Top 10 Most Important Inventions of the Industrial Revolution

As anyone anywhere knows, the Industrial Revolution was "revolutionary" in terms of progress with inventions that indeed did help change the way the world works nowadays. If you're surprised that inventions pertaining to communication and travel are high on this list, keep in mind that those inventions had larger impacts than others.
The Top Ten
1 The Locomotive

Better known as "trains", the locomotive (invented in the 1700s, but not revolutionary until Richard Trevithick) was actually much more important than we give it credit for. Before the steam locomotive, we traveled by horse-drawn carriages, which went about 20 miles per hour. Early locomotives (the 1830s) only went about 30 miles per hour, but it was still faster than a horse-drawn carriage by 10 miles per hour per hour but by the 1880s, the locomotive went about 80 miles per hour. Steam trains changed transportation by making it possible for us to ship goods and travel faster than ever before.

2 The Telephone

Most of you are probably thinking "the telephone is on this list because it evolved so much since it was invented, right?" That is true, don't get me wrong, but it's actually aside from the point. Alexander Graham Bell (the inventor of the telephone) wanted "a way to transmit speech electronically", and the result was the telephone, which at the time was clunky and had a short cord. Everyone loved it. Prior to that, our best way to communicate with each other was by letters, and it wasn't as easy as it is for the United States Postal Service.

3 The Electrical Telegraph

In many ways, the Electrical Telegraph (invented by David Alter) was just as important as the locomotive, and perhaps more important than the telephone. The idea behind the Electrical Telegraph to create an encrypted electric signal at one location, and send it through a wire over a long distance, and the recipient decipher the code. President Abraham Lincoln actually used an electrical telegraph during the American Civil War, to communicate with his troops, primarily General Sam Grant, but as far as I know, in the modern era, it's of no use.

4 The Typewriter

The typewriter (invented by Henry Mill, William Austin Burt, or Christopher Latham Sholes, depending on who you ask), helped change society by minimizing the time and expense involved in creating documents, encouraged a blanketing of systematic use. It allowed a way to communicate from distances that improved the business world.

5 The Steam Engine

Invented by James Watt in 1775, steam engines made it possible to easily work, produce, and much more without needing to worry about the smaller presence of bodies of water. Cities and towns were built around factories, where steam engines served as the foundation for the livelihood of the citizens.

Nice list probably I would have this higher it was kind of what started it all.

6 The Lightbulb

The lightbulb (invented by Nicholas Tesla, not Thomas Edison!), is one of the few inventions on this list that withstands the test of time. While it is a step up from the previous alternative (a bunch of candles everywhere, perhaps?) the lightbulb's impact was much more work-oriented than you'd think. Yes, it gives us better light than candles did, but it also helped workers in factories to work throughout the night. Before the lightbulb, that was actually quite a difficult task.

Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison gave us a light during darkness. Thanks to them for giving us light in the night sky besides moon and stars. Industrial Revolution took us to the remarkable changes in our world. It changed our lives.

7 The Spinning Jenny

invented in 1764 (and patented in 1770) by James Hargreaves, the spinning jenny could be operated by workers without the skill to manually weave, and it played a large role in developing and industrializing weaving, given it could spin multiple spindles simultaneously, starting with eight at a time and going up to eighty needles, as the technology improved.

8 The Modern Battery

"What do you mean 'modern battery'?" Well, there's evidence that there were batteries invented about 2,000 years ago, but the invention that sparked what we know of when we hear the word "battery" was invented by Alessandro Volta in 1800. (hence the term "voltage")

But things don't get interesting until 1859, which is when the first rechargeable battery was invented by the French physician, Gaston Plante. It created a nonstop electric current, paving the way for lots of other inventions and it gave us something that would power telegraphs and telephones.

9 The Revolver

Invented by Samuel Colt, in 1831, and patented in 1836, the Colt Paterson revolver (or simply "the revolver") was the first practical revolving-cylinderical handgun ever made. The Colt Paterson revolver became synonymous with Texas, as did just about any gun you can think of.

10 The Spinning Mule

Invented by Samuel Crompton in 1779, the spinning mule
made it possible for a single individual to utilize more than 1,000 spindles all simultaneously. The spinning mule made both the production of yarn faster, but it made a higher-quality yarn. The spinning mule was easily one of the most important inventions of the Industrial Revolution.

The Contenders
11 The Water Frame

Invented by Richard Arkwright in 1767, the first models were for the water frame powered by waterwheels, hence it was dubbed the water frame. It was the first powered, automatic, textile machine and caused people to move from small home manufacturing towards factory production, starting the Industrial Revolution.

12 The Flying Shuttle

Invented by John Kay in 1733, the flying shuttle was one of the major inventions in the industrialization of weaving during the earlier part of the Industrial Revolution. It enabled a single weaver to weave much wider fabrics, and it could be mechanized, allowing for automatic machine looms.

13 The Repeating Rifle

Invented by Benjamin Tyler Henry, the repeating rifle (or just the "repeater") was an important advancement over previous rifles when used for warfare, as they allowed much more shots at a faster speed. Like the electric telegraph, the repeating Spencer rifle was used during the American Civil War.

14 The Bolt-Action Rifle

They were arguably one of most important weapons of WWI and WWII. The Lee-Enfield rifle was the standard issue firearm for the British Army and the Commonwealth Nations. Other bolt action rifles that served importance were the mosin nagant (Russia & The Soviet Union), the Gewehr rifles (Germany), The M1930 Springfield (US), and the Berthier rifles (France). The first bolt action rifle was produced in 1824, just almost two decades after the end of the industrial revolution. You can say based on their mass production they definitely changed the way how battlefields are fought.

15 The Cotton Gin

One of the favorite inventions for history teachers to bring up is the cotton gin, invented by Eli Whitney in 1793. Before the cotton gin, cotton seeds had to be removed from fibers by hand. This job was a long and difficult one, manually. With the cotton gin, picking cotton was made easier, and the cotton gin made farmers want to switch their primary crop to cotton, but this invention also caused an increase in slavery, so all in all, the cotton gin may have been a good invention, but it also increased slavery. It's a double-edged sword, in that sense.

16 The Pump-Action Shotgun

There are only so many ways to say a gun was made.

17 The Automobile
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