Kayti Davenport
Hanna, Josh
HIST 1493
7 May 2023
Andrew Carnegie's influences made America rich
The richest man in America was not always wealthy beyond belief. Andrew Carnegie was the wealthiest Scottish American in the late 19th century storming through the American steel industry. Andrew Carnegie's philosophy was that wealthy individuals like himself have a social responsibility to give to the greater good. Carnegie’s three modes affirmed the economic explosion in America by arguing that wealth can be left to the families of the decedents, be bequeathed for public purposes; or, finally, be administered during their lives by its possessors to continue the wealth of the public. Andrew Carnegie worked his way all the way up the railroads to be as successful as he became. Carnegie was very determined “working his way into a position of management for a
…show more content…
Carnegie “had distributed $350 million, but had $30 million left, which went into the Corporation’s endowment” (Carnegie Corporation of New York) to give back to communities in need. The corporation has empowered communities ever since. Communities have been empowered by “Carnegie's wealth establishing numerous colleges, schools, nonprofit organizations and associations” (Carnegie Corporation of New York) has empowered Americans tremendously. Nonetheless, America would not have taken off economically without wealthy individuals like Carnegie. To sum up, everything that has been stated so far, Andrew Carnegie used his wealth to help America in the late 1800s for the greater good. Carnegie preached wealth should not be personal but rather shared. He fought for economic equality by ensuring the wealth at the time was spread out for the public purpose, as well as making sure his wealth would be put to great use once he passed. Nonetheless, the United States economy would not have taken off without industrialists like Andrew
Andrew Carnegie was one of the richest men of his era. He helped to completely change the Industrial Era, and had a large impact on American history. Although Andrew Carnegie was a rich man, he was not always that way. Growing up in Scotland and later moving to America with his family, Carnegie faced many challenges in his life; however, these challenges helped to make him stronger and more successful.
Andrew Carnegie was born in 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland, but immigrated to the United States in 1848 with his parents. Carnegie became wealthy through his venture in steel with his company Carnegie Steel Corporation. He sold the company in 1901 for $480 million to JP Morgan and decided to focus on his philanthropic work. Carnegie developed an ideology called the “Gospel of Wealth”, in which he stated that “those who accumulated money had an obligation to use it to promote the advancement of society”. Carnegie became famous for practicing what he preached, as he would fund public libraries and gave money to charities.
Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie was a captain of industry because he gained a lot of money, but didn’t save all of it for himself. He gave his money to charities and different causes that benefited others. Carnegie believed in the “Gospel of Wealth”. This was an article that Carnegie wrote about how wealthy people should give their money to others instead of keeping it for themselves. He supported education and reading because he loved to read and he thought it was important for new generations.
In his view, hoarding wealth and failing to use it for the greater good was shameful. Carnegie, following his philosophy, donated millions of dollars to fund libraries, cultural institutions and education all around the world. By building and funding such institutions, Carnegie left behind a semblance of his positive contributions as a Captain of industry by setting an example for others in his position. Take detailed notes from the reading about why Carnegie was a Robber Baron (bullets are fine).
Carnegie was “One of the richest men in Gilded Age America, he promoted what he called the Gospel of Wealth, the idea that those who accumulated money had an obligation to use it to promote the advancement of society. ”(Foner pg.32) This is exactly how he used his wealth to help the less fortunate. Although the Gilded age was good, there were a lot of negatives. There was a tremendous amount of “economic inequality because the state did not regulate the growth of business.
Andrew Carnegie created the worlds largest and most profitable steel company making him one of the wealthiest men in the world. Carnegie believed that certain people had the ability do certain things and you must overcome obstacles to do the impossible. Meaning if you have the money and means you are more fit than others. He justified his wealth as benefiting society and promoting civilization.
It is undoubtedly true that Andrew Carnegie was very generous when it came to donation to charity, revealing how selfless and altruistic Carnegie could be. Having net assets over $2,167,000,000 as of 2005, it would be sad to say that Andrew Carnegie never did any good with his money, however this is not true. In his lifetime, Andrew Carnegie made billions of dollars through his
According to History.com, Andrew Carnegie’s investments and primary holdings consolidated into forming Carnegie Steel Company, which he co-founded. Carnegie’s next few decades were important because the company brought benefits to both the company and the people. He became one of the most powerful people in the world which lead him to become a steel magnate. History.com said, “The steel magnate considered himself a champion of the working man.” According to Learningtogive.org, Andrew Carnegie was the pioneering tycoon of the Age of Steel (Let’s Talk Business Network 2002).
Carnegie could have discussed the reservations the poor had about the ability of some to become rich through industrialization and how they felt about his Gospel of Wealth. Did the poor really want money from the rich, who had control of many forces throughout the nation? Carnegie fails to provide a bias opinion on the divide between the rich and the poor because he is no longer poor. He expresses the faults in the wealthy hoarding their money for themselves, but continues to believe the wealthy should exist. The classifications of rich and poor also goes against Carnegie’s belief that the American society was changing into something new, when in reality they were adopting some of the old colonial ways like
:Not many people get the opportunity to significantly shift America’s ways of life with empty hands. Andrew Carnegie was a diligent man who pulled himself up to success, having nothing to offer, but his fascination with the steel industry of America. His vertical monopoly in America’s steel industry helped economically. He gained a fortune and did many great works as a philanthropist. One could say Andrew Carnegie’s righteous acts outweighed his unrighteous acts, but unfortunately, he did not stay true to his proclaimed duty as a man of wealth.
Imagine being the richest person in America & giving away money to people in need. Sounds like a nice thing to do, doesn’t it? This was the case for multi-millionaire, Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie grew up in Dunfermline, Scotland and moved along with his family to the United States in the late 1800s. He worked his way from being a poor Irish immigrant to become one of the most popular and successful industrialists that helped change the US steel industry in the late 1900s.
Andrew Carnegie was a poor man growing up. He started with a house that cost 20 dollars to rent, and throughout his life, he had to work his way up the social ladder and eventually ended up living in mansions and castles. Carnegie used a business practice he invented called vertical integration, which lowered costs and effectively made better quality products. Carnegie was a well respected boss and provided equal pay for
Andrew Carnegie was a wise man who gave motivational speeches of how he got to where he was. In document A, Carnegie, at an opening ceremony of a library, stated, “Man does not live by bread alone. I have known millionaires starving for lack of the nutriment... it is the mind that makes the body rich... My aspirations take a higher flight.”
The late nineteenth century was a pivotal moment in American history. During this time, the Industrial Revolution transformed the nation, railroads had dissipated all throughout the country, and economic classes began to form, separating the wealthy from the poor. One of the wealthiest men of this generation was Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who fled to America to make millions off the railroad, oil and even steel businesses. Carnegie is considered one of the richest men in history, and even with all that wealth he decided to give back to the community. As a matter of fact, Carnegie donated most of his funds to charities, universities and libraries in his last few years.
Andrew Carnegie was one of the most famous and wealthiest American industrialist during the Industrial Age. He was a robber baron who made a fortune in the steel industry and applied vertical integration to his business. Carnegie contradicted his views as a robber baron because he supported, but destroyed many unions. This made many of his views unethical.