The Great Britain was known to have started the Industrial Revolution due to the series of technological advances in manufacturing taking place. However, due to competition with other countries, the demand for its textile industry started to decrease. It can be primarily attributed to much cheaper labour costs in other countries most likely the United States.
The main reason that England lost its hold on the textile industry was that the plantations in the United States started to grow cotton.
Cotton became the principal activity in the Southern states of the United States. In these plantations, slaves worked the fields. Indeed, slavery was an important factor to harvest cotton and represented a vital element in the economy of the South. States like Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, and Arkansas grew so much Cotton that was to satisfy the demand in the Northern states and it was exported to England.
Chinese immigrants were the first group that was federally excluded by law. They were prohibited from immigrating for labor reasons in 1882 with the Chinese Exclusion Act.
