16. Industrialization and Corporate Consolidation
I. Industrial Growth in America - Reasons
A. Natural Resources – coal, oil, iron
B. Immigration – steady flow both Asia and Europe
C. Capitalist mentality supported by laissez faire government
D. Ingenuity – 440,000 patents in 1800s – inventions – Edison’s invention factory
E. Railroads – 1865 – 35,000 Miles > 1900 – 200,000 miles
A. Land claiming – railroad companies given land claims – size of Texas
B. Success of town based on railroad stop – no railroad > “ghost town”
C. Transcontinental – Leland Stanford Union Pacific meets Central Pacific
D. Corruption – money from government not used appropriately – Credit Mobilier
1. Abuse of Chinese, other immigrant labor
2. Faulty tracks just to make a dime
E. Improvements – steel – safer/stronger – standardized size – standardized time
F. “Stock watering” – make stock in railroads look better than it is – bribed judges
F. Steel – Andrew Carnegie – monopolized then gave away $450 million by death
A. America producing 1/3 of world’s steel thanks to Bessemer Process
B. Carnegie - $1.4 billion more than US worth in 1800
G. Oil – Rockefeller – kerosene first pushed – then automobile
A. Consolidation – own supply and distribution
1. 95% of oil refineries
2. Rockefeller – uses illegal rebates and spies to control industry
II. Laissez Faire Conservatism – government policy in late 19th century > industry controls gov’t
A. Gospel of Wealth – Lord gave money to wealthy class – must be morally responsible
B. Social Darwinism – wealthy deserve it – inherently better
1. Poor by own shortcomings – “Acres of Diamonds” – poor deserve it
III. Effects on worker – Business becomes depersonalized – feel like merely a cog in a machine – hurts creativity
A. Free enterprise/farming replaced by corporation
B. Factory controls life – whistle and artificial discipline – become subservient
C. Gibson Girl – advertising campaign encourages women to work in offices
D. 2/3 dependent on wage – unemployment not based on effort, but larger economic issues
VI. Union Movement
A. Manual laborers vulnerable – employers can always bring in cheaper immigrant labor
B. Machines displace workers
C. Corporations make labor organization impossible
1. Control legal process – best lawyers, politicians corrupt
2. employs “scabs”/strike breakers – Gould “I can hire one half to kill the other half
3. Force workers to take ironclad oath – won’t join a union
4. Create company town – employees in debt to company stores
D. Knights of Labor – replaced National Labor Union – began as a secret society
1. Open to everyone – regardless of gender/race
2. Overzealous – talked about social reform/changing society – goals to unrealistic
E. Haymarket Square – Chicago – dynamite injures cops – anarchists linked to unions
1. Leads to massive riot – destroys reputation of Knights of Labor
F. American Federation of Labor – Samuel Gompers – “bread and butter” unionism
1. More realistic – wages, hours, working conditions
2. Used walkout and boycott to get way
3. by 1900 view of labor starts to change – not seen as chaos starters
VII. Industrialization Judgment – were capitalists “Captains of Industry” or “Robber Barons”
A. Class tension never as big a deal in America as in Europe
B. Creates belief in upward mobility
C. But…destroyed traditional farmer’s values/spiritual lives for capitalism
D. Two classes resulted – owners of labor class and the labor class
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