EconAir

  Earliest known photograph of slaves and cotton, around 1850 Brigit Katz, Smithsonian Magazine, December 6, 2019 A New Nation, America from 1789 to 1860   If you study American history from 1789 to 1860 (just before the start of the Civil War), the political history is very complicated. But remember what caused most of this political conflict and uneasy compromises - the dynamic changes in the underlying economy. Two in particular – the spectacular increase in slave-produced cotton and the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. They were related.   What is the Industrial Revolution? At its heart it is power-driven metal machinery producing huge quantities of goods. At first, the power was supplied by steam engines and water wheels. Later, in the 20 th  century, electricity. All of this used huge amounts of fossil fuels – first coal, later oil and natural gas were added.   A trend that continued from colonial times – the unusual population growth of America. Th...

INTRODUCTION This post and the next is on the topic of economic development and its contribution to economic growth.   Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution more than 200 years ago, this is the central economic dynamic.    The following are factors that led to American economic development, many in place  before the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.   The United States, more than any other country, was positioned to take advantage of the new technology and ideas that were the basis of the Industrial Revolution.   The following is an outline of those factors.   For the full story of the early decades of America's Industrial Revolution, see Engines of Change and some of the excellent histories written about America after the Revolution. FACTORS IN AMERICAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH The usual narrative centers on the inventors and entrepreneurs who developed and commercialized new production and tran...