UNIT IV APUSH: MARKET REVOLUTION II

Eli Whitney--cotton gin

An invention that dramatically sped up the process of separating cotton fibers from their seeds, making cotton production highly profitable and greatly increasing the demand for enslaved labor.

Robert Fulton--The Clermont

An American inventor who developed the first commercially successful steamboat, The Clermont, revolutionizing river travel and transport.

Cyrus McCormick--mechanical reaper

A horse-drawn machine that automated the cutting of grain, making farming more efficient and enabling larger-scale agriculture.

Samuel F. B. Morse--telegraph

The inventor of the telegraph and Morse code, which allowed for near-instantaneous long-distance communication.

The "transportation revolution"

A period of rapid expansion in public works, primarily turnpikes/roads, canals (like the Erie Canal), and railroads, which linked different regions of the country and facilitated the movement of goods and people.

The American System

An economic plan championed by Henry Clay that consisted of three mutually reinforcing parts

The Market Revolution

The drastic change in the U.S. economy from a traditional, agrarian model to one based on capitalism, where goods were produced for a cash market. This led to "mass consumerism," where more people began buying, rather than making, the goods they needed.