The Rhode Island System

The Rhode Island System^[1] refers to a system of mills, complete with small villages and farms, ponds, dams, and spillways first developed by Samuel Slater and his brother John Slater (brother Samuel Slater, who had earlier built the first fully functional water powered textile mill in America at Pawtucket, RI, in 1790. The Blackstone River Valley of Massachusetts and Rhode Island consists of a series of historic mill villages that followed the Rhode Island system, and which gave birth to the American Industrial Revolution. Today the 45 mile stretch of river valley and the system of mills and villages is a national heritage corridor, The Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, that encompasses sections of two states. The Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor was the second heritage corridor of its type in the US national Park service, having been chartered first in 1986. See also, Waltham-Lowell system

The system would hire entire families to work which let labor fill up quickly. It also hired most children to work entire hours but would pay them less so the owners would make more profit. Also, workers would get homes provided. One last thing, the practice of paying workers with credit started.