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OverviewBy 1900, America had
surpassed Britain as the leading industrial power in the world.
land of opportunity, rags to riches expansion of the railroads growth of industrycorporations
ObjectivesYou will be exposed to
The impact of new inventions on the expansion of American industryThe important role railroads played in the development of the US during the late nineteenth centuryHow and why large, complex business organizations developed in the US
Electricity powers the Industrial Age This New Industrial Age was powered by
electricity, unlike the Industrial Revolutionwhich was powered by steam
How would electricity encourage the growth of industry?
Electric engines are smaller and more portable than steam engines, so factories could be moved away from water sourcesFactories would be built close to railroads and major transit routesElectric trolleys became common in cities, encouraging cities to spread out, instead of up
Edison and the Incandescent Bulb 1879 - Thomas Edison
invents a new, more efficient form of electrical light.
Look at the pictures on the next slide. Note any differences or similarities between his bulb and a modern bulb
Bell and the Telephone1876 – Alexander
Graham Bell introduced the telephone By 1900, there were 1.5 million subscribers.
The telephone created a need for operators,mostly women. Why women?
Sholes and the Typewriter 1867 – Christopher Sholes
invented the typewriter. This led to a need for
women office workers 1870 women made up
about 5% of office workers
1900 they made up 75%, or about 500,000.
Oil and Steel become important 1858 – Edwin Drake
drills for oil in Penn., to refine it into kerosene. Gasoline was a by-product that was thrown away.
1890 – Gasoline is used in an internal combustion engine in an automobile
During the Civil War, William Kelly and Henry Bessemer develop a method of making steel that is much more efficient and much cheaper.
What are some important things made of steel?
The Wright Brothers and the Airplane Dec. 17, 1903 – Kitty
Hawk, NC - Orville & Wilbur Wright sustain flight for 59 seconds traveling 852 feet
There was little public interest at first, but by WWI (1916), airplanes were being used by militaries for scouting and combat
– Diagram follows
Henry Ford and the Assembly Line1903 – Ford introduces the Model-T1914 - Ford built the nation’s first true
assembly line using the principles of scientific management, or Taylorism
Eventually, tasks were broken down into smaller and simpler tasks (division of labor)
Before line production, it took 12 hours and 28 minutes to put a Model-T together; after the assembly line was in place, it took 1 hour and 33 minutes.
Part I Review Inventors and Inventions
Thomas Edison – Light bulb
Alexander Bell– Telephone
Christopher Sholes– Typewriter
Kelly and Bessemer– Refined steel
Wright Brothers– The Airplane
Henry Ford– Assembly Line
The Influence of Railroads In 1870, the railroads employed 163,000 people; by
1900, they employed over 1,000,000. Railroads affected popular culture Railroads influenced time. 1883 – Professor C. F. Dowd’s plan for 24 time
zones went into effect. In 1918, Congress made the 4 time zones in the US official. In 1966, 4 more time zones were added as well as Daylight Savings Time.
The Transcontinental Railroad 1862 & 1864 – Lincoln passes
acts authorizing land grantsand loans to the Union Pacific RR Co. & the Central Pacific RR Co.
The Union Pacific would begin in Omaha, Nebraska and build westward. The Central Pacific would begin in Sacramento, California and build eastward.
May 10, 1869, the two lines were joined by a golden spikeat Promontory Point, Utah.
Building the Railroads
Union PacificMany Civil War veterans were suited for the hard workMost were Irish immigrantsPaid $40-60/monthWorked 8 hour daysMeals on the RR Co.
Central PacificNot many Civil War veterans in CaliforniaChinese that had immigrated during the Gold Rush were hiredPaid $35/monthWorked sunup to sundownBought their own meals
The Great Adventure Riding the rails coast to coast was
and still is a truly American adventure. What would a traveler see on this journey?
