Pollution, living conditions, and disease
The first Industrial Revolution changed the way Americans viewed the environment. It brought about new ideas not only on the natural environment but the living environment as well. These changes were brought on by the shift from living on farms into cities and the extreme amounts of pollution the factories and cities produced.
In the beginning, the public had little awareness of the extent of the Industrial Revolution's impact on the environment. The first factories in America began appearing in the 1790s and the early 1800s in New England (Olson, xiv). The factories were a new method of organizing workers by bringing them all under one roof. As Americans soon found out, “The transformation of the U.S. economy went from small-scale, handcraft production in which pollution was not a significant problem, to large-scale, mechanized, mass production that created serious air, water, and noise pollution problems” (Rosen, 573).
Pollution was a huge factor in changing Americans' ideas about both nature and living conditions. “Industries discharged foul, sometimes toxic, solid, liquid, and gaseous wastes… into the surrounding air, water, and land” (Rosen, 565). People living near factories complained about the horrible smells, smoke, dust, and poisonous fumes, as well as the "tremendously loud noise and repetitive pounding", that poured from the factories (Rosen, 565). These things nauseated their families, killed their crops or livestock, and inflicted physical harm on them. “American society’s response to the problem of industrial pollution during the first industrial revolution” was the realization that factories and industries needed to be regulated (Rosen, 566). The various forms of pollution “sparked the first significant wave of industrial pollution litigation in American history” (Rosen, 565). Americans turned to the courts to stop the industries from continuing to damage their homes, farms, businesses, and families. “Nineteenth century Americans sued industrial polluters under the common law of nuisance… [which] restrained property holders from using their property in ways that interfered with the right of neighbors to enjoy the use of their property” (Rosen, 567). This “nuisance law” gave people the right to take legal action against the polluting factories.
The living environment changed drastically in the first Industrial Revolution. In pre-industrial society, the majority of people lived in rural areas. Then as people began to move from the country to the city to begin working in factories (known as “urbanization”), the quality of life decreased a great deal. Overcrowding, poor diets, and poor sanitation all contributed to very poor public health. The neighborhoods were filthy. Sanitation was a major public health concern in these rapidly growing cities, which lacked sewer systems and clean drinking water (Olson, 29). Untreated human waste was a major hazard since it was not properly disposed of. In most cities, sewage was washed out into the streets where it found its way to the rivers, contaminating local water supplies (Olson, 29). The unsanitary conditions in these overcrowded cities caused the water to be extremely polluted, resulting in an outbreak of the disease cholera. Cholera first appeared in America between 1831 and 1832 (Harvard University, 2014). Victims of cholera suffered “severe gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and dehydration”, and could die in a matter of hours (Harvard University, 2014). Death and disease became a part of everyday life for Americans living in the dirty urban slums of the early Industrial Revolution. In the mid-19th century, after it was discovered that cholera was caused by ingestion of contaminated water, many cities built centralized water supply systems (Harvard University, 2014). All of this death and disease finally opened peoples’ eyes. The horrible conditions in these cities caused Americans to see the improvement of their living environment as an important issue. People found that their cities, as overcrowded as they were, and especially their drinking water, needed to be kept clean and free of pollution.
In the beginning, the public had little awareness of the extent of the Industrial Revolution's impact on the environment. The first factories in America began appearing in the 1790s and the early 1800s in New England (Olson, xiv). The factories were a new method of organizing workers by bringing them all under one roof. As Americans soon found out, “The transformation of the U.S. economy went from small-scale, handcraft production in which pollution was not a significant problem, to large-scale, mechanized, mass production that created serious air, water, and noise pollution problems” (Rosen, 573).
