Science Museum, London
Science Museum Energy Hall: The Impact of the Steam Engine
This fascinating museum exhibit is on how the development of the steam engine has impacted the lives of many people over the last two hundred plus years.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Women Miners in English Coal Pits
Detailed essay, written in 1842, on women and girl miners' working conditions in Great Britain. Includes the personal accounts of two women miners.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Richard Guest: The Steam Loom, 1823
The Fordham University provides information about the application of steam power, which accelerated the centralization of textile production in factories.
Victorian Web
Brown University: Victorian Web: Chadwick's Report on Sanitary Conditions
This site from the Victorian Web provides a summary of Edwin Chadwick's report on the sanitary conditions of the working class in 19th century England. Links are also provided for additional information on this subject.
C3 Teachers
C3 Teachers: Inquiries: Industrialization
A learning module on the Industrial Revolution in America that includes several supporting questions accompanied by formative tasks and source materials, followed by a summative performance task. Topics covered include how manufacturing...
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: Economic Growth and the Early Industrial Revolution
A very thorough look at the industrial growth in the North because of the advent of the Industrial Revolution in America. See what industries grew, how factories became more productive, and find out how the states cultivated economic...
Science Museum, London
Science Museum: Making the Modern World: Textiles: Domestic v Factory Production
Twelve-part learning module uses text-based overviews and rich media cut-away scenes to explain the role of the textile industry in driving the Industrial Revolution forward in Britain.
Other
Modern World History: The Industrial Revolution Begins in England (1760 1850)
In this textbook unit, students learn the reasons why the Industrial Revolution took root in England first, and the innovations that made this possible. These included textile inventions such as the flying shuttle and the spinning jenny,...
Other
Spinning the Web: The Story of the Cotton Industry
A complete look at the history of the cotton industry in England. Navigate the site by clicking on topics at the top of the page. You can also find a list of museums on the left side of the page. Clicking on the museum will take you to...
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Philosophy of the Manufacturers 1835
A representation of the views of the factory owners who had become wealthy in mid 19th century England.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Industrial Manchester 1844
This site from the Modern History Sourcebook of Fordham University provides an exerpt from "The Condition of the Working-Class in England in 1844". Personal account of what life was like for textile mill workers in Manchester.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: "Lowell Mill Girls" by Harriet Robinson
Archived news article. A personal account of young female cotton mill workers in Massachusetts during the mid-1800's.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Was There an Industrial Revolution?
This lesson plan from EDSITEment discusses the actual factors leading to the Industrial Revolution in the post-civil war era. Contains many links to primary source materials.
Digital History
Digital History: The First National Census
An interesting look at the difficulty of conducting the first national census in 1790. Find a snap shot of American society in that year and a glimpse of what the future held.
Open Door Team
Open Door Web Site: Brief History of the Cotton Industry
General history overview of the development of the Cotton Industry. Read here to learn about the history and growth of the Cotton Industry.
PBS
Who Made America?: Francis Cabot Lowell:consolidated Manufacturing
A brief biography of Francis Cabot Lowell which describes his role in the industrial revolution in the United States. Read about the factory system, the so-called Lowell girls, and mechanization of cloth manufacture.
Other
Wake Forest University: The Industrial Revolution
Two primary source readings on the effects of the Industrial Revolution on families in England and Germany plus some good background information on the Industrial Revolution itself.
The History Cat
The History Cat: The Industrial Revolution
Summarizes the events of the Industrial Revolution in Britain by highlighting what happened in the cotton industry and the mining industry.
Victorian Web
Brown University: Victorian Web: Child Labor
Looks at child labor in industrialized England during Victorian times. Links are provided throughout the article for additional information on related subjects.
Victorian Web
Brown University: Victorian Web: Life of the Industrial Worker in 19th Century
The Victorian Web provides a report to British Parliament submitted in 1833 by a medical observer on how work in textile factories affected the physical health of the laborers. Also includes essays from a factory owner's point of view...