A NATION TRANSFORMED

The Gilded Age – Chapter 16, 171870-1910

immigration, industrialization, & labor unions (political machines,

urbanization)

Guild- craftsmen/ same industry seek to set / regulate– prices, work conditions, etc. (modern word- labor union)

Overview

As the Civil war ended and the western frontiers began to be settled, a different kind of nation began to take shape.

Massive influx of immigrants would provide a diverse background for this time period.

A defining move away from the agricultural society of the past to a more urban centered lifestyle.

The emergence of big business, labor unions, and unified political movements would help shape the United States

Immigrants … They are a comin’

Railroads and Big Business

Railroads became essential to the American economy as they were used for both transportation of people and goods.

Was a need for efficient and timely transportation coast to coast.

By 1900, the United States would have more railroad tracks than all of Europe combined.

The first railroad completed to span the entire nation was the Transcontinental Railroad, completed in 1869, and cut cross country travel from one month to one week.

Union Pacific (from west to utah) and Central Pacific (from east to utah) built the railroad and met in Promontory Utah

It allowed for the fast transportation of goods which in turn allowed these big businesses to prosper.

The emergence of big business

What does “big business” mean?“ Big Business” for our study, means the

emergence of large corporations that would corner their aspect of the market. – monopoly

Examples: John D. Rockefeller standard oil, Andrew Carnegie- steel,

John D. Rockefeller…. and the Standard Oil Company

Rockefeller founded the Standard Oil Company.

Over a forty-year period, Rockefeller built Standard Oil into the largest and most profitable company in the world, and became the world's richest man.

Standard Oil became such a large company, that it literally controlled all aspects of oil production in the United States.

This business practice is known as what? Vertical monopoly- you control the production from

the raw product to the final product Horizontal monopoly- a company eliminates

competition at the same level of out put fir business/ industry ex- AT&T, Microsoft- it stifles creativity in the long run

Read Rockefeller biography…

Eventually, Rockefeller’ business practice came under scrutiny as his company alone would determine the price people paid for oil.

Led to the anti-trust movement.What modern day company was recently

declared a monopoly and was forced to break apart? AT&T, Microsoft

Political Cartoon of Rockefeller

Cartoon from Puck magazine circa 1901.

Depicts Rockefeller as a Industrial emperor.

What are some things you notice about the cartoon?

The more railroad work- the more need for standard oil

Andrew Carnegie, the Carnegie Steel Company, and J.P. Morgan

Andrew Carnegie was another businessman in the mold of J.D. Rockefeller

Carnegie was born in Scotland and immigrated to the United States in 1848.

Self educated, built Carnegie Steel.

In 1900, he made $25 million tax free.

Carnegie began to buy other steel companies in an effort to corner the market.

Carnegie's empire grew to include the J.Edgar Thomson Steel Works, (named for John Edgar Thomson, Carnegie's former boss and president of the Pennsylvania Railroad), Pittsburgh Bessemer Steel Works, the Lucy Furnaces, the Union Iron Mills, the Union Mill (Wilson, Walker & County), the Keystone Bridge Works, the Hartman Steel Works, the Frick Coke Company, and the Scotia ore mines.

J.P. Morgan

Morgan was a very efficient financier.His exceptional organizational skills

allowed Morgan to be involved with several different companies at once. Often, Morgan would combine weaker companies in an effort to make one strong company.

Morgan bought Carnegie Steel Company for $500 (480) million.

Formed the United States Steel Company.

United States Steel Company

Upon purchasing Carnegie steel, Morgan then combined other steel companies to create The United States Steel Company.

In its first full year of operation, U.S. Steel made 67% of all the steel produced in the United States. And became the largest steel exporter in the world.

Produced more steel than all of Europe.

Political Cartoon

Using what you know about United States Steel Company from your text and your notes, analyze the cartoon based on its overlaying themes.

Identify who is involved and what the artist is trying to portray.

Anti-Trust Movement

Antitrust laws prohibit agreements in restraint of trade, monopolization and attempted monopolization, anticompetitive mergers and tie-in schemes, and, in some circumstances, price discrimination in the sale of commodities.

Led to the Sherman Anti-trust Act

Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890

Senator John ShermanThe Sherman Act provides: "Every contract,

combination in the form of trust or otherwise, or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, is declared to be illegal"

"Every person who shall monopolize, or attempt to monopolize, or combine or conspire with any other person or persons, to monopolize any part of the trade or commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, shall be deemed guilty of a felony[…..]”.

Modern Companies Regulated According to the Sherman Anti-Trust Act

Alcoa American Tobacco Company AT&TMicrosoft Northern Securities Company (stock

company) Standard Oil

Immigration and Urbanization

The growth of an Urban nationAfter the Civil War, as people began

spreading westward, there was also a collective mass movement of people into the cities.