Pollution was a huge factor in changing Americans' ideas about both nature and living conditions. “Industries discharged foul, sometimes toxic, solid, liquid, and gaseous wastes… into the surrounding air, water, and land” (Rosen, 565). People living near factories complained about the horrible smells, smoke, dust, and poisonous fumes, as well as the "tremendously loud noise and repetitive pounding", that poured from the factories (Rosen, 565). These things nauseated their families, killed their crops or livestock, and inflicted physical harm on them. “American society’s response to the problem of industrial pollution during the first industrial revolution” was the realization that factories and industries needed to be regulated (Rosen, 566). The various forms of pollution “sparked the first significant wave of industrial pollution litigation in American history” (Rosen, 565). Americans turned to the courts to stop the industries from continuing to damage their homes, farms, businesses, and families. “Nineteenth century Americans sued industrial polluters under the common law of nuisance… [which] restrained property holders from using their property in ways that interfered with the right of neighbors to enjoy the use of their property” (Rosen, 567). This “nuisance law” gave people the right to take legal action against the polluting factories.
The living environment changed drastically in the first Industrial Revolution. In pre-industrial society, the majority of people lived in rural areas. Then as people began to move from the country to the city to begin working in factories (known as “urbanization”), the quality of life decreased a great deal. Overcrowding, poor diets, and poor sanitation all contributed to very poor public health. The neighborhoods were filthy. Sanitation was a major public health concern in these rapidly growing cities, which lacked sewer systems and clean drinking water (Olson, 29). Untreated human waste was a major hazard since it was not properly disposed of. In most cities, sewage was washed out into the streets where it found its way to the rivers, contaminating local water supplies (Olson, 29). The unsanitary conditions in these overcrowded cities caused the water to be extremely polluted, resulting in an outbreak of the disease cholera. Cholera first appeared in America between 1831 and 1832 (Harvard University, 2014). Victims of cholera suffered “severe gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, and dehydration”, and could die in a matter of hours (Harvard University, 2014). Death and disease became a part of everyday life for Americans living in the dirty urban slums of the early Industrial Revolution. In the mid-19th century, after it was discovered that cholera was caused by ingestion of contaminated water, many cities built centralized water supply systems (Harvard University, 2014). All of this death and disease finally opened peoples’ eyes. The horrible conditions in these cities caused Americans to see the improvement of their living environment as an important issue. People found that their cities, as overcrowded as they were, and especially their drinking water, needed to be kept clean and free of pollution.
The natural environment was what really felt the full impact of industrialization. “Environmental problems [were] caused by the explosive growth of the textile, lumber, iron, coal, railroad, and machine tool industries” (Rosen, 565). The most noticeable impact on the natural environment was the change in landscape. The transportation developments of the first Industrial Revolution led to serious land degradation in many parts of the United States (Olson, 86). Canals altered landscapes by the need for them to have a long, linear shape. “By capturing water and channeling it off in new directions… canals also affected landscaped hydrology and local water supplies” (Williams, 174). As railroads began to replace canals, they too had a huge impact on the land. “Local deforestation around rail lines was often significant” (Williams, 175). Canals also became a convenient dump for human waste products, both domestic and industrial. “This sometimes created a toxic brew of chemicals, human wastes, diseases, and garbage that became a local nuisance and a threat to environmental health” (Williams, 174).
