Agricultural Effects of the

    Industrial Revolution

            The Industrial Revolution had many effects on the agricultural world. The Revolution allowed for greater production of food by the new machines that were created. This higher production of food led to a population explosion which in turn called for more food and turned into a cycle of more food, then more people, etc.

            Some things that changed the agricultural world that resulted from the Industrial Revolution were:

            The seed drill. The seed drill was a machine designed by Jethro Tull which mechanically planted seeds at a much faster and more efficient rate than hand seeding.

-- Jethro Tull's Seed Drill

            Fertilizers were improved. Fertilizers improved the quality of the soil, which in turn allowed higher production of better food. This also led to a greater amount of people being fed, which led to a higher population.

The Enclosure Movement. The Enclosure Movement was the consolidation of many small farms into one large farm. This increased the size of the farms. This movement left many people jobless and homeless. These people moved to the cities and were the work-force for the factories. (Watkins)

            With all these people moving to the cities, the cities became crowded, unhealthy and extremely dirty, since they didn’t have many modern facilities as sewage, garbage disposal, and other facilities.

                                                                                                       Crowded slums -

 References

1)   What is the Industrial Revolution? 7 Nov. 2007 <http://www.promotega.org/VSU06036/IndRev/indrev.htm#What_Was_the_Effect_on_Agriculture>.

2)   Watkins, Jeffrey. Industrial Revolution. RegentsPrep. 7 Nov. 2007 <http://regentsprep.org/Regents/global/themes/change/ind.cfm>.