Industries and “Big Business” grew in response to technological innovations Other breakthroughs in electricity, mass communication, and shipping allowed factories to produce more, at a faster rate. Large numbers of immigrants provided industrialists with more workers. Industrialization
Industry relied on railroads for shipping. Railroads grew in response to increased demands of industrialization and Western Expansion. Railroads expanded westward to meet demands of settlement and economic development of the West. (They carried people and shipped products.) Railroad shipping facilitated the growth of ranching, farming, and mining industries in the West. Industrial and technological innovations in manufacturing and mass communication enabled rapid growth of railroads. Growth of Railroads
Labor leaders criticized company owners and managers for reducing competition, paying low wages and maintaining unsafe working conditions for their employees. Factory workers formed and joined labor unions in order to engage in collective bargaining with employers. Many workers went on strike in the 1880s. Three significant events of the time period included the “Great Strikes,” Homestead, Pullman, and Haymarket Riot Growth of Labor Unions
Haymarket Riot
Cattle industry boomed in the late 1800s as the culture and influence of the Plains American Indians declined. Growing demand for beef in cities after the Civil War Railroads provided method of transportation of beef to urbanized areas. Cattle Industry Boom
As industry grew rapidly, the U.S. government promoted free enterprise (business that can operate competitively for profit with little government involvement/regulation). Free Enterprise
An entrepreneur is someone who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business; an agent of change; discovers new ways to combine resources. In the 1800s, many were considered entrepreneurs because they created value by moving resources out of less productive areas and into more productive ones. Other example: skilled immigrants used their trade skills to establish businesses of their own. Rise of Entrepreneurship
Industrialists and business leaders used Horizontal and Vertical Alignment to reduce competition and expand their companies. Reduction of competition led to the creation of monopolies and trusts. Significant industrialists include, Carnegie, Rockefeller, Morgan, Vanderbilt, etc. Some people viewed these men as “Captains of Industry,” while others viewed them as “Robber Barons.” Socio-economic divisions widened as industries grew. Big Business