Like modern airplanes, these trains had different classes:
– Zulu class: $40 gets you there on a bench– Day coach: $75 gets you a reclining seat– Pullman cars: $100+ gets you a comfy
sleeper sofa See next 2 slides for Pullman cars
Railroads reek of corruption Several railroads cheated the taxpayers of the US and made
LOTS of money Crédit Mobilier – This was a construction company owned by
the same people that owned the Union Pacific railroad. The government subsidized the building of the railroads. Here’s how the scam works:
Union Pacific hires Crédit Mobilier to build its railroad.Union Pacific tells the gov’t that it will cost $100 million to build, when it actually costs about $50 millionSince Union Pacific and Crédit Mobilier are owned by the same people, the extra $50 million is pocketed by the ownersThese companies also gave shares of stock to politicians in federal gov’t to ensure they kept getting subsidies. Local or state politicians were given free passes to keep their loyalty
The Grangers and Government Regulation of the Railroads 1867 – Oliver Kelley organized the Grange, a social and
educational organization of farmers The Grangers argued that railroads were a public utility,
therefore they should be regulated by the government.They argued this because railroad company’s were overcharging them to transport their goods.
1887 – the Interstate Commerce Act was passed by Congress, requiring railroad rates to be “reasonable and just”, and established the ICC (Interstate Commerce Commission).
This was not effective until Teddy Roosevelt became President in 1901.
Review Part IIRailroads expanded 10-fold by 1900Railroads established modern time zonesThe Transcontinental Railroad, made of the
Union Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads, connected the east and west coasts in 1869
Pullman carsCrédit Mobilier scandal Interstate Commerce Act of 1887
Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie
Born in Scotland, immigrated to the US in 1848Began working in a factory at 13, for $1.20/weekWorked his way up in the railroad business, invested in stock, and became very wealthy by the age of 241873 – Carnegie launched Carnegie Steel Corporation1901 – Carnegie sold his property and devoted himself to philanthropy
Continued…
Carnegie’s Business Strategies Always tried to build a better product at
lower cost Invested heavily in technology Installed detailed accounting systems to
manage costs Promoted competition between his
assistants Developed vertical integration, meaning he
owned the mines, the trains to move the ore, and the mills. See next slide
Wrote The Gospel of Wealth, which said the wealthy should use their money to contribute to society. To die a rich man was a disgrace.
How Corporations got bigger Companies could merge into one corporation Stockholders in several competing companies could
turn their stock over to a trust, which would issue stock in itself in return and run the competing companies as one large corporation
What would this allow them to do? Trusts would have a monopoly on a market and could
run more efficiently as one large corporation rather than a bunch of smaller companies
Rockefeller and Robber Barons Other industrialists abused their financial
power John D. Rockefeller founded the Standard
Oil Trust in 1882.He would undersell his competition until all of it was run out of business, then he would raise prices to 3 or 4 times the original levelHe ended up controlling 90% of the nation’s oil refineries
He and other business who worked this way were called Robber Barons.
Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890More and more people were complaining the
these robber-barons were not out to improve their own businesses but to destroy others’.
An attempt by Congress to regulate trade in 1890 with the Sherman Antitrust Act.
This Act made trusts illegal, but most trusts reorganized into single corporations and the law had little effect.
“Boss” Tweed and Tamany Hall Political Machine
Political Machine: organized group who controls a political party’s activities in a large area
Tweed used his power as leader to overcharge the gov’t for building municipal buildings
The public found out, Tweed was tried, sent to prison, escaped once, was caught again, and died in prison in 1878
New Definition of Success
People generally believed in Social Darwinism, the idea that anyone could succeed, but naturally only the fittest would survive(prosper)
Horatio Alger applied social Darwinism in the 100’s of books he wrote, usually “rags to riches” stories
This idea inspired immigrants to reach the “American Dream”
Review Part IIICarnegie, philanthropist, US Steel
The Gospel of WealthWhat did Carnegie promote?Mergers, Trusts, and the Sherman Antitrust ActRockefeller, Standard Oil, Robber Baron “Boss” Tweed, Tamany Hall scandalSocial Darwinism