Technology of the Industrial Revolution

By lukehuffman1

  • Charles Townsend

    Charles Townshend was an English politician who invented the four crop rotation system in the 18th century. This invention made soil healthy yearlong, without sacrificing profits. A downside of the system is that it was hard for poor farmers to adapt the system. It was a major advancement to the agriculture industry.

  • Richard Arkwright

    Richard Arkwright was an English inventor who invented the water frame and spinning frame in 1769. These two inventions greatly increased industrial, specifically textile output. A downside of this was all of the negative effects of the industrial revolution, such as pollution, overcrowdedness and more.

  • James Hargreaves

    James Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny in 1770. This invention increased outputs of textile factories, at the cost of increasing slave labor in the cotton producing south. This invention is obsolete today because of better technology.

  • James Watt

    James Watt was an English inventor who was most known for his improvements to the steam engine in 1776. The steam engine was very flawed before the improvements, but after Watt improved it greatly, the steam engine became huge for transportation. It negatively affected the environment.

  • Eli Whitney

    Eli Whitney was born in Massachusetts in 1765. He is known for his invention of the cotton gin, and interchangeable parts in 1794. The cotton gin was a major invention for the textile industry, and it increased output during the 18th and 19th centuries. It is not used today. The downside of the cotton gin was the increased amount of slaves used to produce the cotton.

  • Alessandro Volta

    Alessandro Volta was an Italian physicist and chemist who, in the year 1800, invented the battery. The battery is used in communication (walkee-talkees) and transportation (electric cars). The battery is one of the most significant inventions during this time because it was one of the first major inventions that involved electricity. A negative effect however is the negative impact on the environment that batteries have.

  • Joseph Marie Jacquard

    Joseph Marie Jacquard was a French inventor who invented the Jacquard mechanism in 1801. This invention was used in the textile industry, but is not used today. It created an efficient way to make complex textiles. A downside is that the machines were not very safe, and accidents were frequent.

  • George Stephenson

    George Stephenson was an English inventor who invented the steam locomotive in 1821. This improved the transportation industry massively, because it connected far away regions, and allowed raw materials to be transferred easily. The negative effects were air pollution.

  • Samuel Morse

    Samuel Morse invented the Morse code telegraph and Morse code in 1837. The American's inventions connected the world, and led the way for inventions such as the telephone to follow. Morse code is still used today, but the telegraph has become obsolete.

  • Louis Daguerre

    Louis Daguerre was a French inventor that, in 1839 invented the "daguerrotype". This invention is used is the early version of the camera, and it used in the information industry. There aren't any major downsides, but one positive effect is how the photograph has showed us an accurate look into the past.

  • Henry Bessemer

    Henry Bessemer was an English inventor, who in around 1870, invented the Bessemer process for creating steel. This steel making process would be used worldwide and would massively boost production. However, it was really bad for the environment. It is not used today because more effeicent methods have been created.

  • Alexander Graham Bell

    Alexander Graham Bell was an American inventor who invented the telephone in 1876. The telephone revolutionized the communication industry and is still used to this day. A positive effect is that the telephone has connected folks from all around the world. The only negative effect would be how much we rely on telephones today.

  • Thomas Edison

    Thomas Edison is an American inventor known for the invention of the incandescent lightbulb, the phonograph, motion picture camera. The phonograph was used in the communication industry and it was invented in 1877. The motion picture camera was used in entertainment and information industries. The lightbulb has uses to this day in all industries. It was invented in 1879.

  • Gottlieb Daimler

    Daimler is a German engineer who invented to combustion engine in 1885. The combustion engine is arguably the most important invention for the transportation industry, because of its influence on modern society. A positive effect is how easy it and affordable it became to travel great distances. A negative effect is how harmful gas engines are for the environment.

  • Guglielmo Marconi

    Guglielmo Marconi is an Italian inventor that invented many inventions regarding the radio. In 1896, he invented the radio, after he had invented wireless telegraph, the magnetic detector, and the monopole antenna. All of these inventions are in the communication industry. The radio has no negative effects, but it gave people a rapid method of communication when they are far apart.