INDUSTRIALIZATION AND THE “GILDED AGE”. Identify the following: Bessemer Process Alexander Graham Bell Telephone Thomas Edison Elias Howe Elisha Otis.

INDUSTR

IALIZ

ATIO

N AND

THE “G

ILDED A

GE”

Identify the following:

Bessemer Process

Alexander Graham Bell

Telephone

Thomas Edison

Elias Howe

Elisha Otis

Christopher Sholes

Orville and Wilbur Wright

Transcontinental Railroad

Free Enterprise System

National Market

Corporation

Shareholder

TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATIONS

AMERICAN INDUSTRIALIZATION PROCEEDED AT A RAPID PACE IN THE YEARS AFTER THE CIVIL WAR.

• Steam and electricity replaced human and animal strength

• Iron replaced wood and steel replaced iron

BESSEMER PROCESS

Bessemer Process made the production of steel ore economical.

Before 1 Day =5 tonsAfter 15 minutes = 5 tons

STEAM POWER

• Powered textile mills• Pneumatic drills were able to cut

deeper into the earth• Coal mining• 1860 – 14 million tons • 1884 – 100 million tons

OIL

Petroleum products were first used for lighting and lubrication.

Internal combustion engine developed at the end of the nineteenth century was used gasoline to run cars and the first airplanes.

COMMERCIAL USE OF ELECTRICITY

First used as means of communication.Thomas Edison developed the first light bulb

Electricity would be used to power streetcars, subway trains, refrigerators and elevators

GROWTH OF RAILROADS

• During the Civil War a northern route for the transcontinental railroad was agreed on.

• Two groups of laborers worked on the rail line

• One from California to the East and the other from the Missouri to the West

Built by Chinese immigrants Paid $26 – 35$ a month Met at Promontory Point, Utah

Other routes soon followed.

DEVELOPMENT OF A NATIONAL MARKET

• Linking railroads, canals, telegraphs and telephones led to the creation of a national market.

• Shipping was much less expensive

• New methods of selling were developed•Department stores•Chain stores•Mail-order houses.•More advertising.

POPULATION GROWTH

• Statistics1850 – 23 million Americans•1900 - 76 million.

• Caused by birth rate and constant stream of Europeans•Demand for goods increased•No shortage of labor• But also placed increasing demands on resources.

NEW TYPES OF BUSINESS ORGANIZATION• Before the Civil War most businesses

were owned by individuals.

• After the Civil War corporations were formed

• Corporations are charted by the government and recognized as an individual person

• Corporations issue stocks to individual investors making them share holders.

FREE ENTERPRISE SYSTEM

Read the section on the Free Enterprise System on p. 66. Be prepared to discuss.

REVIEW DISCUSSION

To what extent did technology, railroads, the free enterprise system, the rise of national markets, and population each play a role in making the United States an industrial giant. Support your answer with historical evidence.

Create a chart or Venn diagram listing the advantages and disadvantages of the corporate form of business organization.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND PHILANTHROPYTerms:

Entrepreneur

“Gilded Age”

“Captains of Industry”

Robber Barons”

Andrew Carnegie

John D. Rockefeller

Monopoly

ENTREPRENEUR

• Person or group that forms a business in order to make a profit.

• Large scale production let to lower prices and improved quality.

• Many entrepreneurs during the period amassed a large amount of wealth

• Because of their lavish lifestyles, the period became known as the “Gilded Age”.

“CAPTAINS OF INDUSTRY” VS “ROBBER BARONS”

• Supporters called them “Captains of Industry”.

• Opponents called them “Robber Barons”.

ANDREW CARNEGIE

• Started as poor Irish immigrant• Became head of the Carnegie Steel Corporation in

1892• Developed a monopoly by undercutting the

competition.• Owned all the methods of production (Vertical

Consolidation)• Spent his later days in acts of philanthropy and

gave away $350 million to build libraries and endow universities.

JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER

• Monopolized the oil industry• Oil Refining (turns crude oil into useful

products) in Cleveland , Ohio• Used to make kerosene to burn in lamps in

place of whale oil.• Company became a “trust” and then a

monopoly that controlled the entire industry.• In 1892 government forced him to break his

company up into smaller units. • Like Carnegie gave much of his fortune away.

ANDREW CARNEGIE

Use your text book or your electronic devices to gather as much

information as you can about Andrew Carnegie. Create bullet points

of the facts that are relative to the industrialization of America. View and discuss the video: “Homestead

Strike” from the History Channel series 10 DAYS THAT UNEXPECTEDLY CHANGED AMERICA.

Study sheets will be provided.

BIG BUSINESS CONSOLIDATION

Terms: Economic Depression

Consolidate

Laissez-faire

Interstate Commerce Act (1887)

Interstate Commerce Commission

Sherman Anti-Trust Act (1890)

Free Enterprise

Trust / Monopoly

Conspiracy

Complete the handout on the Pros and Cons of Big Business

GOVERNMENT CONTROL OF THE ECONOMYAt first the government did little to regulate big

business (laissez-faire)

The government did:

• Provide laws to protect property and enforce contracts.

• Establish a system of patents to promote inventions.

• Enact tariffs to help manufacturers

Most people wanted as little interference as possible . Felt it destroyed the concept of “Free Enterprise”.

ANTI-COMPETITIVE PRACTICES

• Became so blatant that reformers called for legislation to remedy them.

• This increased the government control of business.

• For the first time business received rules.

INTERSTATE COMMERCE ACT (1887)

• Farmers felt rates were unfair. Larger companies had better rates.

• States had passed laws against it but the Supreme Court had declared them unconstitutional.

• Only the U.S. Congress has the write to regulate interstate commerce.

• Interstate Commerce Act Prohibits unfair practices by railroads Sets up the Interstate Commerce Commission to

enforce the law Landmark measure marks he first time that Congress

stepped in to regulate business in America.

SHERMAN ANTI-TRUST ACT

• Purpose was to stop monopolies engaging in unfair practices that

prevented fair competition.

• Marks a significant change in the attitude of Congress toward the abuses of big business.

Sherman Anti-Trust Act, Section 1:

“Every contract, combination in the form of a trust or otherwise a conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce among the states is declared to be illegal. Every person who shall engage in any combination or conspiracy declared to be illegal shall be deemed guilty of a felony.”

Do you think this legislation helped or hindered the American economy? Explain your answer with logical reasoning and historical evidence.

THE CONDITIONS OF LABOR

Terms:

Child Labor

Labor Unions

Knights of Labor

AFL

Samuel Gompers

Strikes

Homestead Strike, 1892

Terrence Powderly

Closed shop

Haymarket Affair

WORKING CONDITIONS WERE BAD

• Long Hours

• Low Wages

• Poor Conditions

• Boring and repetitive tasks

• Child Labor

• Lack of job security

RISE OF UNIONS

• As companies grew and the number of laborers increased, individual workers lost all bargaining power with employers.

• Unions were formed to speak for the group and not the individual.

• Strikes and other methods of protest were organized.

• Owners like Andrew Carnegie shut down factories of hired immigrants in order to “break “ the union. (Homestead,1892)

• Knights of Labor was first (Terrence Powderly) . Too loosely organized and fell apart.

• American Federation of Labor (AFL) founded by Samuel Gompers in 1881. United workers in similar economic interests. Skilled and unskilled workers were represented in different groups..

• AFL focused on changing the system to improve for workers.

• By 1910 less than 5% of American workers were unionized.

GOVERNMENT’S ATTITUDE TOWARD UNIONS• Most government leaders favored business and

opposed unions for a number of reasons:• Business leaders often contributed heavily to political campaign funds.• Felt that successful businesses resulted in economic prosperity.• Feared the disruptive effect of strikes on American economy.• Applied the Sherman Anti-trust Act against Labor Unions.• Public still believed in laissez-faire. Union activities were often associated with violence and radical ideas.