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Ch 14 Sec 1-3. Gilded Age. Ch 14 Sec 2. Realizing that railroads were critical to the settlement of the West and the development of the nation, the federal government made huge land grants and loans to the railroad companies. . The Age of the Railroads. Benefits. Drawbacks. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Ch 14 Sec 1-3
Gilded Age
Ch 14 Sec 2
Realizing that railroads were critical to the settlement of the West and the development of the nation, the federal
government made huge land grants and loans to the railroad companies.
The Age of the Railroads
Benefits• The railroad companies
built transcontinental and local lines.
• transformed country from collection of regions into a united nation
• Railroad time became the nation’s standard time
Drawbacks• The unchecked power and
greed of the railroad companies led to widespread corruption and abuse of power
The Age of the RailroadsWhich problems did employees of the
railroad companies face
• Life-threatening working conditions, low pay, and discrimination (Chinese Exclusion Act)
What was it like to live as a Pullman employee in the town of Pullman?
• A clean safe environment, but too controlling, since residents had no say in the town rules
The Age of the RailroadsWho was involved in Credit Mobilier, and what was the purpose of this company?
• Railroad magnates, stockholders, and federal officials in the Union Pacific Railroad siphoned off railroad profits for themselves
In what ways did the railroad companies use their power to hurt farmers?
• Sold land grants to other businesses instead of settlers
• Fixed prices to keep farmers in debt to them
The Age of the RailroadsWhy didn’t the decision in the Munn v. Illinois
case succeed in checking the power of the railroads?
• Ruled that a state could not set rates on interstate commerce (ICC is created)
Why didn’t the Interstate Commerce Act immediately limit the power of the railroads?
• ICC was hampered by long legal battles from the railroads
• Supreme Court ruled that the ICC couldn’t set limits on rates
Fun Facts
• Ice Cream is Chinese food!• It takes a drop of ocean water more than
1,000 years to circulate around the world.• Check your map! Virginia extends farther west
than West Virginia.• The water of the Antarctica is so cold that
nothing can rot there.
Big Business and Labor
Ch 14 Sec 3
Industrialism Quotes • “Rights and interests of the laboring man will be protected
and cared for ------ not by the agitators, but by the Christian men to whom God has given control of the property interests of the country”
George F. BaerPresident of a
mining company
• “I regard my workers as I regard my machinery. So long as they do my work for what I choose to pay them, I keep them, getting out of them all I can”
Factory Owner
Capitalism
What is the difference between a “mom and pop” business and “big business”
Vertical Integration
What is it?• The process by which a
company buys out all its suppliers
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Gave a company total power over the quality and cost of its product and helped to create Monopolies
Horizontal Integration
What is it?• The process in which a
company buys out, or merges with, its competitors
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Gave a company control over its competition and helped create a Monopoly
Social Darwinism
What is it?• An economic theory based
on Darwin’s theory of biological evolution
• It asserted that free competition would ensure success or failure in business
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Glorified big business and tycoons
• Discouraged government interference with big business
• To fight against big business, workers created unions like
• An example is the AFL (for only skilled laborers)
Monopoly
What is it?• Complete control over an
industry’s production, quality, wages, and prices
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Eliminated a company’s competition allowing it to increase profits
Holding Company
What is it?• A corporation that does
nothing but buy out stock of other companies
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Helped get control of companies and create monopolies
Trust
What is it?• A large corporation made
up of many companies that receive certificates entitling them to dividends on profits earned by all the companies combined
How did it help businesses such as U.S. Steel and Andrew Carnegie?
• Helped create monopolies (This is how Rockefeller gained control of Standard Oil)
How did it harm businesses such as Standard Oil and tycoons like John D. Rockefeller
• The perception of tycoons as “Robber Barons”
• Put tycoons on the defensive
• Turned public opinion against them and their businesses
• Encouraged government regulation
How did it harm businesses such as Standard Oil and tycoons like John D. Rockefeller
• Sherman Antitrust Act • Made trusts (and monopolies) illegal in interstate and international trade
• Made it possible (but not easy) to prosecute companies
• To promote fair industrial competition
Standard Oil P.C.
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