Starting even before the founding of the United States of America, the events that have transpired from the late 1500s within these lands have greatly impacted the lives lived today. From the invasion by the Europeans, decimation of Native American populations, creation of a new nation, the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, John Smith’s capitalism, the US Constitution, and other numerous events, every action upon this soil has in one form or another created the conditions for the chance at life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness that is the basis for American life. While all of these events have brought American life to a far different place than the Founding Fathers could have ever imagined, the United States Constitution, capitalism, and the
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Just in taking a look at the land surrounding oneself, the effects of industrialization are evident through the high-rise buildings, roadways filled with cars, and stores filled with consumer goods. With Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin in 1793, the construction of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad beginning in 1828, or Samuel Slater establishing “America’s first factory in 1790 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island”, there is a glimpse at how the landscape and economic power of the United States would be world changing. (Foner, 331) Industrial feats such as these, along with canals, interchangeable parts, and ironclad ships, would transform warfare and combat in a way not anticipated as the nation prepared for the impending Civil War. In a way the Civil War can be seen as a battle between the old world and modern ideals as the power of the Union’s factories and infrastructure took on the slave powered, agricultural Confederacy. Had the Confederate States won the battle, one can only image the difference in landscape and world dynamic that would have prevailed throughout American history. The Union victory and the power of technology within illustrated the ability for the US to modernize, invent, and thrive into the country that it is today. Hand in hand with John Smith’s capitalism, and the innovation that came with, the wealth and opportunity of the United States emerged
Just in taking a look at the land surrounding oneself, the effects of industrialization are evident through the high-rise buildings, roadways filled with cars, and stores filled with consumer goods. With Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin in 1793, the construction of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad beginning in 1828, or Samuel Slater establishing “America’s first factory in 1790 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island”, there is a glimpse at how the landscape and economic power of the United States would be world changing. (Foner, 331) Industrial feats such as these, along with canals, interchangeable parts, and ironclad ships, would transform warfare and combat in a way not anticipated as the nation prepared for the impending Civil War. In a way the Civil War can be seen as a battle between the old world and modern ideals as the power of the Union’s factories and infrastructure took on the slave powered, agricultural Confederacy. Had the Confederate States won the battle, one can only image the difference in landscape and world dynamic that would have prevailed throughout American history. The Union victory and the power of technology within illustrated the ability for the US to modernize, invent, and thrive into the country that it is today. Hand in hand with John Smith’s capitalism, and the innovation that came with, the wealth and opportunity of the United States emerged