After the Civil War, America went through a period of considerable change known as the Gilded Age. The name was coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner, who were “struck by what they saw as the rampant greed and speculative frenzy of the marketplace, and the corruption pervading national politics” (Editorial Team, 2008). Between 1868 and 1901, the nation cast aside its rural beginnings in exchange for a modern urban culture. Great industries arose throughout the states, ushering in a new era of business. However, though the country was making leaps and bounds in manufacturing, many of the politicians of the time were corrupt and ineffective. The demand for manufactured goods during the war gave America’s economy a much needed boost. In addition to war wares, the United States also took great strides in the fabrication of steel and harnessed steam and electric power (U.S. Department of State. 2009). Not only had production levels increased, but the interest in scientific advancement rose as well. “In the years before 1860, 36,000 patents were granted; in the next 30 years, 440,000 patents were issued, and in the first quarter of the 20th century, the number reached …show more content…
These individuals effect on society is debated. Some view them as cold-hearted “robber barons” that dominate the economy for personal gain. John D. Rockefeller, owner of the Standard Oil Company, for example, is known for his harsh business tactics and use of horizontal integration to acquire a monopoly over the industry. Others see them as generous philanthropists. For instance, Andrew Carnegie, the owner of U.S. Steel Corporation, though extremely rich, was incredibly charitable and often donated his wealth to public institutions. Carnegie even went so far as to publish a book on the matter, The Gospel of Wealth, which encourage other successful individuals to take up
Beginning as a poor immigrant, Carnegie wanted to support the lower and uneducated class: he knew how it felt to have an ambiguous and undetermined future. In "The Gospel of Wealth" Carnegie said,
His life growing up, gave him the experience of what the lower class people had to endure, he started out with nothing, but he took advantage of the opportunities he was presented with. Rockefeller, although he is portrayed as a robber baron, gave away more than half of his profit from the oil company, as well as donated one tenth of his income to charity. (The Trust and Monopoly) Despite being labeled falsely as a robber baron, he proved that he was a resourceful businessman that saw an opportunity and went for it, he used his resources and connections in the railroad company to earn him the millionaire status. With great power comes great responsibility, and these captains took it upon themselves, and realized that their responsibility, and duty to the nation, was to inform and educate the people on how to be successful as well.
Karl Marx once wrote, “History calls those men the greatest who have ennobled themselves by working for the common good.” By all accounts, a hero is someone who not only has a positive impact on their community, but also consistently demonstrates their own selflessness, morality, compassion, and generosity. Was Andrew Carnegie one of these great, heroic men? Or was he just another wealthy hypocrite, chaining the poor to the harsh machinery of capitalism while claiming to be giving them the means with which to free themselves? By examining his personal life and opinions, his supposed “philanthropy” and the harsh and vile treatment of his labourers, it is evident that Andrew Carnegie cannot, in good conscience, be proclaimed a hero, as in most
Rose Hernandez Professor Flowers History 106 25 September 2016 The Economy of the Gilded Age Mark Twain named the time period of social corruption disguised in gold in the United States as the “Gilded Age.” During this time period, immigration was high in the North and West, increasing the numbers of those who lived in the United States. Many of those who immigrated started businesses of their own and some of their companies came out on top.
Andrew Carnegie stated, “There remains, then, only, one mode of using great fortunes; …the duty of the man of wealth (is to) set an example of modest … living…; and … to consider all surplus revenues … as trust funds … to produce the most beneficial results for the community.” (Document 8) Andrew Carnegie believed the wealthy had the responsibility to support and give back to the community, while he could not do the same for his workers. He thrived off this belief for others, donating to other causes, but his workers that were still suffering revealed Carnegie’s careless attributes. In the Rise of Big Business, it reads, “Carnegie’s watch on costs never let up in his first twenty-five years in the steel business. He grew more fanatical as years passed and competition stiffened.”
There were several labor disturbances during the Gilded Age. A few of the most popular disturbances were the construction of new railroads, advancement in science and technology, and rise of big businesses. There were four important events that happened during the Gilded Age that was considered labor disturbances; 1877 Railroad Strike, the Haymarket Riots, the Homestead Act, and the Pullman Strike.
The Gilded Age was an age of rapid economic growth. Railroads, factories, and mines were slowly popping up across the country, creating a variety of new opportunities for entrepreneurs and laborers alike. These new inventions and opportunities created “...an unprecedented accumulation of wealth” (GML, 601). But the transition of America from a small farming based nation to a powerful industrial one created a huge rift between social classes. Most people were either filthy rich or dirt poor, with workers being the latter.
Barons such as Andrew Carnegie, J.P Morgan, and John Rockefeller dominated the country through the enormous wealth that they amassed. The power that these individuals wielded was unfathomable. They even bought the presidency. It was through their combined might that William McKinley was elected. This pushed their power and wealth to even greater heights.
The Gilded Period was obviously a time period related to quick financial development, mostly in the western world as well as North. U.S citizens earnings was more than those in Europe, especially for competent staff, the era observed a rise in European immigrants. Typically, the rapid development relating to industrialization led to legitimate revenue growth of 60 per cent in the 19th century, dispersed across the ever-increasing employees. The conventional annual revenue for every commercial staff elevated to $564 in the late 19th century. However, the Gilded Period had been similarly a time of horrible inequality plus low income as countless immigrants streamed in the united states, and as well as superb concentrate of the affluence
Ramez youssef Ms.Duquette U.S History 18 July 2016 The Gilded Age After the civil war and the reconstruction era. The United States start to grow more and more.
The Gilded Age, circa 1870-1900, began after the Civil War and Reconstruction, was characterized by unregulated expansion. By the 1890s, however, the federal government had begun to exert some control thanks to public pressure. The Panic of 1893 was the worst of a number of economic recessions, and further reined in the wide-open industrialization and urbanization of the late 19th century. Men such as J. P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, and Cornelius Vanderbilt built the nation’s industrial infrastructure, and in doing so helped rationalize the economy through the creation of monopolies, trusts, and other economic structures that helped generate enormous—but highly concentrated—wealth. Traditionally, the federal government had never exerted much—if
The Gilded Age was a period of time in United States history where there was lots of economical growth and industrialization. Many people started working in business or tried being entrepreneurs, and this led to many opportunities for career advancements. This also gave people the chance to explore tinkering with technology making it more widespread to all. With this it allowed entrepreneurs and businesses men to be more advanced and create in their field, making them successful and giving them the titles of “captains of industry.” Although everyone didn’t like these practices it was making a difference in the US economy.
The Gilded Age lasted from 1870 to World War 1, “1900s.” The Gilded Age was a period of fast economic development, but also much social struggle. Mark Twain in the late nineteenth century founded the “Gilded” Age, which means covered with gold on the outside, but not really golden on the inside, for example, tin. This period of time was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath. In other words, the outside looked beautiful, but the inside looked old and trashy.
The Gilded Age was to describe America in the late nineteenth century. The outside of the US seemed glamorous and splendid alongside industrial development and massive economic growth. However, the dark sides were hidden beneath it. In my perspective, I believe we are living in the 2nd Gilded age.
A whole new patent industry was born and changed the face of American economy. This point is illustrated by data from the Dictionary of National Biography. If you locate the great inventors’ patents in this Dictionary, you learn that 60–70% of those inventors had only primary and secondary education and came from humble