affic.”(TFIR pg.172) The railroad system is another example of economic necessity producing innovation. Thedevelopment of reliable, efficient rail service was crucial to the survival and developmentof specific industries and the overall English economy. The greatest technical achievement of the Industrial Revolution has to go to thedevelopment and application of steam power. Many developing industries needed theability to apply enormous power, more than could be produced through human muscle. James Watt is generally credited with the invention and development of the steam engine. In fact James improved upon a design which was developed by Thomas Savery andThomas Newcomen. The development of a practical, efficient steam engine and itsapplication to industry and transportation caused a great leap for industrialization. Itsapplication was virtually limitless, and it was responsible for lifting industries from infancyto adolescence. The eighteenth century saw a rise in population faster and larger than ever. Fourprimary reason are responsible for this increase: decline in the death rate, increase in thebirth rate, virtual elimination of the dreaded plagues and an increase in the availability offood. The increase in the availability of food is the most significant of these reasons, forpeople in England and Scotland were eating a much larger and healthier diet than everbefore. Industry provided higher wages than what could be found in the villages, thisallowed many young people in the urban areas to marry much younger than before andproduce children earlier. With the factory system becoming more and more common in England during theeighteenth century we find a shift in population. Factories were created and soonsettlements popped up around these factories. In a few cases housing was provided forthe workers by the employers. Factories were usually located near a readily availablesource of power. The most readily available sour...