All of this pollution and harm to the natural environment started a movement that inspired a new appreciation for the natural world. “Transcendentalism” was the idea that people should have knowledge about themselves and the world around them that "transcends", or goes beyond what they can see, hear, taste, touch, or feel (USHistory.org). This largely involved finding a connection to nature. Transcendentalists, the most famous of which was Ralph Waldo Emmerson, created a romantic image of the natural world as a response to industrialization and urbanization (USHistory.org). “A leaf, a sun-beam, a landscape, the ocean, make an analogous impression on the mind. What is common to them all, -- that perfectness and harmony, is beauty” (Emmerson, Chapter III). Emmerson defined nature as “essences unchanged by man; space, the air, the river, the leaf” (Emmerson, Intro). He started a new nontraditional appreciation of the natural world in his 1836 published essay titled “Nature”, where he explains how humans do not fully understand or appreciate nature’s beauty. “Nature is already, in its forms and tendencies, describing its own design. Let us interrogate the great apparition, that shines so peacefully around us. Let us inquire, to what end is nature?” (Emmerson, Intro). Before the start of the Industrial Revolution, city and nature were not that far apart from each other so people didn’t consider nature as a separate thing, it was just a part of their everyday life. But once people started moving into overcrowded, industrialized cities, the way Emmerson started talking about nature as its own thing began to make sense. In the first chapter, he explains how even though man owns the land, man cannot own the beauty the land has as a part of nature: “The charming landscape which I saw this morning, is indubitably made up of some twenty or thirty farms. Miller owns this field, Locke that, and Manning the woodland beyond. But none of them owns the landscape. There is a property in the horizon which no man has…” (Emmerson). In chapter two of his essay, he discusses the way people would take advantage of nature and how the Industrial Revolution was changing the natural environment: “To diminish friction, he paves the road with iron bars, and, mounting a coach with a ship-load of men, animals, and merchandise behind him, he darts through the country… how the face of the world is changed, from the era of Noah to that of Napoleon! The private poor man hath cities, ships, canals, bridges, built for him...” (Emmerson). He describes a working man as “poor” because he is saying that one who does not appreciate the beauty of nature and simply uses it to his advantage is a person who is poor in quality. In contrast, he compares someone who is wise to someone who appreciates nature: “Nature never became a toy to a wise spirit. The flowers, the animals, the mountains, reflected the wisdom of his best hour…” (Emmerson, Chapter II).
The changes in thought on the environment brought about by the first Industrial Revolution created many of the same ideas about the environment that we practice today in current American culture. We believe that nature is beautiful and needs to be appreciated. We see the need to keep our cities clean to prevent diseases, and we no longer allow factories to harm the environment with their unhealthy amounts of pollution. Although the changes to the natural environment and the living environment during the early Industrial Revolution were extremely negative ones, they were what caused Americans to be more aware of the damage they can do. The first Industrial Revolution helped sparked the idea of conservation and appreciation of the environment.
All of this pollution and harm to the natural environment started a movement that inspired a new appreciation for the natural world. “Transcendentalism” was the idea that people should have knowledge about themselves and the world around them that "transcends", or goes beyond what they can see, hear, taste, touch, or feel (USHistory.org). This largely involved finding a connection to nature. Transcendentalists, the most famous of which was Ralph Waldo Emmerson, created a romantic image of the natural world as a response to industrialization and urbanization (USHistory.org). “A leaf, a sun-beam, a landscape, the ocean, make an analogous impression on the mind. What is common to them all, -- that perfectness and harmony, is beauty” (Emmerson, Chapter III). Emmerson defined nature as “essences unchanged by man; space, the air, the river, the leaf” (Emmerson, Intro). He started a new nontraditional appreciation of the natural world in his 1836 published essay titled “Nature”, where he explains how humans do not fully understand or appreciate nature’s beauty. “Nature is already, in its forms and tendencies, describing its own design. Let us interrogate the great apparition, that shines so peacefully around us. Let us inquire, to what end is nature?” (Emmerson, Intro). Before the start of the Industrial Revolution, city and nature were not that far apart from each other so people didn’t consider nature as a separate thing, it was just a part of their everyday life. But once people started moving into overcrowded, industrialized cities, the way Emmerson started talking about nature as its own thing began to make sense. In the first chapter, he explains how even though man owns the land, man cannot own the beauty the land has as a part of nature: “The charming landscape which I saw this morning, is indubitably made up of some twenty or thirty farms. Miller owns this field, Locke that, and Manning the woodland beyond. But none of them owns the landscape. There is a property in the horizon which no man has…” (Emmerson). In chapter two of his essay, he discusses the way people would take advantage of nature and how the Industrial Revolution was changing the natural environment: “To diminish friction, he paves the road with iron bars, and, mounting a coach with a ship-load of men, animals, and merchandise behind him, he darts through the country… how the face of the world is changed, from the era of Noah to that of Napoleon! The private poor man hath cities, ships, canals, bridges, built for him...” (Emmerson). He describes a working man as “poor” because he is saying that one who does not appreciate the beauty of nature and simply uses it to his advantage is a person who is poor in quality. In contrast, he compares someone who is wise to someone who appreciates nature: “Nature never became a toy to a wise spirit. The flowers, the animals, the mountains, reflected the wisdom of his best hour…” (Emmerson, Chapter II).
