Big Business and The Robber Barons Essay

The Pullman Strike strike was named after George Pullman. George Pullman was a man who became rich off of his manufacturing of sleeper and luxury railcars (Lawrence). Pullman was so successful that he had a city named after him, which he owned. In the panic of 1893, Pullman’s revenue dropped because of the lessened demand for his cars (McNamara). Because of this drop in revenue, Pullman cut the wages of his workers, but kept the rent the same. Worker’s became outraged because they couldn’t afford these changes. Pullman refused to negotiate with his workers, which caused the American Railway Union, lead by Eugene Debs, to take action (McNamara). This union consisted of over 260,000 workers nationwide to participate in the strike. Worker’s supported the ARU by not moving trains with Pullman cars (Ginger). This caused Detroit traffic to come to an

Cornelius Vanderbilt was born with some wealth from his father, who was a ferry owner, he made quite a bit of money from it too. When he was younger he joined his father, watching his ways and learning them too. In Vanderbilt’s teen years, he bought his first ferry, which was the start of his big successful business life. He was very,very smart with money, he knew how to get it but he didn’t know how to use it. He grew up to own many steamships and he became the country’s largest steamship owner, then he later in life put all of his riches towards railroads, and he had railroads all across the nation leading from place to place, making money by the minute, because of his success in the railroad business, he became the richest man in the nation. So in a way, Vanderbilt was a captain of industry but he was majority a robber baron.

Seeing that the United States' original plan for reconstruction would have been theoretically more effective; the reconstruction that occurred had it's good and flawed impacts on the country. As said before this reconstruction was good, to an extent, but it was flawed in many ways, and it led to further conflict and tension throughout the country even until today. Reconstruction is the root of many problems including the industrial bust, and the future of a divided nation; parts of America that prove reconstruction to have been ineffective. Shortly after the Civil War came the beginning of an industrial boom, it marked the transformation of the United States into a modern era. This period of time was essential for the socio-economic change occurring in the United States because of the industrial boom.

Even in booming communities such as the city of Pullman that George Pullman started back in 1880, even encountered violence and riots. Due to an economic depression in 1893, over half of the workers of this company had to be fired, while the rest had their pay checks majorly cut. This made them very angry since they were now unable to pay rent in Pullman or support their lifestyles. This caused an official strike in the year 1894, where workers were led by Eugene Debs, the creator of the failed Industrial Workers of the World union. Pullman resisted from negotiations, motivating the laborers to start boycotting train cars as part of the American Federation of Labor. Unfortunately, strikes began turning violent again as army troops were required

Vanderbilt was a Robber Baron. He stepped on people, stabbed them in the back, and did lots of other things to get where he was. He was the most powerful man in the country. He owned most of the railroads. He wanted them all of them though.

Pullman Strike: The Pullman Strike was a nationwide railroad strike in the United States on May 11, 1894. The American Railway Union (ARU) against the Pullman Company, and the government of the United States, President Grover Cleveland. The issue began in Pullman, Chicago, on May 11 according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullman_Strike.org about “4,000 factory employees of the Pullman Company began a strike in response to lowered wages.” According to https://www.britannica.com “In response to financial reverses related to the economic depression that began in 1893, the Pullman Palace Car Company, a manufacturer of railroad cars, cut the already low wages of its workers by about 25 percent but did not introduce corresponding reductions in rents and other charges at Pullman.” Most factory workers who built Pullman train cars lived in Pullman Chicago, Illinois. George Pullman wanted to design it as a model community. He had a different people working for him. He hired African-Americans for certain jobs at the company. Pullman also hired young, single women to be his secretary for him, which at the time was very unlikely for women and African-American men to work at all. He also used ads and other things to help bring workers to his company. The company laid off workers and lowered wages, and did not change rents, and the workers called for a strike. There were many reasons for the strike, for example not enough democracy in the Pullman, bad water and gas

After the Civil War, American industry changed significantly. Machines replaced hand labor, which increased manufacturing. Railroads were used nationwide to transport goods across the country, and investors and bankers funded businesses. The period of Industrialization sparked economic growth and strength as a country, and pushed for new reform movements. As population strengthened in numbers, so did our military, making America a great power (Spark Notes Editor). America then wanted to expand by acquiring an empire overseas, which meant more consumers, and a bigger supply of cheap raw materials and resources. This was the historical moment in time when America steered away from its isolate tendencies and wanted to play a major role in foreign affairs

Vanderbilt was known for his fierce competitiveness and ruthless tactics. After dominating the steamboat industry, he began to build another empire with the railroad industry. He took control of many railways and lines and transformed the railroad network. Before his death, Cornelius Vanderbilt donated $1 million to

Prior to the Civil War, the U.S. Congress approved legislation that allowed American companies to form corporations without government consent. This congressional approval is more commonly known as a Charter. It was this allowance that created the possibility for “Big Business” to take over the American economy. At the end of the Civil War, these corporations began to dominate much of American business. These corporations, and the businessmen who ran them, became exceedingly wealthy and powerful, often at the expense of many poor workers. The overwhelming power these corporations had over the American economy drastically changed the impact of the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution changed the way the world worked. For example,

In the American labor history, Pullman Strike marked one of the most violent labor strikes. At that time, Pullman was a Palace Car Company that owned the properties worth millions. George Pullman has founded the company, and he was known to provide his workers with the employee friendly working environment and even the company houses that enabled them to commute easily to the job. During the strike, the workers advocated for a wage increase, equality, improved security, and shorter working hours. As a result of the strike, the transport sector was affected since the railway workers cooperated with the Pullman workers in the strike. Unfortunately, the employees’ grievances were

From 1861 until 1865, the United States was in a bloody clash with itself, known as the Civil War. The Union fought against the Confederates, resulting in more than 620,000 fatalities and millions of injuries. After the Civil War, the United States slipped into a period of time called industrialization. Industrialization is the large-scale introduction of manufacturing, advanced technology, and other productive economic activity into an area, society, country, etc. This ultimately sounds like a positive period for a country to have, but not everything was positive about this time. With the vast amount of money and wealth created, came economic and social issues as well.

How did American businesses go about getting big after the civil war? What role did the government play in the rise of big business? What were the social costs of the rise of big business?

Between the Civil War and World War II, the United States went through drastic economic change. The industrialization of America was going full force and resulting in the expansions of technology and factories. The industrial revolution lead to the urbanization of major populations and most people to turn away from agriculture. Large cities and factories brought benefits to certain social classes and brought struggles to others. The working class were greatly mistreated by the upper class employers and given unfair working situations. Although the working class was suffering, the upper class was only making more money and ignoring the terrible working conditions.

How did the United States become a mature industrial society in the decades after the civil war?

When you consider the contributions made toward the labor relations process, you should allude to who made a commitment to ensure that opportunities were not only accessible, but also achievable and goal-oriented. One individual who made a tremendous commitment to the labor relations process was George Mortimer Pullman. George Pullman was an entrepreneur who invented the sleeping car, an invention that provided railroad cars with beds for passengers. These sleeping cars accommodated passengers by allowing them to relax during times of travel. Even though sleeping cars were advanced and innovative, they played a role in both the rise and fall of George Pullman.