Industrialization and Immigration can be seen as a cause for the Urbanization of America.

Angel Island- A different side of Immigration

Gold Mountain- USA1871- many Chinese workers came in for railroad

jobsViolent protest occurred due to immigrant laborAnti-Chinese prejudices 1882- Chinese Exclusion

Act- prohibited Chinese labor from entering the country

Xenophobic- unfounded fear of foreigners (outsiders)

Alien Land Act- immigrants could not own landNaturalization Laws- made it difficult to gain voting

rightsAngel Island- San Francesco – (Near Alcatraz)

1910- Ellis Island of the West- some Asian immigrants detained for months or even years.

Immigrants come to the cities

25 million immigrants come to the U.S. during this time.

Cities provided a sense of unity among immigrants.

Cities became “melting pots” of various cultures.

Different neighborhoods for different ethnicities. Transportation issues Work issues

City Life

The mass population of the cities led to an overcrowding in many areas. (URBANIZATION)

Cities became dirty, disease filled, crime ridden areas.

Tenement houses, much like apartments, were overcrowded and poorly sanitized.

Many did not have running water.Coined the phrase, “Slums”

The Dumbbell Building

The Progressives

The Progressives- a movement to end social injustices of the turn of the century for the poor. (1890-1910)

Some times called “muckrakers” because the writers were so interested in the underbelly of life

Jacob Riis-photographer- capture poverty Settlement houses- where reforms tried to help the urban

poor (might offer meals, education, etc) Jane Addams- Hull House Upton Sinclair- wrote the Jungle (a story about the horrible

conditions of the meat industry in Chicago) 17th Amendment (1913)- Citizens- not the state legislatures

would vote for Senators Scab- someone who breaks the picket line and goes in to

work when other people are on strike

Immigrants and “Boss” politics

Governments of big cities, such as New York, crumbled as they tried to meet the needs of the growing population.

Immigrants tended to vote for political bosses and their political machines as insurance for various types of aid. (money, job, food, advice)

Boss Tweed

William Magear Tweed commonly known as "Boss" Tweed, was an American politician and head of Tammany Hall, the name given to the Democratic Party political machine that played a major role in New York City politics

The Labor Movement

As Industrialization occurred, the workforce changed.

No longer were there skilled artisansAssembly lines with many workersThe rise of Industrialization led to the need

for a protection of the individual workerArtisan- craftsmen Steel and textile mills were the most popular

Labor organizes, 1870-1914

Amidst the growing Industrial nation that the United States was becoming, there grew a need to protect workers’ individual rights.

Trade unions, continuous association of wage –earners for the purpose of maintaining or improving working conditions, were formed to protect the rights of individual workers.

What could be some possible concerns for workers in the late 1800s??? Age, health conditions, sanitary conditions, lack of safe working conditions, blood born pathogens

Labor (continued)

Trade Unions or Labor Unions associated with the medieval guild system.

Group of workers in one or many trades that come together for the purpose of protection.

Unions first seen as dangerous because of their socialistic values.

Unions made legal when Massachusetts Supreme Court ruled in favor of Unions in the Commonwealth v. Hunt.

Labor Strife

Labor Unions aimed to protect the employee from being exploited by the employer.

The Molly Maguires in PA aggressively threatened employers to reach their goal s

The most influential method to make their voice heard was the strike-work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to perform work.

Labor strife continued

When strikes were not enough, more drastic measures were taken.

The Molly Maguires in Pennsylvania aggressively threatened employers to reach their goals.

The Homestead Strike in Pittsburgh led to the death of seven steelworkers.

The Homestead Strike

One of the most violent labor strikes in U.S. History.

Union refused to accept a wage cut.Company guards opened fire on the picket

line, beginning a riot.Major setback to unionization.

Samuel Gompers and the AF of L

Amidst failing labor unions, Samuel Gompers emerged to revolution Unionism.

Previously strikes would fail due to lack of funding. Without money, workers were forced to return to their jobs.

Gompers began charging wages to become part of the Union. This enabled workers to hold out longer because the Union could support them financially.

AF of L

AF of L= American Federation of LaborGompers approached securing worker’s

rights from a different prospective, a more business like perspective. Instead of the Marxist revolution of the proletariat, Gompers aimed at securing higher wages, shorter hours, and safer working conditions.

By 1900, the AF of L had 1.75 million members nationwide.

Labor Organization had a long way to go, but the organization was now heading in the right direction.

Knights of Labor

The Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, best known simply as the Knights of Labor (K of L), was the largest and one of the most important American labor organizations of the 1880s. Looking at the following slide what can you tell about some people’s perception of the knights? Do you think that was everyone’s. Now we will use the political cartoon analysis sheet that is in the documents/resources link on the website to help you with an assignment.