1. Mr. Marinello * US History
The Age of industry
Mr. Marinello * US History

2. Railroads
By 1869 Railroads spanned the entire continent of the United States.
The driving of “the golden spike” signaled the creation of a transcontinental railroad.
What used to take months, now only took days
The railroads changed time
In 1869 Professor C.F. Dowd proposed dividing the earth into 24 “time zones”
In 1883 the railroads synchronized their watches and standardized time in the United States

3. Big Business Andrew Carnegie
Born to penniless parents in Scotland in 1836
Moves to America in 1848, by age 18 he begins work for the Pennsylvania Railroad
Is able to invest in railroad stocks because he worked so hard.
At the time of his death he was worth $475 million.
Carnegie pioneered many modern business practices

4. Carnegie Moves Into Steel
By 1899 Carnegie owned a steel company that produced more steel than all of Great Britain combined
Carnegie pioneered new techniques
Vertical integration
Stock as pay incentive
Competition amongst his employees

5. Social Darwinism Based on Darwin’s ideas about evolutionary biology
Specific species are better adapted to succeed and others are not, those that aren’t will die out.
Advanced the idea that there should not be government regulation of business because it would help the weak to survive longer than they normally would.
The strong will survive
This idea has root in Puritan philosophy
If you are successful it’s because you worked hard for it and God favored you
If you were poor you weren’t favored by God and deserved what you got
Sound familiar?

6. Growth and Consolidation
Many companies began to combine with others in their industry
Mergers: When one company bought out the stock of another company, the goal was monopoly
Monopoly: When one company controls their entire industry that they work in
Trust: When two companies agreed turned their stocks over to a third party and collected money from the stocks.

7. The Result of Unchecked Growth
In 1901, United States Steel bought Carnegie Steel the result was the largest company in the world.
John D. Rockefeller started Standard Oil in 1870
They processed 2% of the nations crude oil
By 1880 they processed over 90%
He got there through monopolistic practices
Who benefits from a monopoly?
At the time of his death Rockefeller was worth $336 billion dollars
Bill Gates is worth $40 billion

8. Robber Barons
Critics of Rockefeller and his like called them “Robber Barons”
Criticized the massing of wealth by a few people at the top
In truth many philanthropists supported the arts, libraries and other organizations
Andrew Carnegie’s net worth at his death was $475 million
He gave away 90% of it to the arts
John Rockefeller gave away roughly $500 million
Helping to found the University of Chicago

9. Trust Busting
The government became suspicious of the wealth accumulation by so few people.
In 1890, the Sherman Anti-Trust Act was enacted
Made it illegal to form trusts that interfered with the free trade between states
Difficult to enforce
Standard Oil just reorganized their business to avoid the law
Enforcement eventually stopped and consolidation continued

10. The Rise of the Labor Movement
America was doing very well by the wealthy
The working classes were not fairing as well
Steel workers worked a 7 day work week
Seamstresses worked 12 hour shifts, 6 days a week
There were no benefits:
Vacation time
Sick leave
Unemployment compensation
Reimbursement for injuries on the job

11. Factory Conditions Working conditions were dangerous Everyone worked
In 1882, an average of 675 laborers were killed in work related accidents
Everyone worked
By 1910, there were 8 million women working for wages
20 % of boys and 10% of girls under 15 held full time jobs
Leaving little time for school, let alone leisure
There was no after school soccer

12. Factory Conditions Wages were low
Children made as little as $.27 per day (roughly $7 today)
Adults made $267-$498 per year

13. Labor Unions Begin to Form
Labor unions were a product of the Industrial Revolution
First ones were formed in the early 1700’s
The first large scale ones were formed in 1866
Laborers had little to no power in these factories
Union demanded better working conditions for workers
Successful in lobbying Congress to legalize the 8 hour work day

14. Unions Improve Working Conditions
The American Federation of Labor entered into agreements with employers to settle working hours, salaries and safer working conditions,
The AFL preferred to use strikes as a way to force employers to agree.
Between 1890 and 1915 weekly wages rose from $17 to $24
Work hours fell from 54 to 49

15. Women Fight For Better Conditions
Women were barred from joining unions
They were still powerfully involved in the movement
One of the most prominent organizers for women was Mary Harris (Mother) Jones.
Jones organized strikes for coal miners and organized children to march on the Washington to focus on child labor conditions
In 1909, Pauline Newman helped to organize the Ladies' Garment Worker’s Union

16. Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
March 25, 1911 a fire broke out in a garment factory in New York.
Management had barred the doors to prevent theft
The fire spread quickly due to the poor conditions in the factory.
In all, 146 women died in the fire.