Following the industrial revolution, the market revolution profoundly changed the US through the social, economic, and political aspects of the regions of the North and South; the changes are similar yet varied in the two regions. In the late 18th and early 19th century, a process known as industrialization continued throughout the western world and eventually spread to the eastern hemisphere. Industrialization both broadened the knowledge of the arts and helped to spread technology worldwide.

The market revolution majorly affected the South economically and socially. Eli Whitney’s invention of the cotton gin ended the fiber famine through fast production of cotton. The South was thus termed the Cotton King, and almost overnight, the South became a world exporter of cotton. The South prospered during the decades following the invention of the cotton gin. The cotton gin, however, came at a price. Due to the demand for labor to produce enough cotton, slavery has been revived once again, and plantations rose up rapidly. Slaves became the main source of labor in the South, and slavery became a “necessary evil” in the South. During the industrial revolution, transportation advances connected the US. In the South, railroads bond the region to the North and the West; railroads are termed “Old Iron Horse”. Railroads provided a cheap and effective form of transportation capable of transporting goods at fast rates. The South became the Cotton Kingdom, and relied upon the North for manufactured goods and the West for agricultural products. Transportation bond the Union of the US. The market revolution had lasting impacts on the Southern culture and economy throughout the following decades.

The North also changed drastically in the years of the market revolution; the North experienced reforms in society, economics, and politics. The market revolution caused the North to turn into a region based upon factories and manufacturing. Samuel Slater built the first textile mill in 1804; new factories also formed later. The principle of “limited liability” further encouraged investment of companies and building of factories. Just as the South, railroads spanned across the Northeast region. However, canals, highways, clippers, and other transportation advances connected the North to the Union. The Pony Express is an example of a railroad in the North. In New York, Governor Clinton constructed the Erie Canal, connecting New York to the Great Lakes Region; turning New York into a major port city. Steamboats also provided fast and inexpensive transportation across the streams and other bodies of water in the Northeast. Highways such as the Lancaster Turnpike and bridges bettered transportation in the North. Clippers were also popular until the British steamers proved to be superior. Due to the economic rise, women and children are employed to work in factories in the Northeast; the vast majority of workingwomen were single. However, women and children are abused in factories while working under poor and unhealthy conditions. Children as young as 8 are forced to work in mills to provide income to sustain the individual family, while receiving lower wages than working men. Home life also changed dramatically, as women’s roles changed and families became smaller and more close-knit. Homes provided the emotional refuges from the emotional stress from factory work; the home became the “woman’s sphere”, and women were wrapped in the “cult of domesticity”. The US and the Union was unified throughout the transportation network.

Due to the different economic bases and culture societal standards of the North and South, the two regions are defined to be sectional. The North manufactured while the South produced and exported cotton. The revival of slavery due to the market revolution led to abolitionists in the North and supporters of slavery in the South. The industrial revolution and the market revolution had a lasting impact on the nation of US.