Chapter Overview

This chapter deals with one of two great transformations in the quarter-century after 1815: the fundamental economic changes that occurred. (The next chapter covers the political revolution.) The career of Chauncey Jerome illustrates the connection between economic developments and changes in American values and society. The new market society depended on a stricter sense of time. By providing inexpensive, mass-produced clocks and aggressively marketing them in the United States and even around the world, Jerome gained fame and wealth. But the ups and downs of his career also demonstrated how fleeting success could be in the new boom-and-bust market economy, as Jerome lost everything near the end of his life and died in poverty.

The Market Revolution

The development of widespread markets fundamentally transformed opportunity in the United States. Government played an important role in initiating this market revolution after the War of 1812. Congress enacted the program known as the "new nationalism," including a protective tariff, a national bank, and federal aid to internal improvements (transportation facilities). The rapid expansion of cotton production in the Deep South, much of which was sold in England, was the most important stimulant to economic growth. Equally crucial was the development of canals, steamboats, and eventually railroads: The resulting transportation revolution for the first time enabled goods to be transported cheaply on land, and encouraged regional specialization in farming. By adopting a pro-business stance that encouraged investment and risk taking, the Supreme Court under John Marshall played a key role as well. Corporations increasingly became an important form of business organization, to which the courts offered special legal protections and encouragement.

A Restless Temper

Economic expansion generated great social energy and restlessness. Eager to succeed in the new competitive markets, Americans were driven by dreams of wealth yet haunted by fears of failure. Population continued to double every 22 years or so. These new Americans were constantly on the move, pouring steadily westward or flocking to the burgeoning cities in search of opportunity. The majority of new western settlers were farmers. In the ensuing land boom, land sales swung up and down with the economy as an unprecedented amount of acreage was sold, largely to speculators. At the same time, truly significant cities developed --mdash; not just in the older regions of the country, but in the West as well. Expansion was the keynote of the new America.

The Rise of Factories

As markets developed, entrepreneurs reorganized their operations to increase production. The American factory system developed in the Northeast, beginning with the textile industry. Eventually all operations (from opening the cotton bales to weaving the cloth) were combined on one site, with the work done largely by machines tended by semi-skilled operators. Lowell, Massachusetts, became the center of the textile industry and the symbol of this new mode of production. At first farm girls worked the Lowell mills; eventually Irish immigrants replaced them. The mills depended on water power, and eventually the rivers were badly polluted. Factory work imposed a new discipline, oriented around the clock, which eroded older standards of craftsmanship. Even when no machines were used, the production process was reorganized. The shoe industry, for example, divided production into a series of steps, with workers performing only one distinct step. Some workers protested against these changes by organizing unions, issuing political demands, and going on strike. But the depression that began in 1837 destroyed this embryonic union movement.

Social Structures of the Market Society

Industrialization created a new middle class, and members separated themselves socially and economically from workers. As opportunities for profit expanded, specialization increased --mdash; for farmer, worker, businessman, even fur trapper --mdash; and wealth became increasingly concentrated at the top of American society. Nevertheless, most white Americans still had the opportunity to improve their status, although their belief in economic opportunity exceeded the reality. Moreover, status increasingly came to depend upon wealth. As a result, Americans frantically pursued material goods and success. And increasingly the clock came to dictate the rhythms of life, in the home as well as the workplace.

Prosperity and Anxiety

Prosperity brought with it anxiety, as Americans feared they would be plunged into poverty by sudden downturns of the economy that were beyond the control of individuals. After 1815 the economy lurched forward in fits and starts, so wealth seemed neither permanent nor secure. The first great economic shock came in 1819.