Museum Curator Reflection

Picture of Our Exhibit:



For the analysis portion of our curator, my group observed multiple sources regarding the negative effects of the Industrial Revolution. The analysis process included finding the source name or title, date of the source, author, location, what motivated the author to produce the source, and what the visitor should learn from the source. Analyzing sources is an integral part of curating to ensure that the curator has an exceptional understanding of the topic being taught to visitors. My group's exhibit informed visitors about the negative effects if the Industrial Revolution. Most of the negative aspects of this era revolved around pollution and poor living conditions. Our sources consisted of: "Industry 1715-1815", a map of England representing regions of important inventions or achievements, "View of Manchester", an image of the abundant amount of pollution in Manchester, "Observations of the Filth of the Thames", a letter written by Professor Michael Faraday expressing his anger towards to pollution in the Thames River, created by factories, "Evidence on the Standard of Living
Debate in Great Britain", a table of statistics depicting the average income and cost of living during
the Industrial Revolution, showing that one would never be able to escape poverty, "A Victorian Slum", an image depicting the poor living conditions on Dudley Street, and "Differing Views of English Industrialization in the 1880's", an article depicting two opinions and perspectives of the Industrial Revolution. My group chose our title, "Progress Has A Price" to accentuate that even though the Industrial Revolution revolutionized the world, this era had negative effects on the people and environment during this time period. As visitors come to view our exhibit, my group hopes to inform them on the negative effects of the Industrial Revolution and how they impacted the people of this era.


Various posters focused on other themes and aspects of the Industrial Revolution. Other important
aspects of the Industrial Revolution included transportation, child labor, slavery, and sewing. Transportation was an important part of the Industrial Revolution as it allowed perishable goods to be transported quickly. The innovations of the steam engine and the railroad revolutionized
transportation and partially led to the success of the Industrial Revolution. Child labor was also an important topic of the Industrial Revolution. Many children worked in factories and textile mills to help support their families. Often, children worked under poor conditions and risked their health by working in these mills and factories. Another topic connected to the Industrial Revolution is slavery. The bales of cotton sent to factories were picked by slave laborers. These slaves worked under poor condition and under demanding overseers. Lastly, sewing served as an important part of the Industrial Revolution. In an effort to decrease the amount of manual sew work, the almond loom, spinning jenny, mechanized loom, and the spinning wheel were invented. These machines were often run by wives and children.