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What made the Industrial Revolution possible?

The Industrial Revolution began in England in the late 1700s and progressed to the United States by the 1820s. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, most people lived on farms in small, rural communities and relied on agriculture for their livelihood. Most manufacturing was done with basic tools and machinery in people's homes or in small shops. People made the items they needed, such as clothes, shoes, candles, and soap, and would occasionally exchange these items for food or other goods. Farmers frequently lived in fear that their crops would fail and that they would not be able to provide for their families. 


One of the main factors that shifted the manufacturing of these goods from homes to factories was the invention of the spinning frame by Richard Arkwright and John Kay in England in the early 1760s. The spinning frame allowed yarn to be spun from cotton, wool, and flax in a mechanized way for the first time. The spinning frame was developed into the water-powered water frame in 1769, and it became the fastest and most efficient way to produce cotton. Factories were established to keep up with the demand for textiles, and people went to work in these factories to improve their standard of living, shifting the economy from an agricultural one to a more manufacturing-based one.


Another leading factor of the Industrial Revolution was the steam engine, which was patented by James Watt in 1781. The steam engine provided continuous rotary motion that powered a wide range of machinery even more efficiently than the water frame. The stationary steam engine did not require water power, so factories could be set up where water power was unavailable. The steam engine was also used to improve transportation by powering trains and ships, allowing raw materials and manufactured goods to be distributed across countries and between continents faster than ever before.


The use of coal instead of wood also powered the Industrial Revolution, especially in metal industries. Mining and converting coal to charcoal required less labor than cutting wood, and coal was more abundant. Metal industries used coal to improve the manufacturing processes of iron and other metals, which were used to create consumer goods, such as pots and kettles, and hardware. Metals were also used in transportation, such as the building of railways, and to further improve machinery in factories.

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