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Industrial Revolution and the Civil War

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* * * Argumentative Essay * ___________________ * * A Paper * Presented to * ____________________ * * _______________ * ____ * * In Partial Fulfillment * of the Requirements for the Course * * * ___________________ * * by * * * * James Watt developed a steam-powered engine in the late 1700’s that used the pressure of super-heated water to create steam pressure. This pressure moved a slide piston that pushed a rod on a pivot. The motion turned a rotary wheel for as long as the mechanism was fueled and in good repair. The invention of the steam engine was the catalyst for a series of technological innovations developed during the Industrial Revolution that changed warfare after the Napoleonic Wars through to the American Civil War. Steam engine technology led to the development of factory-based assembly line production of materials, the development of the steamship and locomotive, and to innovations in the production of steel from pig iron. These series of innovations created the means for military power to mass quickly and continuously throughout the Civil War. * As steam engine technology continued to improve1 during the early 1800’s, commercial entrepreneurial ventures morphed into a new industrial system that could generate and project large military forces over greater distances faster than ever before. The steam engine lead to the development of steamships and railroad systems funded by investors and constructed by the Army Engineer Corps to support commerce. Navigable waterways and land rail systems, initially developed for commerce, quickly became the means by which forces could quickly deploy over long distances. The forces were logistically supported from factories located safely away from areas of conflict. Waterways and railroad systems became the framework for strategy throughout the Civil War by moving personnel and supplies along arteries of commerce and transportation from which combat power could mass. With the exception of the Mexican-American War, 1846 – 1848, America enjoyed several years of relative peace during which industrial progress was made using the technology of the steam engine.2 Steam engine powered machinery replaced or enhanced human work. Assembly lines generated large quantities of textiles and products, which were distributed throughout the country along waterways and railways. Combining the technology of steam power with the development of the assembly line lead to the development of an efficient factory system as opposed to the home-based production of goods common up to this time. This factory system increased the quantity and diversity of goods, caused the rural-to-urban migration of workers, introduced capitalism, and created a boom in research and development.3
The logistical framework initially developed to move industrial products could now be used to project an industrialized Army into combat. Like no other time in history, the civilian was now more responsible for providing the industrial means of war, and the workshop became a vital part of the battlefield. Assembly lines could produce uniforms, weapons, watches, and locomotives quickly and efficiently.
In the early 1800’s, American businesses watched as Britain constructed rail lines that used the steam powered locomotive. John Stevens, a retired colonel from the Revolutionary War and an inventor who had success in developing the steam-powered ferry4, constructed a rail system near his home in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1825. The purpose of this small rail was to demonstrate the potential of steam powered locomotion.5 A number investors were interested in this new technology but Army Engineer Officers were the only group equipped to survey land and select routes, plan and design railways, and construct rights of way.6 As a result, investors, in conjunction with the Federal Army, were able to install rail lines throughout the northeast and as far west as Ohio. These rail lines connected most of the major cities to facilitate trade and transportation. Later these rail lines would become the primary mode for transporting troops and materials for General Grant as he led the Federal Army during the Civil War, giving him the advantage of projecting forces in mass.
The development of the locomotive employed with the support of factory produced materials changed warfare by providing the means to mass military power over hundreds of miles quickly and efficiently. Troops, along with logistical support, could now be delivered rapidly in proximity to a battle, quickly escalating the intensity of fighting. The ability to mass troops and material resulted in larger, sustained conflicts that resulted in an enormous loss of life.7 Soldiers and the civilians were now fundamentally dependent upon one another as this new war machine generated jobs for population centers and the population center facilitated the sustainment of continuous battle by producing material support and troops.
The success of the steam locomotive led to an innovative way to refine iron into steel. Early railroad networks were made of pig iron, which was brittle and expensive to make. The demand for a rail system to move materials via locomotive necessitated finding a more efficient method to produce the quantity of rails needed to construct far-reaching rail lines. In 1856, Henry Bessemer created a new process for removing more of the impurities from iron used in most rail systems. This method used air to intensify the temperature of molten iron causing more oxidization. Air blew through the molten iron removing the oxidized impurities within a matter of minutes unlike previous processes of steel development that took several hours. The Bessemer process was simple, affordable, and created a more durable product on a larger scale. This new process caused steel to become the preferred and most affordable material for rails, increasing the geographical reach of rail systems. Another advantage of using steel for railways was the approximate ten-fold increase in the amount of weight that steel could bear relative to iron. This allowed for larger, more powerful steam locomotives to be constructed that could carry larger railcars and increased the load capacity of materials and personnel. Improvements in steel production also increased the production and quality of materials for weaponry. The Bessemer Process developed affordable high-quality steel that introduced repeating weapons to the battlefield in time for the Civil War.9 By 1860, steel weapons, such as the Spencer repeating rifle, which could deliver a sustained rate of fire of twenty rounds-per-minute, were mass-produced through steam-powered factory systems and delivered, along with troops, on steam-powered locomotives on steel railways.
The steam engine powered assembly lines and propelled ships and locomotives. Steam generated the power that helped mass produce uniforms, weapons, watches, and locomotives quickly and efficiently. The ability to project military force, and sustain that force, over long distances was a result of both military and civilian efforts to harness the potential power of the steam engine. The Industrial Revolution changed warfare after the Napoleonic Wars through to the American Civil War by developing factory-based assembly lines, generating steamship and locomotive innovations, and inspiring the production of steel from pig iron. These series of innovations created the means for military power to mass quickly and continuously throughout the Civil War.

