Industrialization led to radical changes in American life. New industrial towns, like Waltham, Lowell, and countless others, dotted the landscape of the Northeast.

The mills provided many young women an opportunity to experience a new and liberating life, and these workers relished their new freedom. Workers also gained a greater appreciation of the value of their work and, in some instances, began to question the basic fairness of the new industrial order.

labor theory of value — an economic theory holding that profits from the sale of the goods produced by workers should be equitably distributed to those workers. machine tools — machines that cut and shape metal to produce standardized, interchangeable parts for mechanical devices such as clocks or guns. putting-out system — a labor system whereby a merchant hired different families to perform specific tasks in a production process. deskilling — breaking an artisanal production process into smaller steps that unskilled workers can perform.