and poor citizens who had been negatively impacted by
industrialization
The transition from an agricultural to an INDUSTRIAL ECONOMY took more than a
century in the United States, but that long development entered its first phase from
the 1790s through the 1830s. The INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION had begun in Britain
during the mid-18th century, but the American colonies lagged far behind the
mother country in part because the abundance of land and scarcity of labor in the
New World reduced interest in expensive investments in machine production.
Nevertheless, with the shift from hand-made to machine-made products a new era
of human experience began where increased productivity created a much higher
standard of living than had ever been known in the pre-industrial world. Another key
to the rapidly changing economy of the early Industrial Revolution were new
organizational strategies to increase productivity. This had begun with the
"OUTWORK SYSTEM" whereby small parts of a larger production process were carried
out in numerous individual homes. This organizational reform was especially
important for shoe and boot making. However, the chief organizational breakthrough
of the Industrial Revolution was the "FACTORY SYSTEM" where work was performed
on a large scale in a single centralized location. Among the early innovators of this
approach were a group of businessmen known as the BOSTON ASSOCIATESwho
recruited thousands of New England farm girls to operate the machines in their new
factories.
The most famous of their tightly controlled mill towns was LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS,
which opened in 1823. The use of female factory workers brought advantages to
both employer and employee. The Boston Associates preferred female labor because
they paid the young girls less than men. These female workers, often called "LOWELL
GIRLS," benefited by experiencing a new kind of independence outside the traditional
male-dominated family farm.
The rise of WAGE LABOR at the heart of the Industrial Revolution also exploited
working people in new ways. The first strike among textile workers protesting wage
and factory conditions occurred in 1824 and even the model mills of Lowell faced
large STRIKES in the 1830s.
Dramatically increased production, like that in the New England's textile mills, were
key parts of the Industrial Revolution, but required at least two more elements for
widespread impact. First, an expanded system of credit was necessary to help
entrepreneurs secure the capital needed for large-scale and risky new ventures.
Second, an improved transportation system was crucial for RAW MATERIALS to reach
the factories and manufactured goods to reach consumers. State governments
played a key role encouraging both new banking institutions and a vastly increased
transportation network. This latter development is often termed the MARKET
REVOLUTION because of the central importance of creating more efficient ways to
transport people, raw materials, and finished goods.
The use of a STATE CHARTER to provide special benefits for a PRIVATE
CORPORATION was a crucial and controversial innovation in republican America. The
idea of granting special privileges to certain individuals seemed to contradict the
republican ideal of equality before the law. Even more than through rapidly
expanded banking institutions, state support for internal transportation
improvements lay at the heart of the nation's new political economy. Road, bridge,
and especially canal building was an expensive venture, but most state politicians
supported using government-granted legal privileges and funds to help create
the INFRASTRUCTURE that would stimulate economic development.
Industrialization typically leads to the migration of workers to cities,
automation, and repetitive tasks. Due to these factors, factory workers tend to
lose their individuality, have limited job satisfaction, and feel alienated. There
can also be health issues, brought on by dangerous working conditions or
simply factors inherent in the working conditions, such as noise and dirt.

Rapid urbanization brought on by industrialization typically leads to the

general deterioration of workers' quality of life and many other problems for
society, such as crime, stress, and psychological disorders. Long working
hours usually lead to poor nutrition and consumption of quick and low-quality
foods, resulting in increased incidences of diseases, such as diabetes, heart
attack, and strokes.

The industrial and economic developments of the Industrial

Revolution brought significant social changes. Industrialization
resulted in an increase in population and the phenomenon of
urbanization, as a growing number of people moved to urban centres
in search of employment. Some individuals became very wealthy, but
some lived in horrible conditions. A class of prosperous industrialists,
ship owners and merchants dominated, accumulating great wealth,
but at the same time the working classes had to live with minimum
comforts in overcrowded environments. Children were sent to work in
factories, where they were exploited and ill-treated; women
experienced substantial changes in their lifestyle as they took jobs in
domestic service and the textile industries, leaving the agricultural
workforce and spending less time in the family home. This period also
saw the creation of a middle class that enjoyed the benefits of the new
prosperity. People started spending their free time entertaining
themselves in theatres, concert halls and sports facilities or enjoying
the countryside in long promenades.

Most important, however, 19th-century Britain experienced political

unrest as the industrialization and urbanization of the country created
a need for social and political change. There were increasing
demands for improved social welfare, education, labour rights,
political rights and equality, as well as for the abolition of the slave
trade and changes in the electoral system. As a result, the slave trade
was abolished in 1807 and the Great Reform Act was passed by
Parliament in 1832. After this Reform Act, manufacturing cities such
as Birmingham and Manchester could be represented in Parliament
for the first time, thereby substantially changing the character of
parliamentary politics.
 Positive Effects
Industrialization had many positive effects on society in
Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. The creation of power
machines and factories provided many new job opportunities.
The new machinery increased production speed of good and gave
people the ability to transport raw materials. Industrialization
also lead to urbanization. Urbanization is the movement of
people into cities and city building. Citizens wanted to live closer
to the factories that they worked at. The Western World went
from rural and agricultural to urban industrial.

