Rise of Industrial America Late 1800’s- Early 1900’s

REVOLTION A sudden, dramatic, complete or marked change in something

Rise of Industrial America Civil War  Advancements that will turn the U.S. into the richest nation and most industrialized country in the world! How? Communication Telegraph  Telephone Finances National Currency Transportation Transcontinental Railroad  Cars Industry Mass contracts to clothing manufactures

Rise of Industrial America Geographically America was a HUGE country with all the resources necessary for an industrial boom. For Example: Coal Iron Oil Grain

Changes in Daily Life Life in the 1900’s Between 1860 – 1890 the gov’t issued almost 500,000 patents Licenses that gave inventors exclusive right to make, use, or sell an invention These inventions increased productivity Power Stations Provided electricity for lamps, fans, printing presses and more… By 1900, 1.5 million telephones in use and 63 million messages sent by the telegraph

Railroads Transcontinental Railroad May 10th, 1869 – extended from coast to coast Led to development of more towns throughout the West 1883, RR adopted a national system of time zones to improve scheduling Result- System we still use today

Railroads Played key role in revolutionizing business & industry by: Faster, more practical means of transporting goods. Lowered cost of production. Created national markets. Model for big business. Encouraged innovation in other industries.

Bessemer Process Henry Bessemer (1856) Patent – which made steel production easier & less expensive Blast hot air through molten iron, which in turn produces steel Introduced mass production  New age of building Example: Brooklyn Bridge: designed w/ steel cables suspended from towers

The Genius of Inventions Thomas Edison Phonograph Light Bulb 1st Power Plant Alexander Graham Bell Telephone Wilbur & Orville Wright Airplane Henry Ford Model T Assembly Line

Robber Barons Business leaders who built their fortunes by stealing from the public Drained the country of natural resources Persuaded public officials to push laws in their favor Ruthlessly drove their competitors to ruin Paid workers meager wages & forced them to work under dangerous & unhealthy conditions.

Captains of Industry Business leaders served nation in positive way. Increased supply of goods & expanded markets. Created jobs that enabled Americans to buy new goods & raise their standard of living. Created museums, libraries, & universities.

Horizontal Consolidation Rockefeller: Captain or Robber Baron?

Vertical Consolidation Carnegie: Captain or Robber Baron?

Robber Baron or Captain of Industry? Andrew Carnegie (steel)- Robber Baron John D. Rockefeller (oil)- Robber Baron J.P. Morgan (banks)- Captain of Industry

Monopoly New Market Structures Oligopoly Industry dominated by only a few large firms Monopoly Companies set out to gain complete control of a product or service Cartel Steps taken to limit competition w/ other firms

Social Darwinism Charles Darwin – “natural selection,” which only the fittest survived. (animal life) Social Darwinism apply that theory to society as a whole. Society & gov’t should NOT interfere w/ relations between workers & employers Those who were most “fit” in business would succeed & become rich and weed out the unfit. Americans believed gov’t should stay out of private businesses Therefore – gov’t neither taxed nor regulated companies

American Outrage – Government Response Americans began to be skeptical of these Big Businesses demanding gov’t action. Gov’t officials did not want to interfere because of the country’s rising levels of wealth Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) Limit amount of control a business could have over an industry Law- vague, used to help Big Businesses in court against labor unions.

Shifts in Population & Employment (1860-1900)

How is life going to change? Changes brought by industrialization Size Rise of Middle class Class Tensions Cities Large gaps between rich and poor Living Conditions Factories Working Conditions NO safety codes Dangerous Conditions sickness Long hours, little pay