SECTION

4 More Technological
TEKS 12C, 12D, 13B, 14B, 27A,
27B, 27D, 28A
Advances
What You Will Learn… If YOU were there...
Main Ideas You own a small shop in Chicago, Illinois, in the 1850s. You sell
1. The telegraph made swift ladies’ hats and gowns. When you need more hats, you send a let-
communication possible from
coast to coast. ter to the manufacturer in New York. Sometimes it takes weeks for
2. With the shift to steam power, the letter to get there. One day, the owner of the shop next door
businesses built new fac-
tories closer to cities and tells you about a wonderful new machine. It can send orders from
transportation centers. Chicago to New York in just minutes!
3. Improved farm equipment and
other labor-saving devices How would a machine like this change your business?
made life easier for many
Americans.
4. New inventions changed lives
in American homes.
Building Background The Industrial and Transportation
The Big Idea ­ evolutions had far-reaching effects on Americans’ lives. They led to
R
Advances in technology led to still more innovations in technology. Some of the new machines and
new inventions that continued devices speeded up processes for business owners. Others made life
to change daily life and work. easier for people at home.

Key Terms and People

Samuel F. B. Morse, p. 402
Telegraph Speeds Communication
telegraph, p. 402 In 1832 Samuel F. B. Morse perfected the telegraph — a device
Morse code, p. 403 that could send information over wires across great distances. To
John Deere, p. 404 develop the telegraph, Morse studied electricity and magnetism. In
Cyrus McCormick, p. 404 time, Morse put the work of other scientists together in a practical
Isaac Singer, p. 405
machine.

Time Line
Use the graphic organizer online to 1831 Cyrus McCormick
take notes on the new advances in
American Inventions invents the mechanical reaper.
technology listed in this section. Harvesting grain becomes
eight times more efficient.

1798 Eli Whitney proposed the

idea of mass producing guns.
Machines like this one made it
possible for workers to make
interchangeable parts efficiently.

402 Chapter 12
 The telegraph sent pulses, or surges, of B iographY
electric current through a wire. The telegraph
operator tapped a bar that controlled the Samuel F. B. Morse
length of each pulse. At the other end of the (1791–1872)
wire, these pulses were changed into click- Like steamboat creator Robert Fulton,
ing sounds. A short click was called a dot. A Samuel F. B. Morse began his career as
long click was called a dash. Morse’s partner, a painter rather than as an inventor. In
Alfred Lewis Vail, developed a system known 1832 Morse was a widower struggling
as Morse code — different combinations of to raise his three children alone. He became
interested in the idea of sending messages
dots and dashes that represent each letter of
electrically. Morse hoped he could invent a
the alphabet. For example, dot dot dot, dash
device that would earn enough to support
dash dash, dot dot dot is the ­distress signal his family. Eventually, the ­telegraph made
called SOS. Morse extremely wealthy.
Several years passed before Morse was
able to connect two locations with telegraph Drawing Conclusions What motivated
wires. People doubted his machine. Some Morse to invent the telegraph?
did not think that he was reading messages
sent from miles away.
Morse’s break came during the 1844 in 1861. By the time he died in 1872, Morse
Democratic National Convention. A tele- was famous across the United States.
graph wired news of the presidential candidate’s With the spread of telegraph lines, peo-
nomination to politicians in Washington. The ple could relay information and news more
waiting politicians responded, “Three cheers for quickly. The economy of the nation became
the telegraph!” Telegraphs were soon sending even more unified as businesses used the
and receiving information for businesses, the telegraph to conduct financial transactions
government, newspapers, and private citi- with distant partners. Cities, especially in the
zens. West, grew rapidly because of the increased
The telegraph grew with the railroad. economic opportunities available to distant
Telegraph companies strung their wires on businesses. The territories of the United
poles along railroads across the country. They States began filling with people farther and
established telegraph offices in many train farther west.
stations. Thousands of miles of telegraph
line were added every year in the 1850s. Reading Check Identifying Cause and Effect
The first transcontinental line was finished What effect did the telegraph have on cross-coun-
try communications?

1837 John Deere invents the steel

plow. The tough prairie sod can be cut
and the thick soil ploughed without
having to constantly clean the plow.

1832 Samuel F. B. Morse invents the

telegraph. Long-distance communication
becomes almost instantaneous.

