During the second decade of the 19th century, England's industrialization began to have global impacts. New cities, designs, and architecture began to take shape. During this Industrial Revolution, the most important changes to architectural landscape were the development of factories.
In the beginning factories provided for local markets but as time went on they began selling goods nationally and internationally. Cotton and clothing factories were some of the largest factories. The earlier, smaller factories employed families, mainly child labor. The larger factories were employed by young women who lived in boarding houses. As time went on Labor laws for the children and women along with wage and work hour laws were passed making life a little better for factory workers.
Jedediah Strutt's North Mill, Belper, Derbyshire, England
- Early factories were located next to streams which were used to drive waterwheels that provided power throughout the factory by a system od shafts, gears, and beltings.
- Factory buildings were uniform in design: rectangular blocks of unadorned brick or stone, wooden floors, and usually 4 to 6 stories high
- The development of electrically powered machines brought more flexability to factory design and also allowed for factories to not be placed next to rivers which cut down on pollution
Arkwright's Mill at Cromford: The world's first successful large-scale cotton-spinning mill based on waterpower.
During the same century, across the waters, factory design was also taking similar shape in Lowell, Massachusetts.
Francis Cabot Lowell designed the Suffolk Mill, borrowing British technology, to assemble the first successful cotton mill in the U.S. The factory building has similar structure and style as British facotries also employing mostly women.
Information found in Ching textbook and Class notes.
good job. how do factories influence design today?
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