History of Industrial Revolution By Amphe 1760 James Watt's steam engine 1770 spinning mule 1785 crude power loom invented Period: 1811 to 1813 Social opposition to industrialization begins to arise Period: 1834 to 1859 In the United States Cyrus McCormick invents several machines used to mechanize farming. Period: 1862 to 1869 The United States begins building a transcontinental railroad in 1862 to connect the East Coast with the West Coast. 1876 Alexander Graham Bell patents his telephone. Period: 1879 to 1882 Thomas Edison introduces the modern age of light when he invents the incandescent lightbulb. 1903 Orville and Wilbur Wright achieve the first powered, sustained, and controlled airplane flight.