The five elements that revolutionized transportation are:

1. Roads
2. River Traffic
3. Steamboats
4. Canals
5. Railroads

Before the Industrial Revolution, there were very few roads, and even they were in bad condition. They were muddy, flooded easily, and were filled with boulders. This made travel by stagecoach or wagon very difficult and dangerous. 

That all changed in 1817. In 1817, Congress authorized the construction of the National Road, also known as the Cumberland Road. This road extended from Maryland to the Ohio River at Wheeling, Virginia. This was the first road to cross the Appalachian Mountains into the territory known as the Old Northwest. The National Road was the largest road-building project to occur before the 20th century, and it was a route of crushed stone. Although this is not as advanced as roads later became, it was a huge improvement! Crushed stone was much easier to travel over. It would not get muddy or flood. Along withthe National Road, states chartered turnpikes, or toll roads. These roads not only provided easier and quicker travel, but also collected revenue for the states. Roads made transportation by wagon much faster than it was before.

Before the Industrial Revolution, rivers were the easiest and the fastest way to transport goods from the North to the South because the river’s current carried all of the goods to where they needed to go. But how would you transport goods by river if you wanted to go upstream? By the flatboat, the previously used boat, it would be extremely difficult and slow.

With the Transportation Revolution came keelboats. Keelboats were built around a rigid timber in the middle with sails; they were built to go upstream. You could also pole or row them upstream if there was no wind. This improved transportation by river because flatboats could quickly transport downstream, and keelboats could quickly transport upstream.