 Many successful entrepreneurs such as Andrew Carnegie and John Rockefeller begin to shape an organize US business and industry all to increase production and gain wealth

 “Robber Barons or Captains of Industry”  Robber Barons-businessmen who used ruthless tactics to destroy competition and to keep workers wages low  Captains of Industry—businessmen who donated millions for the public good

 Fostered the Gospel of Wealth  Began with steel production in Pittsburgh  Controlled all aspects of steel production (vertical consolidation)iron ore fields, coal mines, ships, steel mills)  Kept workers wages low  Philanthropist who gave money to build libraries

 Created Standard Oil company  Controlled most of the oil refineries in US (horizontal consolidation)  Used influence to obtain secret, beneficial rates from train companies, giving him competitive advantage  Forced to dissolve company when it became a monopoly (complete control of the oil industry)  Philanthropist who gave money to build universities

 Govt took Laissez-faire or “hands-off” policy towards business  Govt did promote economic growth by: - providing laws to protect property -enforce contracts -impose tariff duties on foreign goods -regulate currency and interstate trade  Interstate Commerce Act (1887)—prohibited unfair business practices, first time Congress stepped in to regulate business in America

-Most workers were unskilled -Long hours and low wages -Poor working conditions and repetitive tasks -Unhealthy or hazardous working conditions -Child labor -Lack of job security

 Workers tried to bargain collectively to improve conditions by forming Unions

 Unions used strikes (temporarily refusing to work) to bargain with businesses

 Knights of Labor: Terrence Powderly -tried to unite all American workers, both skilled and unskilled, into one national labor union -this was not successful  American Federation of Labor: Samuel Gompers -National federation of different craft unions of skilled workers

 Government had anti- union bias -Many in govt saw unions as driving up the cost of goods  Haymarket Affair of 1896— bomb explodes during Union demonstration -America now begins to associate unions with violence and other radical ideas

 The mass movement of people from the countryside to cities

 Movement was caused by farming technology which meant fewer workers needed on farms while demand for labor in factories and cities expanded

 Inability of cities to supply essential public services to growing populations: -lack of hospitals, police, garbage collection, and schools -streets were noisy, dirty, and congested

 Overcrowded tenements: one room apartments for large families that lacked daylight & adequate plumbing  Excessive pollution, sewage, and contamination of water supplies  Social tension created by rich and poor living side by side leads to more crime

 “Political Machine” -run by a political boss -helped immigrants and poor with basic public services in exchange for votes -used control of city governments to make personal fortunes through overpriced contracts  Boss Tweed of Tammany Hall in New York City

How the Political Machine Works Residents Vote for candidates supported by political machines. Machines maintain power over city governments. Political Machines work to control city politics Run by powerful boss who had influence on city officials Machines hand out jobs, contracts, and favors to the City Residents.

 “Push” factors: oppression, poverty, wars, and ethnic persecution  “Pull” factors: belief in American freedom, economic opportunity, and cultural ties  All immigrants came to US seeking a better life

 New wave of immigrants to US from Southern and Eastern Europe: Russia, Italy, Poland, Greece -mostly Catholic and Jewish -often little or no education, very poor -spoke no english

 Immigrants tended to settle in large Eastern Cities  Lived in ethnic communities called ghettos where they could use native language and culture

 The children of immigrants were often “Americanized” in the public schools  Some people opposed immigration known as Nativists  America seen as “melting pot”, in which immigrants are melted down and reshaped

 Nativism leads to Chinese Exclusion Act  This was the 1 st federal law restricting immigration  Prohibited immigration from China for 10 years