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The steam engine is invented
Thomas Newcomen invents the first steam engine. It is not very useful yet, but the idea of using steam to make machines go will be important to the Industrial Revolution -
The spinning jenny is invented
James Hargreaves, a British carpenter and weaver, invents the spinning jenny. The machine spins more than one ball of yarn or thread at a time, making it easier and faster to make cloth -
James Watt improves the steam engine
James Watt from Scotland designs a more efficient steam engine. One of the most important inventions of the Industrial Revolution, steam engines power the first trains, steamboats, and factories -
Samuel Morse invents the telegraph
Samuel Morse invents the telegraph, which allows messages to be sent quickly over a wire. By 1860, telegraph wires stretch from the east coast of the United States west of the Mississippi River -
Elias Howe invents the sewing machine
At a time when people had to make their own clothes at home or pay someone else to sew them by hand, Elias Howe invents the sewing machine. Now clothes can be made in large factories -
Alfred Nobel creates dynamite.
Alfred Nobel invents dynamite, which is a safer way to blast holes in mountains or the ground than simply lighting black powder. Dynamite is important in clearing paths to build things such as roads and railroad tracks -
Louis Pasteur develops vaccines for diseases
A chemist named Louis Pasteur believed that germs caused disease. Using this information, he created vaccines that helped prevent many common diseases, which helped people live longer -
Alexander Graham Bell patents the telephone
He may not have invented the telephone, but Alexander Graham Bell was the first to get a patent for it. Being able to speak to people over a telephone wire greatly changes the way the world communicates -
Thomas Edison uses a light bulb to light a lamp
Not the first man to create a light bulb, Thomas Edison created a light bulb that lasted longer than other designs and showed it off by lighting a lamp. Edison's light bulbs allow people to do many things at night, such as work, that used to only happen during the day -
Orville Wright makes the first powered airplane flight
Using an engine that they invented, Orville and Wilbur Wright invent the first plane that is not powered by wind. Orville flies the plane for 12 seconds over a beach in North Carolina