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The Factory System
Date not Found
Samuel Slater set up a cotton spinning factory in Rhode Island in 1793. Although Francis Lowell founded the Lowell Mills in Waltham, Massachusett, this came later (in 1813) -
Cotton Gin is designed
Eli Whitney designs the cotton gin, a machine that picks the seeds out of cotton faster than the regular hand. Though this could've made the demand for slaves go down, it unfortunately did not do so, but merely increased it. -
Year of the Interchangeable Parts
Date Not Found
Once again, Eli Whitney created something benefitial for the Industrial Revolution: The Interchangeable Parts. Interchangeable parts were parts that could easily be replaed. If you destroy some part in your car, you don't have to but a new car, just a new part, so this was a very big deal in those days. -
The Steamboat!
Date not Found Now, Robert Fulton designed the steam ENGINE, but not the steam BOAT. No website has confirmed the actual maker, so Robert Fulton constantly gets credit. Thanks to the steam boat, people could travel upstream on the Hudson River in thirty-two hours. -
Mechanical Reaper
Date not found Cyrus McCormick finally created a very helpful farm tool in 1831: The Mechanical Reaper. With this, cutting, thrashing, and bundling the grains of the fields is much faster and easier. -
The Seneca Convention
As you may know, women have been trying to get the same rights as men. The Seneca Convention was the convention in which women finally declare independent and equal by using the Declaration of Independence. With the help of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the women and those that supported their suffrage, they create the Declaration of Sentiments. -
Fugitive Slave Act
Under President Millard Fillmore, the Fugitive Slave Act is passed to keep slaves from escaping to the North. With this law, there was a fine for those that don't turn in runaway slaves, and those that DID turn in slaves ended up with bonuses or any other rewards. -
Uncle Tom's Cabin
Harriet Beecher Stowe published her book, Uncle Tom's Cabin, expressing the horrors of slavery. However, because of this, many abolitionists became enraged, and this strained tensions country wide. -
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation is put into effect, and now, all slaves in the South are free, although no one pays much attention until the South loses. -
The Nineteenth Amendent was Ratified
At last, after so many years, the women were given the right to vote. The first president they were able to elect into office was Warren G. Harding, who died three years after the election. (1920-1923) Unfortunately, not many early supporters died before the law was passed.