Lighting up the Revolution

Nick Milas
In this paper, I will discuss the importance of the lightbulb during the Industrial
Revolution. The Industrial Revolution was a period of change that started in the late 1700s. The
old rural and agricultural villages that humanity has thrived off of for their entire existence were
slowly turned into industrialized towns and cities. These cities contained factories with complex
machines that made jobs easier and more efficient for the workers. During this era, numerous
amounts of inventions were made to make the human lifestyle easier. There were a variety of
great inventions that have positively impacted our lives today. I argue that the lightbulb was the
most important invention during the Industrial Revolution. The lightbulb was the most important
invention because it increased working hours, created safer mining conditions, and further
modernized society.
First I will examine how the lightbulb increased working hours. During the industrial
revolution, many factories were being built in cities. Without the lightbulb, workers could only
do their jobs with natural light from the sun. When nighttime hit, work had to end because they
could not see. The lightbulb allowed factories to stay open late as workers now could see at
night. As americanhistory.si.edu states, Industrial plants could operate in shifts around-theclock, for example, and the concept of "the city that never sleeps" became a reality. This
increased production and made more goods available to the people. This supports the idea that
the light bulb was the most important invention during the Industrial Revolution.
Next I will dissect how the lightbulb provided safer and more reliable mining conditions.
Before electric lighting was invented, gas lights and candles were widely used in mines. These
gas lamps were unreliable because they were prone to explode. As cdc.gov states, During the

early 1900s, the new technology of electric lighting began making its way into underground
mines in the United States. Safety was the primary driver of this new technology given the
pervasive occurrences of explosions caused by mine gas ignition. Since the Industrial
Revolution needed these resources to thrive, mining was a key part of its success. Without the
mines being safe to work and efficient, it would be hard to acquire these materials essential to
building new things. This displays how the light bulb was very influential towards the success of
the revolution.

Finally I will analyze how the light bulb further modernized society. While there were
still the traditional methods of light like candles and oil lamps, these do not compare to the
lightbulb. In addition to the light bulb being more efficient than previous sources, it was more
modern and industrial. As ourdocuments.gov claims about the patent application for Edisons
light bulb, Thomas Edison propelled the United States out of the gaslight era and into the
electric age. These electric lights made brightening a room as easy as a flick of a switch. This
led to a decline in the use of candles and other lighting methods. However, they were still kept
around in peoples homes in case of city blackouts. The light bulb was a key contributor to
modernizing society during the industrial revolution.
In conclusion, the lightbulb was the most important invention of the industrial revolution.
The lightbulb was the most important because it increased working hours, created safer mining
conditions, and further modernized society. The light bulb was an invention available to
everyone to use. It was a popular new light source that were quickly in factories and homes. The
light bulb illuminated anything that needed to be seen. While other inventions were popular
during the revolution, it was only the light bulb that was cheap and affordable for everyone. It is

even reasonable to assume that other inventors during the revolution worked under an electric
light! It is hard to imagine what the world would look like today without electric light.