| Term Paper Title | Ohio Had A Major Role In Moving The Country Toward Big Business Industrializatio |
| # of Words | 1165 |
| # of Pages (250 words per page double spaced) | 4.66 |
Ohio
Ohio had a major role in moving the country toward big business industrialization. First of all, it was Ohios population that moved from rural areas to
urban settings. In 1860, eighty-three percent of Ohio was rural. In 1880, only sixty-eight percent of the population was rural. Finally, by 190, only fifty-two percent of
Ohios population was rural, and in 1920, more than half of the population of the United State lived in urban areas. As a result of this change in population, Ohios
economy changed drastically as well. In 1860, processed meats and grains made up twenty-six percent of all Ohio manufactured products. However, by 1900, only six
percent of the people were farmers and tenants.
As Ohio became more industrialized, a citys location became extremely important in how successful it was. For example, Cleveland was 400 to 600
miles closer to growing western markets than were industrial rivals in the east. This allowed Cleveland to be successful because transportation costs were a major
part of the cost of doing business.
Clevelands location also helped it, as well as all of Ohio, ôachieve a dominant position in the early growth of the oil refining business.ö Cleveland had
many rail lines that brought crude oil from western Pennsylvania and Ohio, then these rail lines distributed the finished product to other states. Finally, Clevelands
location made it a major place for the development of the iron and steel industry. Iron ore was brought to Cleveland in ships owned by Clevelanders from the Lake
Superior region. The water transportation was cheap, and from Cleveland the ore could be sent by train to the Mahoning Valley and other Ohio steel centers.
The development of railroad systems also helped this age of Big Business. Not only did they provide transportation, they also provided jobs for tens
of thousands of construction, maintenance, and operating workers. In 1860, Ohio was ranked first in the nation with 2,946 miles of track. In 1908, Ohio had 9,581
miles of track. In 1872, the state passed a law for railroads to charge all shippers the same price and it set a maximum price of five cents per mile per ton on lines thirty
or more miles in length. In 1881, the legislature passed several laws to regulate the handling of freight, but the railroad companies often ignored these laws.
Ohio also improved its mud roads during this time. In 1873, Ohio had 1,502 miles of toll roads and 4,327 miles of free highway. Ohio made cement, and
in 1891 the nations first cement pavement was laid around Bellefontaines courthouse square. Ohio also made progress in the area of air freight, as the nations
first air freight was flown from Dayton to Columbus in 1910. Ohio was definitely full of ôfirstö for the nation.
The wages paid to Ohio urban industrial workers helps to explain why so many people moved there. The wages rose 50 percent from 1860 to 1890,
which was faster than the cost of living. Tom Johnson paid $1,50 to his steel workers, and this served as a ôprologueö to Henry Ford who paid $5.00. In December of
1886, an assemble of manufacturing workers met in Columbus with cigar-maker Samuel Gompers as the leader. They formed the American Federation of Labor (AFL)
and Gompers was made the president. In 1890, representatives of miners groups met in Columbus and formed the United Mine Workers of America (UMW).
However, before this meeting several miners went on strike. They set fire to several mines, and in New Straitsvill...Read entire document
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