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The start of the industrial revolution
The formation of the east India company. The joint stock company would later play a vital role in maintaining trade monopoly that helped increase demand, production and profit. -
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Abraham Darby leases the furnace which he successfully uses for the first time
Darby was able to sell 81 tons of iron goods that year. He would become a important figure in industry discovering a method of producing pig iron ran by coke rather than charcoal. -
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1712
Thomas Newcomen invents the first steam engine. -
1764
James Hargreaves invents the spinning jenny allowing a worker to produce multiple spools of thread at the same time. -
1781
James Watt patents an improved steam engine making it useful as a power source in factories and other applications such as steam boats and trains -
1793
The industrial revolution spreads the united states when Samuel Slater opens the first textile mill in Rhode island -
1825
The Erie Canal is completed opening a water route from the Great Lakes to New York City and the Atlantic Ocean. -
1853
Elisha Otis invents a safety break for elevators making them practical and safe for the first time. This allows for tall buildings and skyscrapers to be built. -
1856
The Bessemer Process for making steel is invented by Henry Bessemer. This allowed for the mass production of inexpensive steel. -
1870
Around this time the Second Industrial Revolution begins. This phase of the Industrial Revolution is characterized by rapid expansion of new technologies such as the telephone, railroads, and electrical power.