Cartwright's power loom (1787)
According to wikipedia:
Robert Fulton (1807)'s Clermont
First transatlantic cable completed
1858
James Brindley (1761)'s Bridgewater Canal
Allowed for barges to carry coal from Worsely to Manchester
Karl Benz's internal-combustion automobile engine (1885)
James Hargreaves (1765)'s spinning jenny
Automated thread spinning
From Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
Liverpool and Manchester Railway (1830)
Began the first regular commercial rail service
First occurred in 1850. Gasoline is an important fuel source.
Charles Babbage (1834)'s analytic engine
First ancestor of the computer
Hiram Maxim's machine gun (1884)
Mass slaughter is now possible, begins mechanization of warfare. Unfortunately, as some predicted, his machine gun did not prevent war — people still fought, despite these monsters being on the battlefield.
Eli Whitney (1793)'s cotton gin
This separated the useful raw cotton from its seeds, making the cotton industry much more profitable. It had mixed effects — remember how a lot of cotton was farmed using slave labor.
Thomas Newcomen (1712)'s steam engine
First commercially successful (though kind of clumsy) steam engine, used to pump water out of coal mines. Big deal, since we've just unlocked a new power source.
George Stephenson's Rocket, 1829, would lead to great railroad infrastructure, which helped with city planning, made moving to the city easier, and made trade and large-scale commerce much better. For example, now placing factories in population centers made more sense. (I barely understand why myself, but okay)
John Kay (1733)'s flying shuttle
Tremendously helped with making weaving easier, used in the putting-out industry at first.
Thomas Edison (1879)
James Watt's efficient steam engine (1765)
Gugliemo Marconi (1896)'s wireless telegraph patent
Useful for, like, ship distress calls. Say, for example, the one the Titanic sent out.
Daguerre's daguerrotype (1838)
Early form of photography
Brooklyn Bridge opened (1883)
Large suspension bridge, "triumph of engineering."
Henry Bessemir's steel converter (1854)
Revolutionized the production of steel
Jethro Tull (1708)'s mechanical seed drill
Helped plant crops
Joseph Monier (1849)
Richard Arkwright's water frame (1769)
More efficient thread spinning
Michael Faraday (1831)'s discovery of electromagnetic currents
Marc Brunel's first underwater tunnel (1826-1842)
Alexander Graham Bell's telephone (1876)
Made communicating across long distances much easier, but such conversations still had to be done in public, etc.,
First steam-powered mill (1779)
Samuel F. B. Morse's telegraph and Morse Code (1837)
This would allow for long-distance communication
1883
