The History of the Assembly Line

In 1789, the United States was composed of 12 states.   (Of the original 13 British colonies, Rhode Island would ratify the Constitution in 1790.)   Eleven of these states bordered the Atlantic Ocean and Pennsylvania was on the Delware River, which emptied into the ocean 100 miles away.   All contained many rivers and bays that provided transportation, communication, and power, all essential to manufacturing and other industries, such as farming, fishing, and mining.   Therefore, most people and factories ("mills") were located near water.   The U.S. population was 3.9 million, scattered along the Atlantic Ocean and the rivers that emptied into it.   Roads and canals were few, so most businesses depended on local resources, supplies and consumers.   Therefore, unlike Great Britain at this time, mass production was nonexistant.   Manufacturing machinery was powered mostly by animal and human muscle augmented by simple tools, such as hammers, chisels, saw, shears and planes.   Waterwheels to power lathes to turn wood and looms to weave cloth were the most advanced machines available where production justificed the large investment in their building.   Cotton was spun into thread by hand.     Pig iron was made from ore in furnaces.   Nails and hand tools were made at forges where triphammers were operated by waterwheels.   Bricks were made from clay that was fired in kilns.   Ships, wagons, homes, barns and mills were built by hand from lumber made from timber at sawmills powered by hand or waterwheels.   A few mills and stores were made from stone and brick laid against wooden frameworks.   Animals were butchered by hand for meat and hides, the latter tanned into leather to be made into shoes, boots, harnesses and drive belts.   Such was manufacturing in the United States in 1789.   There was no mass production.   Likewise, automation, assembly lines and interchangeable parts did not exist.   There was division of labor in some manufacturing industries: spinners were usually women, while weavers were usually men because greater strength was required to operate a loom.   At a furnace, carriers brought coal, ore and limestone to the furnaces, while firemen attended to the furnace smelting.   Because iron and steel manufacture, simple machine tools, and water power furnished by waterwheels were the bases upon which later manufacturing improvements were made, they are discussed below.

Materials

Power

Transportation

Machine Tools

Machines

Division of Machine Operations

Interchangeable Parts

Measurement Standards and Accuracy

Assembly Lines