Essay On Industrial Revolution And Western Expansion

In the Antebellum era in the United States of America, the Industrial Revolution and Western Expansion affected the lives of many Americans. The Industrial Revolution was a period in which significant technologies and ideologies were introduced. Before the Industrial Revolution, most people made things themselves. However, with the introduction of new machines like the cotton gin, the idea of factories became more and more popular. In a factory, one person would master doing a repetitive task, and then pass it on to someone else to make a finished product. For example, in a gun factory, one person would make the stocks, then another would make the barrels (Hakim 108). This also led to America switching from a farm-based economy to a market …show more content…
Westward expansion was a time where Americans went west. They used the excuse of an ideology called “manifest destiny” to expand from coast-to coast. They argued that it was their destiny and right to do this, but they used it to find wealth (Hakim 49). They even took land forcefully, when they “made Santa Anna sign a treaty that made texas an independent nation”(Hakim 62). Also, in the California Gold Rush, “farmers left their plows, sailors left their ships, blacksmiths left their forgers, and doctors left their patients”(Hakim 70). This shows how desperate people are for money, and would even motivate doctors to abandon patients. The relationship between the Industrial Revolution and Westward Expansion is that the Industrial Revolution enabled American settlers to start expanding west. When factories were introduced, it led to a great production in cotton. Settlers knew that there was fertile soil in the west, and it was plentiful and cheap. Therefore, a large amount of American settlers went west. When a state reached 60,000 people, it was allowed to petition to become a state. This lead to an increase in states, and therefore economic gain (Danzer