During the period 1876 to 1900, American businesses and industries advanced through new inventions and opportunities that increased production and enabled businesses and industries to prosper. This period was known as the “Rise of Industrial America” (Eastern Illinois University) and allowed the United States to become an industrial leader but at what cost? One of the biggest issues with these advancements was the need for a larger workforce to meet the demand for products and raw materials needed for business growth. The majority of these new workers were immigrants who came to America to seek their fortune, only to learn that the “land of golden opportunity” was not always real. Additionally, many workers were those who left farms to find work and better lives in growing industrialized cities. However, the reality was that factory jobs did not pay enough to support an entire family. As a result, everyone in a family, including children, had to work long hours just to lift families out of poverty. The use of child labor emerged in the late 1800s, leading two million children as young as three to work in dangerous factories. The issue of child labor, the employment of young children in factories and other industries, was one of the most intense issues of the time. During the Industrial Revolution, working children were exposed to harmful conditions on farms, factories, and on the streets and deprived of education until reforms were implemented in America's industrialized cities. On farms, children were expected to: carry heavy loads beyond their weight, work long hours in extreme heat, use dangerous tools and heavy machinery to plow fields, and pick, plant, and harvest. .... middle of paper...... America's ability to produce and sustain its own economy. Child labor was a major component of this emerging industrial force and was subjected to harmful, unsanitary, and dangerous conditions in order to satisfy the demands of manufacturers. Education was often neglected because it was considered that children had an obligation to work and contribute to the essential financial support of the family. Industrialists justified their abuse and exploitation of workers by stating that factory employment encouraged the development of a trade, provided income for the family, and reduced the financial cost to the state of supporting orphans. With publicity of harsh working conditions in mines, mills, and factories, reforms were difficult, but Congress eventually passed laws such as the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, which protected workers' rights. children in the labor market..