The Industrial Revolution began in England in the eighteneeth century and quickly spread across Europe and North America. New technology and inventions  transformed an agricultural and commercial way of life into a modern industrial society. Changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution revolutionized families and  lifestyles as the factory system drew workers away from the rural family economy to urban areas.

What were these changes?  What was life like in these rapidly growing cities? What was life like for these new factory workers?  Why did workers begin to organize into labor unions?  What were the positive and negative results of the Industrial Revolution? How did the industrial revolution effect different groups of the population? Each group will have a chance to evaluate primary source documents as the class searches for the answers to the questions listed above.  First you need to review the general information found on this page.  Then read through your task.  Finally, click on the name of your group to find links to investigate the effect of the Industrial Revolution on women, children, factory and mine workers and factory owners.

A few key inventions to review:      James Watt's steam engine (Be sure to check out the animation!)      Eli Whitney's cotton gin      Henry Bessemer's steel making process                                                                                                    The Bessemer Process

2) When we return to class you will work on an Industrial Revolution Wrap-up activity.  While you complete the web part of this activity keep in mind the following tasks you will find on the wrap-up worksheet.

    *Work with your group to organize your findings into a list of five or six important facts to share with the class about your group.
    *Create the front page of a newspaper in the voice of your group.  If you are a factory worker you will be creating a newspaper about
    factory workers, from the perspective of a factory worker for other factory workers. You are only responsible for writing the headlines
    for four stories and designing the layout (title, date, graphics etc.).  You might write about your life (as a woman, child, factory worker,
    factory owner, mine worker in the industrial revolution), a major event,
    legislation that affects you or solutions to current problems.
    *Write a journal entry as if you were a member of the group you researched.

Click on the name of your group below to find information and primary sources about Women, Children, Factory Workers, Mine Workers and Factory Owners during the Industrial Revolution.

Women	Children
Factory Owners	Factory Workers