Factories in American History

Conceptions of what a factory is or what industrialization is has changed drastically since the first factories were made. In many ways our modern day conceptions of factories and industrialization can be altered by our understanding of their history. As America grows as a nation, so do the ideas of market strategies, the economy, factory life, government policies, and more. Coming into the 18^th century the word "factory" had two meanings: the first, dating from the 15^th century, and defined factory as an establishment where traders or "factors" conducted business. The second definition, coming about in the 17^th century, defined factory as a contraction of manufactory or workshop, a place where something was made (Gilje, 2006). The latter of the two is closer to definitions found today in the 21^st century, and the reason for this whole essay.

One of the current definitions that I find presents a well-rounded definition of a factory (considering past and present interpretations) was found on www.ushistory.org; they define a factory as a newly developed, large form of business enterprise that involved the use of power-driven machinery to produce products and goods previously produced in the home or small shop (US History, 2008).

Although these definitions and many more can be found in abundance on the internet, there are still a lot of misconceptions on what a factory really is. Reading the essay "Capitalism, Industrialization, and the Factory in Post-revolutionary America" by Jonathan Prude, explains that they key element of the factory was the breakdown of production into different parts to increase out put and profits. This rule applies to solid factories (often near water for power) and smaller workshops. Here is where a variety of changes in the approach of production had a profound influence on American society, culture, and politics (Gilje, 2008). He explains what people assume about factories; that they are not all big, scary, dark, and dank buildings that cause pollution, and with tons of low-paid, low-skill workers running giant machines. A lot of these misconceptions are based upon what many people learned in schools, or more commonly from TV shows and movies.

Regardless of the misconceptions about factories, their conception represents progress as a nation. It meant that as a country we could produce goods more dependably and on a continuous basis. The goods could've been clothes, machinery, house goods or whatever their specialty was. Producing all of these goods brought more money into the country and helped to establish the nation's growing economy.

I think being able to produce large amounts is a good thing, but at the same time the workers should be skillful and educated while doing it, no matter what time periods they are in. I also believe that the coming of factories represents progress, because we are better able to take care of ourselves. Even so, progress isn't always necessarily positive; it depends on who you ask. Ask a factory owner or business partners and they might tell you the idea of combining materials, workers, machines, and power, all under one roof was the perfect opportunity to do even better business, and distribute their product to even more consumers. On the other hand, asking some people in a community nearby a factory may have seen the additional production as a bad thing; saying that it causes pollution, or makes too much noise. Both arguments might be valid, but the truth remains that without factories America would not be the country it is today.

In the end, reading Prude's essay cleared up a lot about what a factory is and isn't. I can even admit myself that I thought most factories were dingy and scary, with huge machines, and people scarce. I learned a greater understanding of a factory, and now see how they aided in building our economy and nation as a whole.

References

Gilje, P. (2006). Wages of Independence: Capitalism in the Early American Republic.

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

US History. (2008). The First American Factories. Retrieved December 1, 2009 from

http://www.ushistory.org/us/25d.asp