Allegheny Portage Road rail line that carried canal boats over the Allegheny Mountains as part of the Main Line Canal system

antebellum the decades before the civil war; 1815-1860

apprentice person who is bonded to a craftsman, providing labor in exchange for learning the skills associated with the craft

artisan person whose primary employment is the specialized production of hand-manufactured items; a craftsperson






Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 1st steam railroad commissioned in the US; it resorted to using horse-drawn cars after a stagecoach horse beat its pioneer locomotive in a race

blue-collar workers workers who wear work clothes, such as overalls and jeans, on the job; their work is likely to involve manual labor






chivalry the code of honor among medieval knights, central to the concept of noblesse oblige among southern planters

circulation number of copies of a publication sold or distributed

company town town build and owned by a single company; its residents depend on the company not only for jobs but for stores, schools, and housing

Cotton Belt region in the southeastern United States in which cotton is grown (see Map 9.3)

cult of domesticity the belief that women’s proper role lies in domestic pursuits






demographic statistical distribution of subpopulations (ethnic groups, for example) among the larger population of a community or nation






electric telegraph device invented by Samuel F.B. Morse in the 1836 that transmits coded messages along a wire over long distances; the first electronic communications device






field hands people who do agricultural work such as planting, weeding, and harvesting






genteel manner and style associated with elite classes, usually characterized by elegance, grace, and politeness

guild association of craftspeople with the same skills who join together to protect their mutual interests






house slaves people who did domestic workers such as cleaning and cooking






infant depravity the idea that children are naturally sinful because they share in the original sin of the human race but have not learned the discipline to control their evil instincts

interchangeable parts parts that are identical and can be substituted for one another






journeyman person who has finished an apprenticeship in a trade or craft and is a qualified worker in the employ of another






labor glut oversupply of labor in relation tot he number of jobs available

lockjaw popular name for tetanus, an often fatal disease that results primarily from deep wounds






Main Line Canal ambitious canal-building enterprise by the state of Pennsylvania to connect the Delaware River at Philadelphia with the Ohio River at Pittsburgh

midwifery practice of assisting women in childbirth

millrace channel for fast-moving stream of water that drives a mill wheel

millwright person who designs, builds, or repairs mills or mill machinery






noblesse oblige belief that members of the elite are duty-bound to treat others charitably, especially those of lower status than themselves






Ohio Canal canal connecting Cleveland to Portsmouth, completing a network of waterways linking the Hudson River, Great Lakes, and Mississippi River






paternalistic treating social dependents as a father treats his children

portage the carrying of boats or supplies overland between two waterways

provincialism limited and narrow perspective thought to be characteristic of people in rural areas

putting-out system manufacturing system through which machine-made components were distributed to individual families who used them to craft finished goods






quill pen pen made from the shaft of a feather; the end of the quill is sharpened with a knife and then dipped in ink






return on capital yield on money that has been invested in an enterprise or product






slave codes laws that established the status of slaves denying them basic rights and classifying them as the property of slaveowners






tenement an urban apartment house, usually with minimal facilities for sanitation, safety, and comfort






voluntary association organization or club through which individuals engage in voluntary service, usually associated with charity or reform






white-collar workers workers able to wear white shirts on the job because they do no grubby manual labor