The production of oil and steel in the late 19th century, gave the United States its start into becoming an industrial power. Andrew Carnegie was responsible for the steel industry, while John D. Rockefeller started the standard oil company. They each conquered the industry they were in and took over their completion. Carnegie and Rockefeller climbed their way to the top and by the end of their run were two of the richest men in the world. Yet, they came from two different backgrounds and were successful in different ways, both men are still considered some of the best businessmen America has ever seen.
Andrew Carnegie was born the year of 1835 in Scotland. When he was still a child his family moved to America. He first started working in
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the railroad industry and oil fields. When he was 38 Andrew started an iron company that he later turned into U.S. Steel. This company transformed him into one of the wealthiest men on the earth. Later, Carnegie sold his company to JP Morgan and profited $480 million. His business tactics are what made him and his company so successful. Carnegie was always pushing for new technology and better techniques to use for producing steel. He expressed his believes in his book “The Gospel of Wealth” that his riches came from his hard work and dedication. He also had a unique way of taking over the completion, he limited his competitors with mergers. Moreover, he created the vertical integration idea, which is buying out suppliers and all other levels of production to gain full power of the steel industry. Andrew Carnegie was an outstanding businessman and overall was a useful assistant for the development of the American industry. John D. Rockefeller was also a very successful entrepreneur in the 19th century. He was born in New York 1839 and later moved to Cleveland when he was 6 years old. When Rockefeller was a young adult he started working in an oilfield and worked in the freight business as well. In the year 1870 John started the Standard Oil Company with his brother, which later dominates majority of all other oil companies. During this time, automobiles and planes were becoming reliant on oil and gas, and put Rockefeller’s oil as a high demand product. Rockefeller was always trying to influence the railroad companies to lower their shipping prices and was very good at making agreements with them to do so. Another approach that made him so successful, was buying out his competition and would join the them in trust agreements. John started the idea of horizontal integration which means creating a monopoly over the production process of oil. John D. Rockefeller is believed to be the wealthiest man ever in history. John D.
Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie were two very important assets for the up come of America. Both men went from “rags to riches” in their life time. Also, they had very similar ways of running their company. Carnegie and Rockefeller wanted to take out their competition and that is exactly what they accomplished by ending in a monopoly. These men were Social Darwinists and Philanthropist and were constantly giving back to the U.S. by donating money to build schools, libraries, etc. Both guys started working in a different industry than the one they ended up staying in. They definitely made it to the top though, and both ended up controlling their industry of work. Carnegie and Rockefeller were both political leaders and true givers to their fellow citizens.
Rockefeller and Carnegie were overall great men and did wonders for their country. They worked their way to the top and became some of the richest men of America. Carnegie produced steel while Rockefeller was providing oil to the U.S. The 19th century was ultimately changed by the works of these two men. Both men gave back money to cities and citizens because they were so successful and felt that was the right thing to do. Andrew and John were two different men and gained their wealth uniquely, but they both go down in the books for being amazing
businessmen.
"The Myth of The Robber Barons" by Burton W. Folsom, JR. tells a unique story about entrepreneurs in early America. The book portrays big businessmen as being behind America's greatness.
Morgan, Rockefeller and Carnegie were all robber barons. They all showed that they were robber barons because they were all cruel and ruthless. John d. Rockefeller was a cruel and inhuman person to his worker. He treated his workers like slaves, low pay, long working hours and he disliked union activity from anyone. Andrew Carnegie another ruthless person that would stop at nothing to win. He would compete against others and fiercely try to squash the opponents. He was a very possessive and control person.Morgan mount govern one of the less cruel and ruthless of the two powerful businessmen. Morgan criticized for creating monopolies by making it difficult for any business to compete against his own. These three business man all have done bad
Andrew Carnegie, the monopolist of the steel industry, was one of the worst of the Robber Barons. Like the others, he was full of contradictions and tried to bring peace to the world, but only caused conflicts and took away the jobs of many factory workers. Carnegie Steel, his company, was a main supplier of steel to the railroad industry.
Even though these men attempted to build a stable foundation for America to grow on, their negative aspects dramatically outweighed the positive. Even though Andrew Carnegie donated his fortunes to charity, he only acquired the money through unjustifiable actions. As these industrialists continued to monopolize companies through illegal actions, plutocracy- government controlled by the wealthy, took control of the Constitution. Sequentially, they used their power to prevent controls by state legislatures. These circumstances effect the way one
Rockefeller was a Robber Baron for the simple reason that he was greedy and selfish. He has treated his workers horribly and did use his money for others. He used aggressive tactics to get to where he was.
Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller: Captains of industry, or robber barons? True, Andrew Carnegie and John D Rockefeller may have been the most influential businessmen of the 19th century, but was the way they conducted business proper? To fully answer this question, we must look at the following: First understand how Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller changed the market of their industries. Second, look at the similarities and differences in how both men achieved dominance.
Andrew Carnegie, the “King of Steel”, the benevolent employer, the giant of industry, was among the greatest influences of the second industrial revolution. It is sometimes questioned whether Carnegie was the ruthless, sneaky steel tyrant some made him out to be, or the generous, benevolent education benefactor he appeared to be. I believe him to be a combination of both, but more so the great giant of industry.
