Thomas Gibbons was allowed to operate his steamboats in New York. It was a case when a historic point choice in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the ability to manage interstate trade, allowed to Congress by the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, enveloped the ability to direct route.
In the age of the enlightenment people shifted their mentality, suddenly it didn't matter if you were rich or powerful, all it mattered is how smart, educated, innovative and serious you were. This led to many breakthroughs and tendency to write things down boosting the overall society's education and interest in science, tech, philosophy etc.
That's all I know (I'm more mathematically oriented) but I hope this helps.
The North had double the railroads per square mile compared to the South, and they had a tremendous industrial advantage over the South as well during the Civil War.
