Four Important Industries that Shaped America



Four Important Industries that Shaped America

The Textile Industry

Textile Mills

Centered in New England

Made cloth and clothing with raw materials such as cotton from the south and wool from sheep raised in the west. Borders the Atlantic Ocean, so goods could be shipped once they were ready for market. There were many fast-moving rivers in New England to power the mills. The textile business was rooted in Great Britain where many New Englanders could trace their ancestry.



The Steel Industry

Steel Mills

Centered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Made steel-a mixture of iron and carbon-which is super-strong. Steel was used to build railroads, skyscrapers, and machines. Pittsburgh is near many coal and iron deposits. The area was highly populated and it is near the Erie Canal water supply, so finished products could be transported easily. Steel soon replaced iron in buildings and in transportation.



The Meat-Packing Industry

The Great Stockyards

Centered in Chicago, Illinois

Cattle were transported from the west, slaughtered and packed into refrigerated boxcars to feed people in the east. Chicago is located on the Great Lakes and on the route of the Transcontinental Railroad, which made transporting the cattle and the finished product efficient.



The Automobile Industry

Car Assembly Lines

Centered in Detroit, Michigan

America soon led the world in the production of cars and trucks. Detroit is near oil supplies in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. It is a large population center so there was a large labor pool. It sits on the Great Lakes, which made supplying the factories and moving the finished products fast.



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