Endnotes_____________________________________________________________________________1. This energy-propelled engine was difficult to operate due to challenges with lubricating the slide during superheated conditions created by the steam leading to the development of the valve piston.
2. Zapotoczny, Walter S., 2006, "The impact of the Industrial Revolution on warfare." http://www. wzaponline.com/InductrialRevolution. Pdf, (accessed October 25, 2014). 1.
3. Changk, 2012, “The Industrial Revolution,” March 2002, http://www.slideshare.net/changk/industrial-revolution-11831490?related=2 (accessed October 25, 2014).
4. Jersey City (NJ), From Canoe to Tunnel: A Sketch of the History of Transportation Between Jersey City and New York, 1661-1909 (New Jersey, NJ: Press of AJ Doan, 1909). 7.
5. Alexander, James, “John Stevens: The Man and the Machine.” (MILEPOST, 1996). 5.
6. Smith, Merritt Roe, Military Enterprise and Technological Change (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1985). 87–116.
7. Parker, Geoffrey, The Cambridge history of warfare. (New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2005). 238-239.
8. "The Spencer Repeater", Army of the Cumberland, http://www.aotc.net/Spencer.htm (accessed November 3, 2014)

Bibliography
Alexander, James. “John Stevens: The Man and the Machine,” MILEPOST (1993): 5. Accessed October 25, 2014. http://jimquest.com/writ/trains/stevens.pdf.
Brodie, Bernard, and Fawn McKay Brodie. From Crossbow to H-bomb. Vol. 161. Indiana University Press, 1973.
Changk. 2012. “The Industrial Revolution” © Student Handouts, Inc. March 02. Accessed October 25, 2014. http://www.slideshare.net/changk/industrial-revolution-11831490?related=2.
Frenken, Koen, and Alessandro Nuvolari. The Early Development of the Steam Engine: An Evolutionary Interpretation using Complexity Theory. Industrial and Corporate Change 13, no. 2 (2004): 419-450.
Hills, Richard L. Power from Steam: A History of the Stationary Steam Engine. Cambridge University Press, 1993.
Jersey City (NJ). Public Library. From Canoe to Tunnel: A Sketch of the History of Transportation Between Jersey City and New York, 1661-1909; a Souvenir of Tunnel Day, July 19, 1909. Press of AJ Doan, 1909.
Murray, Williamson, and MacGregor Knox. The Dynamics of Military Revolution, 1300–2050 (Cambridge University Press 2001).
Parker, Geoffrey. The Cambridge History of Warfare (Cambridge University Press, 2005).
Rosenberg, Nathan. Inside the Black Box: Technology and Economics (Cambridge University Press, 1982).
Smith, Merritt Roe. Military Enterprise and Technological Change (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. 1985) pp. 87–116. ISBN 0-262-19239-X.
"The Spencer Repeater". aotc.net. Army of the Cumberland, Accessed November 3, 2014. http://www.aotc.net/Spencer.htm.
Thomson, Ross. Structures of change in the mechanical age: Technological innovation in the United States, 1790–1865 (JHU Press, 2009).
Zapotoczny, Walter S. "The impact of the Industrial Revolution on warfare." Accessed November 3, 2014. http://www. wzaponline.com/InductrialRevolution. pdf (2006).

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