The period of time from the early 1800s to the end of the civil war is defined by major and quick advances in technology that brought vast change to American society. Advances in agriculture are what began this era of technological developments and economic growth in the United States, there was a surplus of agriculture created that shifted many farmers from just producing enough crops to survive off of to becoming large scale commercial farmers who were responsible for large amounts of crops. Along with farmers becoming mass producers, there was also an increase in the demand for manufacturing work which was becoming a big part of the American economy and because of this demand more factories were being built. The quick growth of agriculture and manufacturing business meant that people were needing faster and cheaper ways to get goods on the market. This need was met by improvements being made to the nation's transportation system, this period is often referred to as the “transportation revolution” because the development of new transportation technology is what allowed America to grow so rapidly during that time. The transportation developments that revolutionized the country and how we live where the building of roads, river traffic, the building of canals, the creation of the steamboat, and the building of railroads.

New York was an important part of the transportation revolution because of the Mohawk River Valley. Shortly after the war of 1812, the mayor of New York at this time, Dewitt Clinton, proposed that a canal be built from Lake Erie to Albany by using the river valley and then connect the Hudson River to New York City. The distance of the canal would stretch over four hundred miles and began being built-in 1817. The canal finished construction in 1825, and upon its opening was a huge success. The canal allowed merchants and farmers to access the land and resources that were west of the Appalachians, brought more settlers into New York, and made NYC the main seaport. By providing a direct route to the midwest the canal caused people to immigrate into places like Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and parts of western New York, these places were sparsely populated prior to the construction of the canal because of how difficult they were to get to. In terms of commerce and manufacturing, prior to Erie canal being built New York City was not as successful as it is today, ports in other states such as New Orleans were actually used more than those in NYC. After the canal New York City had control over all the commercial goods in the Midwest, transportation of goods cost lowered from one hundred dollars to send freight by road from Buffalo to New York City down to ten dollars if it was taken by the canal. This huge reduction in shipping cost meant that agriculture workers could get their products to manufacturers at a much cheaper price, manufacturers can then produce more product because they can purchase more raw materials due to the lower price, the manufacturer can now make more profit off of selling more goods which means they could expand their company, and the consumer now gets goods at a cheaper price due to less taxation because of lowered manufacturing and shipping costs. Not only did the canal help the economy on a state consumer level but its construction helped earn the government money as well. The government put tolls in place for those using the canal, much like a toll we would get when going on the thruway. With the NYC port being the most used of the time, and the creation of the steamboat allowing for people to make trips to the port and to the Appalachian rivers easily many traveled using the canal and paid the tolls which go to the government. With that money, the government could pay for the building of more canals which helped further industrialize New York and America.

The transportation revolution brought about many changes to the American way of life, through the use of railroads, roads, canals, and steamboats. These changes impacted the economy and settlement of the United States, New York underwent many changes to its economy and settlement because of the Erie Canal. The canal brought in many immigrants from European countries who saw NYC as the place they were going to start their new lives and find new opportunities, because of this the population of the city increased and became more diversified. Without the creation of the steamboat and the Erie canal, New york would not have been able to become the state it is today from both a social and economic aspect.