the north 403

 Steam-Powered Factories ed to benefit from the growing economy
themselves. Thousands of new businesses
During the Industrial Revolution, factories
were established, many to market the new
began to rely on steam power instead of
inventions that were being introduced every
waterpower. This shift brought major chang-
day. Although these businesses often failed,
es to the nation’s industries. Water-powered
they spurred technological innovation and
factories had to be built near streams or
­entrepreneurship.
waterfalls. In contrast, steam power allowed
business owners to build factories almost any- Reading Check Finding Main Ideas What
where. Yet the Northeast was still home to changes resulted from the shift to steam power?
most of the nation’s industry. By 1860 New
England alone had as many factories as the
entire South did.
Improved Farm Equipment
Some companies decided to build their During the 1830s, technology began trans-
factories closer to cities and transportation forming the farm as well as the factory. In
centers. This provided easier access to work- 1837 blacksmith John Deere saw that friends
ers, allowing businesses to lower wages. in Illinois had difficulty plowing thick soil
Being closer to cities also reduced shipping with iron plows. He thought a steel blade
costs. Cities soon became the center of indus- might work better. His design for a steel plow
trial growth. People from rural areas and was a success. By 1846 Deere was selling 1,000
foreign countries flocked to the cities for plows per year.
jobs. In 1831 Cyrus McCormick developed
Factory workers improved the designs of a new harvesting machine, the mechani-
many kinds of machines. Mechanics invented cal reaper, which quickly and efficiently cut
tools that could cut and shape metal, stone, down wheat. He began mass producing his
and wood with great precision. By the 1840s reapers in a Chicago factory. McCormick
this new machinery was able to produce used new methods to encourage sales. His
interchangeable parts. Within a short period company advertised, gave demonstrations,
of time, the growing machine-tool industry and provided a repair and spare parts depart-
was even making customized equipment. ment. He also let customers buy on credit.
New businesses were also aided by gov- The combination of Deere’s plow and
ernment policies that favored free trade. McCormick’s reaper allowed Midwestern
There was little regulation of businesses, farmers to plant and harvest huge crop fields.
and taxes were designed to benefit business By 1860, U.S. farmers were producing more
owners. Many Americans supported these than 170 million bushels of wheat and more
governmental policies because they want- than 800 million bushels of corn per year.

American Inventions (continued)

1849 Walter Hunt
invents the safety pin.

1851 Isaac Singer ­improves the

sewing machine. The production
and repair of ­clothing becomes
much easier.

404
 Reading Check Summarizing What market- selling for only $1.50 by the 1850s. Addi­ The Impact
tional useful items created during this period Today
ing methods did McCormick use to help sell his
farm equipment? include matches, introduced in the 1830s, New inventions,
and the safety pin, invented in 1849. All of such as cell
phones, laptop
these inventions helped make life at home
Changing Life at Home more convenient for Americans.
computers, and
wireless Internet,
Many inventions of the Industrial Revolu­ continue to make
Reading Check Analyzing How did labor- life easier and
tion simply made life easier. When Alexis
more convenient
de Tocqueville of France visited the United saving inventions affect daily life? for people today.
States in the early 1830s, he identified what
he called a very American quality.
SUmmary and preview New machines
“ [Americans want] to be always making life more and inventions changed the way Americans
comfortable and convenient, to avoid trouble, lived and did business in the early 1800s. In
and to satisfy the smallest wants [desires] with-
the next chapter you will learn how agri­
out effort and almost without cost. ” cultural changes affected the South.
—Alexis de Tocqueville, from Democracy in America

The sewing machine, first invented by Section 4 Assessment ONLINE QUIZ

Elias Howe, a factory apprentice in Lowell,
Massachusetts, was one of these conven­ Reviewing Ideas, Terms, and People
iences. Isaac Singer then made improve­- 1. a. Describe How did the telegraph work?
ments to Howe’s design. Like McCormick, b. Predict What impact might the telegraph have on the
Singer allowed customers to buy his machines future of the United States?
on credit and provided service. By 1860 c. Analyze How did the telegraph increase urbanization?
Singer’s company was the world’s largest 2. a. Describe How did water-powered factories differ from
steam-powered factories?
maker of sewing machines.
b. Explain How did the shift to steam power lead to the
Other advances improved on every­
growth of cities?
day items. In the 1830s, iceboxes cooled by c. Explain What governmental policies helped industries
large blocks of ice became available. Iceboxes grow in a free trade system? What were the benefits of this
stored fresh food safely for longer periods. system?
Iron cookstoves began replacing cooking fires 3. a. Identify What contributions did Cyrus McCormick and
and stone hearths. John Deere make to farming?
Companies also began to mass produce b. Analyze What effect did new inventions have on agri-
earlier inventions. This allowed many fami­ culture in the United States?
4. a. Identify What inventions improved life at home?
lies to buy household items, such as clocks,
b. Evaluate Which invention do you think had the greatest
that they could not afford in the past. For
effect on the daily lives of Americans? Why?
example, a clock that cost $50 in 1800 was
Critical Thinking
5. Supporting a Point of Most Important Why
1859 Manufactured goods become more View Review your notes on
valuable than agricultural goods in the country’s technological advances and
economy for the first time. The United States is
becoming a modern industrial nation.
their effects. Then create a
graphic organizer like the one below that shows the top
three advances you think are most important and why.

ANALYSIS Focus on Writing

skill Reading Time Lines
Which two inventions improved 6. Describing Technological Advances Add notes about the
American agriculture? inventions mentioned in this section to your chart. Think
about which invention you will use for your advertisement.

the north 405