Steam Engine:
The newly invented steam engine provided cheap movement of
goods through waterways. Canals were built so resources could
be transported with ease.
The Railroad System:
The inventions of railroads dramatically revolutionized life in
Britain. The railroads gave manufacturers a cheap way to
transport their products. Fresh food could also be delivered to
distant towns. The railways also gave people opportunities to
travel. Traveling meant that people met people from other cities
which resulted in long distance relationships and marriages.
Time standards, newspapers and mail systems were also
invented.
The Railways helped Europe modernize in many significant ways.

Road Transportation:
John McAdam, a Scottish engineer improved roads a lot. He
created a new layout for roads so they are safer and more
effective. The road beds consisted of large stones which helped
with drainage. On the top were finely crushed rocks.

The new design of roads let wagons travel in the rain without sinking into
muddy grounds.

Overall, industrialization helped life in Europe a lot. It raised

the standards of living since new materials and products
were available for public use.
Negative Effects
Despite its many positive effects, industrialization had a
negative impact on Europe too. Urban areas doubled, tripled, or
quadrupled in size which led to over crowding in cities.
Sometimes a large population is a good thing, but in this case the
population was too big and caused many health problems. Living
conditions were dirty and unhealthy. Cities were unsanitary and
diseases filled the streets. There were no sanitation codes in
cities. Many citizens got very sick.

Work in Factories:
Factory work was dirty and dangerous. Bosses
strictly disciplined their employees and treated them harshly.
The workers were underpaid and overworked. They didn't get
enough money for the labor they were providing. One also had a
short life expectancy if they worked in a factory. The hours in a
workday were very long too because the factories were indoors
and didn't have to use sunlight to decide business hours. The
government also provided no regulations for the treatment of a
businesses employees.

Child Labor:
Businesses started to hire children to work in factories
because their small could reach into tiny holes and it is easier for
them to do things which require small hands or bodies.

Even though the Industrial Revolution helped Europe in so

many ways, it also harmed Europe. The lack of sanitation got
many people sick. Work conditions also hurt citizens a lot by
causing fatigue and illnesses. Children were also taken from
their homes on the farm to work in dirty and scary factories.

In economic terms, industrialization is the social and economic transformation

of human society from agrarian to industrial. From approximately 1760 to
1840, the United States transformed from an agrarian society, in which the
economy is established on the society's ability to produce and regulate crops,
to an industrialized society; this period is better known as the Industrial
Revolution. During this period, many processes, traditionally performed by
hand, were mechanized.

Although processes were largely simplified by the introduction of new methods

and machinery, industrialization introduced new problems. Its environmental
drawbacks include the pollution of air, water, and soil that can result in
significant deterioration of quality of life and life expectancy. Because of
industrialization, there is a significant separation of labor and capital. Those
who own the means of production become disproportionately rich, resulting in
high-income inequality. The migration of workers, the separation of family
members, long working hours, and overcrowding that result from
industrialization can lead to social tension and diseases due to poor nutrition
and stress.

Environmental Disadvantages
By far, the biggest negative effect of industrialization is on the environment.
Pollution is the most common by-product of industrialization. However, the
degradation of ecological systems, global warming, greenhouse gas
emissions, and the adverse effect on human health have garnered
widespread concern. Because many industrialized companies are often not
forced to pay damages for the environmental harm they cause, they tend to
impose a major negative externality on human society in the form of
deforestation, extinction of species, widespread pollution, and excessive
waste. In the United States, Congress appointed the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) to issue limits for toxic air emissions, rules to phase-out ozone-
depleting chemicals and their proper disposal, and other major tasks to reduce
environmental risks.

Financial Disadvantages
Financially, industrialization results in a wide gap between the rich and poor
due to a division of labor and capital. Those who own capital tend to
accumulate excessive profits derived from their economic activities, resulting
in a high disparity of income and wealth.

Social Disadvantages
Industrialization typically leads to the migration of workers to cities,
automation, and repetitive tasks. Due to these factors, factory workers tend to
lose their individuality, have limited job satisfaction, and feel alienated. There
can also be health issues, brought on by dangerous working conditions or
simply factors inherent in the working conditions, such as noise and dirt.

Rapid urbanization brought on by industrialization typically leads to the

general deterioration of workers' quality of life and many other problems for
society, such as crime, stress, and psychological disorders. Long working
hours usually lead to poor nutrition and consumption of quick and low-quality
foods, resulting in increased incidences of diseases, such as diabetes, heart
attack, and strokes.