caste - An exclusive or rigid social distinction based on birth, wealth, occupation, and so forth. “There was freedom from aristocratic caste and state church…”

nativist - One who advocates favoring native-born citizens over aliens or immigrants.  “The invasion of this so-called immigrant ‘rabble’…inflamed the prejudices of American ‘nativists.’”

factory - An establishment for the manufacturing of goods, including buildings and substantial machinery. “The factory system gradually spread from England—‘the world’s workshop’—to other lands.”

trademark - A distinguishing symbol or word used by a manufacturer on its goods, usually registered by law to protect against imitators. “…unscrupulous Yankee manufacturers… learned to stamp their own products with faked English trademarks.”

distaff - The staff from which thread is drawn in spinning; hence, a symbol of spinning or, sometimes, of work usually done by women or considered appropriate for them. “…New England…exchanged the trident for the distaff.”

liability - Legal responsibility for loss or damage. “The principle of limited liability aided the concentration of capital….”

incorporation - The formation of individuals into a legally organized group. “…businessmen could create corporations….”

labor union - An organization of workers—usually wage-earning workers—to promote the interests and welfare of its members, often by collective bargaining with employers. “They were forbidden by law to form labor unions….”

strike - An organized work stoppage by employees in order to obtain better wages, working conditions, and so on. “Not surprisingly, only twenty-four recorded strikes occurred before 1835.”

capitalist - An individual or group who uses private property to produce goods for profit in an open market. “It made ambitious capitalists out of humble plowmen….”

turnpike - A toll road. “The turnpikes beckoned to the canvas-covered Conestoga wagons….”

posterity - Later descendants or subsequent generations. “He installed a powerful steam engine in a vessel that posterity came to know as the Clermont….”

productivity - In economics, the relative capacity to produce goods and services, measured in terms of the number of workers and machines needed to create goods in a certain length of time. “The principle of division of labor…spelled productivity and profits….”

transient - Referring to a person without a fixed or long-term home or job; a migrant. “…they left little behind them but the homely fruits of their transient labor.”