America was slow to getting into The Industrial Revolution, because they were busy with their fascination of education.
But as they were taking steps in education it was setting the ground work for when they would take their place in the race of industry.
And when they did begin they pulled ahead of England and stayed ahead.
Industry helped to shape the towns into thriving cities; providing ample places for employment and prosperity.
Samuel Slater was a great influence in this critical time. After he immigrated to America from Britain, he introduced the new land to the idea of Mechanics.
His education under Jedediah Strutt equipped him in not only operating machinery, but he was also very educated in building and repairing of them also.
Slater built the first successful textile mill the United States had ever seen.
His ideas were copied and multiplied from then on.
This was the beginning of many inventors to come.
Such as Eli Whitney, with his cotton gin and interchangeable parts; Robert Fulton, and his steamboats, along with many more.
Soon after the steam boats, came the Erie Canal, giving way to cheaper modes of transportation. Making traders and shop keepers more successful.
It was a lot easier for people to travel, no longer having to pay steep prices to go over seas.
The next step they took was in that of building roads.
It was not such a successful venture in the start.
First the roads were made from paths cut out of the woods, and the trees were laid down on their sides.
Though it proved to be an unsuccessful attempt it was soon followed by the making of brick and gravel roads.
But, by far, the most dominant of all the transportation systems invented in the 1800’s was the railroad.
It was not a new concept, but the United States was the country that made it revolutionary.
Not only did the United States transform the idea of travel, but they also took new and significant steps in communication.