The changes in thought on the environment brought about by the first Industrial Revolution created many of the same ideas about the environment that we practice today in current American culture. We believe that nature is beautiful and needs to be appreciated. We see the need to keep our cities clean to prevent diseases, and we no longer allow factories to harm the environment with their unhealthy amounts of pollution. Although the changes to the natural environment and the living environment during the early Industrial Revolution were extremely negative ones, they were what caused Americans to be more aware of the damage they can do. The first Industrial Revolution helped sparked the idea of conservation and appreciation of the environment.
Sources
Emerson, Ralph Waldo. "Nature." OregonState.edu. James Munroe and Company, 1836. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/texts/emerson/nature-emerson-a.html#Introduction
Harvard University. "Cholera Epidemics in the 19th Century." Harvard Open Collections Program. Harvard University Library, 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/cholera.html
Olson, James Stuart. Encyclopedia of the Industrial Revolution in America. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002. Print.
Rosen, Christine Meisner. "'Knowing' Industrial Pollution: Nuisance Law and the Power of Tradition in a Time of Rapid Economic Change, 1840-1864." Environmental History 8.4 (2003): 565-97. Print.
USHistory.org. “Transcendentalism, An American Philosophy.” Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia. 2008-2014. Web. 8 May 2014. http://www.ushistory.org/us/26f.asp
Williams, Charles E. "Iron and Steel: Environmental Impact." Academia.edu. Hillstrom and L.C. Hillstrom (ed.), The Industrial Revolution in America, Volume 1: Iron and Steel. ABC-CLIO, New York. pp. 157-182. 2005. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
http://www.academia.edu/1862606/Iron_and_steel_environmental_impact
Image 1 "Pollution": http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=164603
Image 2 "Cottonopolis": http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/01-Picture-Pages/10.07-Industrial-Revolution/Manchester-England-Cottonopolis-Industrial-Revolution-1840-Edward-Goodall-Engraving.htm
Image 3 "Street-cleaning": Wyatt, Lee T. The Industrial Revolution. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2009. Print. Greenwood Guides to Historic Events, 1500-1900 .
Image 4 "Cholera Handbill": http://sparedandshared2.wordpress.com/letters/1832-alfred-doolittle-to-george-s-brown/
http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl302/texts/emerson/nature-emerson-a.html#Introduction
Harvard University. "Cholera Epidemics in the 19th Century." Harvard Open Collections Program. Harvard University Library, 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/contagion/cholera.html
Olson, James Stuart. Encyclopedia of the Industrial Revolution in America. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002. Print.
Rosen, Christine Meisner. "'Knowing' Industrial Pollution: Nuisance Law and the Power of Tradition in a Time of Rapid Economic Change, 1840-1864." Environmental History 8.4 (2003): 565-97. Print.
USHistory.org. “Transcendentalism, An American Philosophy.” Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia. 2008-2014. Web. 8 May 2014. http://www.ushistory.org/us/26f.asp
Williams, Charles E. "Iron and Steel: Environmental Impact." Academia.edu. Hillstrom and L.C. Hillstrom (ed.), The Industrial Revolution in America, Volume 1: Iron and Steel. ABC-CLIO, New York. pp. 157-182. 2005. Web. 22 Apr. 2014.
http://www.academia.edu/1862606/Iron_and_steel_environmental_impact
Image 1 "Pollution": http://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=164603
Image 2 "Cottonopolis": http://www.studenthandouts.com/01-Web-Pages/01-Picture-Pages/10.07-Industrial-Revolution/Manchester-England-Cottonopolis-Industrial-Revolution-1840-Edward-Goodall-Engraving.htm
Image 3 "Street-cleaning": Wyatt, Lee T. The Industrial Revolution. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2009. Print. Greenwood Guides to Historic Events, 1500-1900 .
Image 4 "Cholera Handbill": http://sparedandshared2.wordpress.com/letters/1832-alfred-doolittle-to-george-s-brown/