In the decades after the Civil War, an "Engine of Change" spread across America (LN 9/11). This engine had five chief causes: government assistance, availability of resources, human capital, foreign capital, and technology. From the second Industrial Revolution to World War I, America witnessed a period of reaction that shaped the twentieth century. The Engine of Change affected the worlds of industrial work, politics, law, and foreign relations.
The Engine of Change saw the rise and spread of Big Business throughout the United States. In 1860, a majority of people did not have jobs industrial in nature, but retained skilled trades such as men's clothing and shoes (LN 9/11). This would soon change over the next few decades as Big Business transformed the labor force. The first Big Business was the railroad industry (R 39). The national railroad system provided transportation for the nations goods with the completion of the transcontinental railroad. …
