In my opinion the greatest advancement of the Industrial Revolution had to have been the steam-powered locomotive. If the railroad never had gained traction in the US, the economy wouldn’t be as strong as it is today. The thousands of miles of track that was laid unified a nation for the better, increasing profits to businesses, offering cities a quicker alternative to travel, and connected almost every major city in the country. Sure, the emergence of interchangeable parts made production faster, but without a quick way to ship goods, the demands of customers could have been met by another competitor during the time it took for a horse to pull goods to them. Lastly, trains could hold more people per car than a horse and buggy could while giving
