Economic Development Questions

While you peruse the packet given to you today in class, answer the following reading questions:

1. How did the advent of the canal affect the prospects of farmers in the west?
2. Why were canals too expensive for private companies to fund?
3. What ecological consequences resulted from the use of water power and canals?
4. Why did coastal cities construct water systems like the Croton Aqueduct?
5. How did New York become the most important city in the United States?
6. How did railroads offer a better solution with East-West trade than canals?
7. What barriers prevented railroads from gaining momentum at their inception in the 1830s/40s?
8. How did the advent of railroads affect the relationship between certain regions of the country?
9. In what ways did the effects answered in the previous question affect regional economic development?
10. How did government intervention/assistance help the railroad industry grow?
11. What technological innovations improved communication within the nation?
12. How did those innovations affect the relationship between the different regions of the country?
13. Why were newspapers so important?
14. How did commercial interests in cities compare to those in small towns?
15. How did the lowering of restrictions in the formation of corporations assist the growth of manufacturing?
16. As a whole, how did such rapid technological improvements affect the status of the US on the world stage?