During the 1800 and 1900 America’s earliest habitants used the power of nature or animals to move from one place to place. But in the early 19th century the use of steam power in transportation allowed people to move faster, farther and even carry more than they used to move many years ago. In addition, by the middle of the century ships powered by steam can started crossing the ocean in a shorter period of time. For instance, in 1800 a journey normally would take more than 6 weeks, but in the middle and the end of the century it took around 16 to 18 days and only 5 days respectively. Also, around the 1890’s, railroads transported more than 500 million passengers and over 690 million tons of cargo.
