Robber Barons In The Gilded Age

The Gilded Age, used to describe 19th century American life, was an important part of United States history. Known as a time where financial inequalities among society prevailed, the rise of robber barons arose where very few owned a large amount of the wealth in the economy. Robber barons, a term to describe a group of people who were rich due to corrupt and unethical business tactics dominated socially, economically, and politically. Reasons for this included the fact that many natural resources were being discovered, the increase in the amount of immigrants arriving in the United States, and the general growth of American businesses. However, the biggest factor to the rise of robber barons was the laissez faire government ideal, where

Learning about the Bessemer steel process while traveling to Europe, Carnegie decided to use what he had learned to help the growing industrialism of American life, in which steel became a valued good. By 1873, Carnegie Steel became the most dominant steel manufacturer, and justification for describing Carnegie as a robber baron soon became evident when he quickly created a monopoly over the steel industry. Carnegie made sure to eliminate any possibility of any competitors, undercutting them to the point where he was able to dictate the prices over all of the steel industry. He also used tactics of vertical integration, owning all the suppliers who then contributed to the production of steel within the Carnegie Steel Company. The introduction of vertical integration quickly allowed for Carnegie to accelerate in his success, as it allowed for greater efficiency to produce goods faster, therefore leading to more financial profits. Other robber baron like actions by Carnegie included reinvesting his own company and prohibiting the public from obtaining stocks for the Carnegie Steel Company. By being able to control prices of steel, the use of vertical integration, and other tactics, Carnegie was able to create a monopoly over steel. Until the 1890’s, Carnegie was able to continuously profit, leading him to being one of the titans of industry during the

Rockefeller, who created a monopoly over the American oil industry. Starting in 1859, with the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania, Rockefeller saw possibilities of a new oil industry rising in the United States. He created the Standard Oil Company in 1870, running an efficient company and controlling all aspects of the oil production. Rockefeller then started to eliminate all prospects of competition, creating a monopoly ten years after his company had been built. To achieve the amount of success that Rockefeller was able to attain, many have claimed that Rockefeller truly was a robber baron with his actions of deceit and illegal activity. He was able to influence the prices of oil and make his the most appealing, lowering the price in areas of high competition but lowering it in areas with little demand. Without legal documentation, Rockefeller bought out other companies, bribing them with money if they kept the buy a secret. He quickly was able to dominate the oil industry because he had secretly bought out all his competition without the other companies knowing, or the public, who were unaware that he controlled 90% of the oil market in the United States. At his prime, many claimed Rockefeller to be a robber baron, stating he engaged in business practices that were not only illegal, but then prohibited any other competition from existing to create a marketplace that would