The Second Industrial Revolution Chapter 5 Section 2

A. Industry and Railroads 1. The Oil Boom  Edwin Drake was the first person to drill for oil  In the 1800s, oil was refined into kerosene to light lamps  In Texas, huge deposits of oil were discovered  Called the Oil Boom  Not long after, it was discovered that oil could be refined into gasoline  This would start a revolution in transportation and industry

2. Making Steel  a) Bessemer Process (1850s) made it easier and cheaper to make steel  Steel transformed the U.S. into a modern industrial economy  Steel was used to make RR’s, bridges, and skyscrapers

3. Railroads Expand  In the 1850s, RR’s crossed America  There were no RR’s that connected the east to the west yet  Congress authorized two companies to build rail lines to the west coast  a) Transcontinental Railroad Union Pacific Railroad started building westward from Omaha, Nebraska Central Pacific Railroad started building eastward from Sacramento, California  The two met in Promontory Summit, Utah

Railroads speeded the settlement of the West Also caused new towns to spring up Also led to the adoption of standard time -before standard time, some individual states had multiple time zones -standard time made all people within a local time zone set their clocks alike

B. The Rise of Big Business Big Business prospered in the 1800s because of Entrepreneurs -people that started their own businesses America became a capitalist country -this meant that businesses are privately owned People called capitalism by the philosophy of Social Darwinism -this said that stronger businesses survive, while weaker ones die out

New Business Organizations A new type of business organization emerged called a corporation -a business with the legal status of an individual -owned by people who by stock in the corporation -Had advantages such as a corp. could continue after its founders die -easy to raise money by selling stocks Corporations competed fiercely and some formed monopolies -this is where companies had complete control of a certain market

Industrial Tycoons The late 18, early 1900s was known as the Gilded Age -Americans amassed a large amount of wealth John D. Rockefeller -Standard Oil Company -leading oil producer in the U.S. -came up with Vertical and Horizontal Integration -Vertical Integration: taking over companies that supply you -Horizontal Integration: Taking over your competition -gave over half of his wealth to charity

Andrew Carnegie -U.S. Steel Company -Largest steel producer in the world -sold his company to J.P. Morgan in 1901 J.P. Morgan -wealthy banker and investor Cornelius Vanderbilt -RR Tycoon George Pullman -Pullman Palace Car Co. -made comfortable sleeper RR cars -even made a town for his employees to live in called Pullman, Chicago

Many people called these tycoons Robber Barons -this meant that they destroyed their companies with tough tactics and treated workers poorly Others called them Captains of Industry because they provided jobs for thousands and gave money to charity -also strengthened the economy

Mass Marketing Merchants were looking for new ways to maximize profit Turned to new forms of marketing such as clever brand names and adv. Towards a certain group of people Department stores made shopping easier -shoppers could find a variety of goods under one roof In rural areas, catalogs made it easy for people to buy goods