THE EFFECTS OF INDUSTRIAL CAPITALISM

During the Gilded Age, the United States saw an increase in the power of big businesses, many of which monopolized their industries. This time period, although it appeared successful from the outside, was filled with governmental corruption. Manipulated by the robber barons of the Gilded Age, the United States government fell victim to their control. Contrary to this downfall, the nation celebrated much success in the numerous life-changing inventions attributed to this era. With the invention of the internal combustion engine, among others, there also came a major increase in the demand for oil. Entering the flourishing oil business in 1870, John D. Rockefeller created the Standard Oil Company, which later dominated the entire oil industry. Although he had years filled with success in the business, Rockefeller faced a disastrous court case that dissolved his company and years of his hard work. Despite this catastrophic event, Rockefeller found other ways to contribute his knowledge and hard-work by making innumerable philanthropic donations. After many years and countless efforts, John D. Rockefeller had one of the most outstanding and positive influences on the United States through his work in the oil industry and his philanthropic actions.

1. What did John D. Rockefeller believe was the key to stabilizing the oil industry? He believed that centralizing the administration, hard-working people that applied themselves and work together, and a monopoly – owning as much as they can – would stabilize the oil industry.

Two of the most well-known and successful companies of the Industrial Revolution were the Standard Oil Company, and the Carnegie Steel Company. Both were exceedingly successful in virtually removing all competition in their respective fields of business and controlling almost all of the production capacity of their respective products in the United States. Their founders, John D. Rockefeller of the Standard Oil Co., and Andrew Carnegie of the Carnegie Steel Co. conducted business practices that were different from one another in how they dealt with competition as seen in the undercutting or cheap type

Rockefeller went out and did all he could do to buy out as many oil companies as he could, he started in Ohio and from there business started booming for the Standard Oil company. I believe that the government should not break up the Standard Oil company’s monopoly, this is because John Rockefeller worked hard to get where he was. And although, it might have not benefited the everyday American, how would you feel if your everyday hard work was being taken away from you? John Rockefeller had been working hard since he was a teenager to live his American dream and he ended up accomplishing his dream, and he worked hard to get there so I think the monopoly shouldn’t be broken up for

The company thrived immediately from the beginning so they started buying out their competitors. The company made very quick moves, so they eventually controlled most of the refineries in Cleveland. Then, they started to make deals with railroads to ship their oil and they started purchasing terminals and pipelines to handle the transportation of their oil. The Standard Oil Company started to buy their own plots of land for drilling and for lumber. By doing this, they started owning every part of the oil business. Standard then started buying out other competitors on the east and west coast. Through this, they established a monopoly, and controlled around 90% of the United States’ oil

In a move that would transform the American economy, Rockefeller set out to replace a world of independent oilmen with a giant company controlled by him. In l870, begging bankers for more loans, he formed Standard Oil of Ohio. The next year, he quietly put what he called "our plan" -- his campaign to dominate the volatile oil industry - into devastating effect. Rockefeller knew that the refiner with the lowest transportation cost could bring rivals to their knees. He entered into a secret alliance with the railroads called the South Improvement Company. In exchange for large, regular shipments, Rockefeller and his allies secured transport rates far

Oil policies went deep into the personalities and early experiences of Rockefeller and his colleagues. They had heightened uncertainty and speculation about their activities by their secrecy in building the alliance and by their evasive and legal testimony on the witness stand. There tended to be aroused antagonism because the very

Rockefeller was obsessed with controlling the oil market and used many of undesirable tactics to flush his competitors out of the market. Rockefeller was also a master of the rebate game. He was one of the most dominant controllers of the railroads. He was so good at the rebate that at some times he skillfully commanded the railroad to pay rebates to his standard oil company on the traffic of other competitors. He was able to do this because his oil traffic was so high that he could make or break a section of a railroad a railroad company by simply not running his oil on their lines. Another one of Rockefellers earlier mentioned but not explained tactics was his horizontally integrated monopoly. Rockefeller used this horizontal monopoly to set prices and force his competitors to merge with him. (All with Doc. J) Document J shows that Rockefeller had his tentacles, or his influence and power around every piece of the oil industry. That, also, includes the politicians and their support.

No wonder that only a handful of people can’t distinguish that this old man was a crock and deserves to rot in hell! With all this positive media attention, the public had been fed lies! In real life, this money hungry, greedy villain is the prime reason why the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed. Rockefeller’s dream was to monopolize the oiling industry, and he so successfully did. Because of his great empire (the Standard Oil Co.)

John D. Rockefeller was a man who worked his way to the top almost all on his own and eventually began giving away around half of his company once he became so wealthy. He once was a young man determined to become one of the wealthiest. Started out from the bottom of a company and worked so passionately at what he does to get to where he became rich. He wasn’t interested in oil right away, he sold products during the Civil War to make some cash at first but when he saw a man named Edwin Drake discover oil Rockefeller saw the future all right in front of him. Rockefeller reshaped the oil business with new techniques and ideas and made billions, taking over much smaller companies and adding them to his large empire that he has created for himself.

Standard Oil was the United States’ first monopoly, and it was a rollercoaster of a ride for the company. Standard Oil started from the ground up and grew into a massive enterprise, that would eventually make John D. Rockefeller the richest man in the world. This would come at a price, the demise of Standard Oil, but multiple companies are born out of the demise of Standard Oil that become some of the largest oil companies today. Standard Oil even caused the United States of America to create a federal act to try and control monopolies from eliminating competition in unethical ways, and from becoming so powerful that they can control not just their markets, but other markets too, and from having the ability to change the price on consumers

In a move that would transform the American economy, Rockefeller set out to replace a world of independent oilmen with a giant company controlled by him. In l870, begging bankers for more loans, he formed Standard Oil of Ohio. The next year, he quietly put what he called "our plan" -- his campaign to dominate the volatile oil industry - into devastating effect. Rockefeller knew that the refiner with the lowest transportation cost could bring rivals to their knees. He entered into a secret alliance with the railroads called the South Improvement Company. In exchange for large, regular shipments, Rockefeller and his allies secured transport rates far lower than those of their bewildered competitors. John D. Rockefeller said, "The day of combination is here to stay. Individualism is gone forever, never to return" (Hawke 128).

John Davison Rockefeller was the founder of Standard Oil Company in 1870 and ran it until he retired in 1897. Standard Oil gained almost complete control over the oil refining market in the United States by underselling its competitors. Rockefeller and his associates owned dozens of corporations operating in just one state.

John D. Rockefeller also started at humble beginnings. By taking risks and investing he found himself engulfed in the rapidly expanding oil industry. Not yet in the business directly he started his own company, The Standard Oil Company of Cleveland. Rockefeller's stake in the oil industry increased as the industry itself expanded caused by the rapidly spreading use of kerosene. The Standard Oil eventually, in a few years, purchased and controlled almost all the refining firms in Cleveland, plus two refineries

For two years, Tarbell looked through public records, state and federal reports, and court cases to figure out what Rockefeller’s tactics were when building the Standard Oil Company. Tarbell used this information to write a popular 19-part series called “The History of the Standard Oil Company” that was published between November 1902 and October 1904. Even though she did not like what Rockefeller did, she still managed to mention that