During the American Industrial Revolution era is when there was a major age of new transportation. The two significant forms of transportation in this era were the steam engine train and the steamboat. The social effects on America would be the fact that now people could move around the country and travel to new territories, which would later allow those territories to become states once there was enough population. Political effects on America connects to the idea of people moving to new territories. Once a territory gained enough population the territory could apply for statehood. The most significant example is the state of California. Many people were using the new forms of transportation to go to California and the population grew so rapidly that the new territory became a state. Economic effects on America include trade. With the railroad becoming a huge from of transportation more so between the Northeast and Midwest, more markets opened up in the new territories. Also the steamboat became the major from of transportation between the North and South using the Mississippi River. Trade now opened up throughout the country with these new forms of transportation. New forms of transportation helped to lead to Westward Expansion which then allowed America to become the continental United States we know of today.