These were the great men during their time. They took the American dream and made it come true. These were risk takers and men that recognized opportunity. The time after the Civil War saw the creation of an industrial business boom. These men were either in the right place at the right time, but no matter the reason they succeeded. The most important part is that they show us that with determination and patience you can make a life for yourself. These men were not selfish with there money. Carnegie and Rockefeller both gave millions upon millions of dollars to charities and other causes.
Industrial development of the late 18th century (around 1865-1900) is often characterized by it’s affluent, aggressive and monopolistic industrial leaders of the likes of men such as Andrew Carnegie, William H. Vanderbilt, and John D. Rockefeller. Due to their ruthless strategies, utilization of trusts, and exploitation of cheap labor in order to garner nearly unbreakable monopolies and massive sums of wealth, these men are often labelled as “robber barons”. At the same time, they are also often referred to as “industrial statements” for their organization, and catalyst of, industrial development; not to forget their generous contributions to the betterment of American society. Therefore, whether or not their aforementioned advances in industry were undertaken for their own personal benefits, one cannot ignore their positive effects on America. Thus, one can conclude that not only were the captains of industry both “robber barons” and “industrial statements”, but that that these two labels, in fact, go hand-in-hand.
When the names Carnagie, Rockefeller, and Pullman come to mind, most of us automatically think of what we saw or read in our history books: "These men were kind and generous and through hard work and perseverance, any one of you could become a success story like them," right? Wrong. I am sick of these people being remembered for the two or three "good deeds" they have done. Publicity and media have exaggerated the generosity of these men, the government has spoiled these names with false lies, and people have been blind to see that these men were ruthless, sly businessmen who were motivated by your money and their struggle for power.
John D. Rockefeller and other members of his family produced the fuel that powered America and Europe. In fact, 85% of the world's kerosene supply was produced in a company of Rockefeller's in Pennsylvania. J.P. Morgan, a giant in finance was equally successful by capitalizing small businesses and taking private corporations public. His genius for investing and financing was known world-wide. Because of Morgan and investors like him the American economy grew at a rate that the world had not seen before. His "Gentlemen's Agreement" brought stability to a railroad industry that was unstable because of it's incredible growth. The agreement regulated rates, settled disputes and imposed fines for companies that did not abide by the terms of their contracts. J.P. Morgan helped create a centralized banking system and paved the way for what was to become The Federal Reserve. Henry Ford a corporate giant in transportation built the Ford Motor Company and
The roots of Carnegie's internal conflicts were planted in Dunfermline, Scotland, where he was born in 1835, the son of a weaver and political radical who instilled in young Andrew the values of political and economic equality. His family's poverty, however, taught Carnegie a different lesson. When the Carnegies emigrated to America in 1848, Carnegie determined to bring prosperity to his family. He worked many small jobs which included working for the Pennsylvania Railroad where he first recognized the importance of steel.
Rockefeller was America’s first billionaire, and he was the true epitome of capitalism. Rockefeller was your typical rags-to-riches businessman, and at the turn of the twentieth century, while everyone else in the working class was earning ten dollars max every week, Rockefeller was earning millions. There has been much discussion as to whether Rockefeller’s success was due to being a “robber baron”, or as a “captain of industry”. By definition, a robber baron was an industrialist who exploited others in order to achieve personal wealth, however, Rockefeller’s effect on the economy and the lives of American citizens has been one of much impact, and deserves recognition. He introduced un-seen techniques that greatly modified the oil industry. During the mid-nineteenth century, there was a high demand for kerosene. In the refining process from transforming crude oil to kerosene, many wastes were produced. While others deemed the waste useless, Rockefeller turned it into income by selling them. He turned those wastes into objects that would be useful elsewhere, and in return, he amassed a large amount of wealth. He sold so much “waste” that railroad companies were desperate to be a part of his company. However, Rockefeller demanded rebates, or discounted rates, from the railroad companies, when they asked to be involved with his business. By doing so, Rockefeller was able to lower the price of oil to his customers, and pay low wages to his workers. Using these methods,
The United States has come to be known as a major world superpower throughout history. One of the main parts of America that has contributed to its renowned strength has been its economy. The United State’s economy has been growing ever since it began. Credit for its strength and progress in development can be attributed to the financial geniuses of their time. John D. Rockefeller became an economical giant during his time when he changed the face of business by developing ground-breaking new strategies to ensure financial success. Rockefeller dramatically changed the business field during The Gilded Age. He did so through the use of his social Darwinistic philosophy of capitalism, inclusion of vertical and horizontal integration, combination of both his business views and religious beliefs, his Standard Oil Company along with specific refinery processes. He founded the Standard Oil Company, one of the first types of businesses during its time. Although this company helped Rockefeller become known for his successful and competitive strategies, he did develop these strategies by himself with the use of his own beliefs and views.
John D. Rockefeller, born on July 8, 1839, has had a huge impact on the course of American history, his reputation spans from being a ruthless businessperson to a thoughtful philanthropist (Tarbell 41). He came from a family with not much and lived the American dream, rising to success through his own wit and cunning, riding on the backs of none. His legacy is huge, amassing the greatest private wealth of any American in history. Rockefeller’s influence on our country has been both a positive and a negative one, he donated huge sums of money to various public institutions and revolutionized the petroleum industry. Along with all the positives to the country, Rockefeller also had many negative affects as well, including, by gaining his riches by means of a monopoly, often using illegal methods, by giving others a reason to frown upon capitalism, and by hurting smaller businesses.