Survival Of The Fittest In The Early 1900's

The man who was a business legend from the 1800s. The man who rose from having nothing to having everything. The man who obtained the first billion dollars. The man who once controlled “90 percent of the nation’s refineries and pipelines” (history.com). John D. Rockefeller Sr. was a powerful oil tycoon whose legacy would carry on forever. Rockefeller went from only getting a couple of dollars a week to earning millions at a time, with help from no one but himself. But the true question remains; did Rockefeller have a positive or negative impact on American society? During the late 1800s society began to organize business’ into two categories: captains of industry or robber baron’s. Many people argue which one Rockefeller was, but in the overall

In 1879 Henry George wrote an article titled “Progress and Poverty”. In this article he discussed the ongoing industry and he stated that “the wealthy class is becoming more wealthy; but the poorer class is becoming more dependent.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, during the climax of the American Industrial Revolution, there was a small group of men who owned the major businesses and were leaders of their industries. They owned factories, railroads, banks, and even created company towns for the sole purpose of housing their workers. Due to the efforts of these few men, the U.S. economy became the envy of the world, and America became a leading world power. They provided the public with products that were in high demand for reasonable prices, and opened their markets to countries overseas. Although many people believe the early industrialists were Robber Barons who exploited the poor, these great men were truly Captains of Industry who created new ways of doing

In the Gilded Age, big business controlled most aspects of everyday life. As the United States was amid a time of economic growth, big business was growing as well-- contributing to that economic growth, all the while, gaining control and dominance across the nation. With such an influencing power, big business cared less to think about anyone else other than themselves. Due to this corrupt possession of power big business possessed, legislation was passed in their favor with the government wrapped around their fingers. The economy, politics and the lives of most Americans were affected negatively when big business reigned supreme.

At the turn of the 19th century also known as the Gilded Age, many immigrants came to the United States looking for opportunities to live a new life that they were not able to live back home. Many of them may have had hopes of finding a miraculous career that would bring them fame and fortune just like Carnegie, Rockefeller, and Morgan did. But in reality it was not as glamorous and prosperous as it may have seemed to be. Instead it was filled with greed and corruption. Although the United States experienced an economic boom, it created an extremely wealthy upper class. Thus only widening the wealth gap between the rich and poor during this era.

Following the war, congress pushed transformation into an agriculture and industrial powerhouse as well as commercial development and western expansion. Because of advances in transportation and communications including, continental railroads and transatlantic telegraph systems, huge corporations began to control the economy. As William Graham Sumner said, “the process of industrial revolution development, controls us all because we are all in it. It creates the conditions of our own existence, sets the limits of our social activity, and regulates the bonds of our social relations”. Many businesses grew exponentially in size and power because of business men by the name of John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, and J. Pierpont Morgan. They controlled standard oil and Carnegie steel and monopolized all other competition. Morgan, helped Carnegie and Rockefeller monopolize competitors thru his investment bank, J. Pierpont Morgan and company. As big business’s grew, farm owners struggled, forcing them to become wage earning laborers.

The major wealthy capitalists of the time-Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, J. Pierpont Morgan, and Cornelius Vanderbilt-all played a tremendous role in developing American industry and ultimately the economy as a whole. Through their business ventures, they vastly increased the industrial output of America. For example,

Each industrialist showed some traits of being a Captain of Industry at one time or another. Andrew Carnegie says in Wealth and Its Uses that millionaires “are the bees that make the most honey, and contribute most to the hive even after they have gorged themselves full.” (Document B). This is meant to mean that the industrialists ruled the highest businesses in the industry, but managed to also contribute to the community in various ways. Carnegie also said in Wealth that “ the duty of the man of wealth [is]...to set an example of modest, unostentatious living [and to]...bringing to their

The late nineteenth century was an era of growth in the USA. It introduced railroads, telephone lines, opportunities for entrepreneurs, and cheap goods for consumers. Mark Twain dubbed this time period the Gilded Age; the period was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath. Between 1870 and 1900, corporations grew significantly across the board in number, size, and influence. The newfound efficiency of resources and mass production resulted in an increase in the production of American goods and the amount of unskilled laborers but also created a wide divide between classes and a maldistribution of power. The American people responded to these impacts through both an increased participation in consumerism and the formation of both

While the rich were getting richer, the poor were getting poorer. As Henry George said in his book “Progress and Poverty”, “The wealthy class is becoming more wealthy; but the poorer class is becoming more dependent. The gulf between the employed and the employer is growing wider; social contrasts are becoming sharper; as liveried carriages appear; so do barefooted children.” The United States was becoming dependent on these “Robber Barons” for jobs because of the influx of immigrants. Employees worked extremely long hours at a ridiculously low rate while owners made millions. The government, meanwhile was enjoying a wonderful Gilded Age.

America’s industrial growth during the period from 1870 to 1900 was greatly impacted by growth of large corporations that affected the economics and politics of our nation. As corporations began to grow, so did their power and influence. Their numbers grew to be so significant that they were known to be one of the major forces within the United States, with both a great amount of power and the ability to control much within the United States. Their power and influence expanded and impacted the economic and political aspects of our nation. These corporations dominated American business and defined the American culture. The Gilded Age, a term coined by Mark

Throughout American industrialization, large industries were run by some of the richest men in history. These men got the nickname “robber barons” due to their creation of large monopolies by making questionable business and government activities, and by taking advantage of their workers to succeed. But in The Myth of the Robber Barons by Burton W. Folsom, he argues against these claims, and he takes a deeper look into some of America’s richest and most successful men. By specifically looking at Cornelius Vanderbilt, John D. Rockefeller, James J. Hill, the Scranton family and many more, Folsom believed that these so-called robber barons were actually entrepreneurs with a drive to succeed, leading to an improvement in American lives.

During the gilded ages, the overall wealth distribution was immensely divided, separating the rich from the poor more than ever. USHistory.org has published many different articles about this tiem period many being specifically on the Gilded Age and in one of these articles it is stated that “New technologies and new ways of organizing business led a few individuals to the top. The competition was ruthless. Those who could not provide the best product at the cheapest price were simply driven into bankruptcy or were bought up by hungry, successful industrialists,” This shows how easy it is for the rich to get richer by simply organizing their companies so they can produce a lot for a little, dividing the population into the two groups so easily

In the case of this historical era, the people that sought to enjoy the most freedom were those who owned large industries, and received high sums of profit from their vast empires. In a sense, this was seen as a good thing some of these “captains of industry” came from immigrant backgrounds. Such an example is Carnegie who at a young age provided for his family and shortly after became a hardworking and wealthy innovator. Following in Carnegies footsteps, John D Rockefeller also came from a modest family background and worked his way up. These two examples show a small glimpse of the economic freedom that was allowed during this time period. As Foner put it in Give me Liberty! “These and other industrial leaders inspired among ordinary Americans a combination of awe, admiration, and hostility… most rose from modest backgrounds and seemed examples of how inventive genius and business sense enabled America to seize opportunities for success” (Foner, 593). Foner’s argument was based on the possibility of common wealth citizens to work hard and rise to the top in order to reach the American dream.

At the end of the nineteenth century began an era of industrialization that created an economic upturn called the gilded age. Hallmarks of this age were technological advances, banking innovations, and wealth concentrations. Railroad construction, advances in steel production, and electrical innovation drove industrial and economic growth. Emerging from this upheaval were a gaggle of industrial big wigs: John D. Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, and Andrew Carnegie. These three represented an unholy alliance with government and big business that left smaller