Chapter 11
Life, Leisure, and Culture 1840-1860
In England, the Royal Astronomer said that a transatlantic cable would be
impossible
• But Cyrus West Field made it happen• So what if the line snapped? It worked.• Here was the advent of Technology ( a
word popularized after 1829) meant that science would improve life, making it more convenient and prosperous
But the questions of this chapter….
• In what ways did technology transform the daily life of ordinary Americans?
• How did it divide them?
• How did it affect intellectual and artistic life?
Agricultural Advancement
• Steel tipped plow made by John Deere allowed people to move out into the prairies
• Wheat became the crop of Midwest• Cyrus McCormick made the mechanical
reaper in 1834, which made wheat harvesting 6X faster
• Used strategies such as deferred payments, money-back guarantees
Did McCormick’s reaper helped the North win the Civil War?
• It was key in helping the North win• It kept Northern agricultural
production high at a time when labor shortages caused by troop mobilization could have slashed production
• The South didn’t use the reaper and kept slave labor instead
• Eli Whitney used interchangeable parts by 1798
• Used widely in America which meant that inventor could fix just one part of his item, and not have to throw whole item away
• Colt’s revolving pistol made in 1836 would be mass produced by Smith and Wesson
What did America make?• Telegraph• Railroads that could
travel 3 times faster than a European RR
• RR track went from 3000 to 30,000 miles
• different gauge track made changes of train necessary
By 1860 few rail lines were west of the Mississippi
Technological advances made items cheaper
• Clocks used to cost $50 if made by hand
• By 1850: 50 cents• Annual wages
improving• Towns and cities
growing• Most people made
$300 per year
Was life better?
• According to poet Walt Whitman…yes
• Standard of living improved: new stoves, fresh vegetables, chairs, machines
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