No glamour. No glory. Long, hot days. An endless amount of back-breaking work. Farming doesn't sound like a big draw, but in past eras many people didn't have much choice. Until the Industrial Revolution in the middle of the 18th century, the rural population was huge compared to the urban population, perhaps has high as 90 percent rural to 10 percent in towns and small cities. During the Industrial Revolution, steam power and reliable machining processes led to the development of all sort of tools and machines that made everything more efficient, putting more than a few farmers and farmhands out of work, and simultaneously creating vast numbers of new factory jobs. At times a trickle and at other times a flood, the subsequent migration emptied the countryside as towns became cities and cities became metropolises. The migration from farm to factory continued well into the 20th century, and to a small extent continues to this day.
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