Industrialization

America forever changed

Modernizing America

• America was on a new horizon

– Before this time America was vastly different than today's society

Life before industrialization

• There were no phones• Cars• No indoor electricity • No refrigeration • Communication was slow• Standard of living was ok

– It was fairly low in some areas

Industrialization

• However, times begin to change in America– With new inventions and increase in technology,

America would change from a good place to live, to the best place to live in terms of GDP • (Gross domestic product)

Things that changed peoples lives

• Transcontinental railroad

• Telegraph (communication)– Phone

• Electricity (light bulb ETC.)

• Steel

• Use of Oil

Newest revolution technology

• In 1860 – Only 36K patents issued

to invent, use and sell an item

– In 65-70 the standard of living in many places (SOUTH) was very low

• By 1890 and 1900– Over 500K patents

issued

– The standard of life in the United States was higher than any place in the world

Compare and contrast 1900 2012

Tech. –Railroad

• Transcontinental railroad

• Increased the standard of living for the people of the west

• Speedy travel

Railroad negatives

• Dangerous • terrible construction practices

– Iron and wood

• Early trial and error—uncomfortable rides• Trains caused America to develop their time

zones (Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific)

Tech – Communication

• Telegraph – perfected by Samuel Morse– Was first way to send electrical messages (20th

century texts!)

– Companies like Western Union laid 100,000’s of telegraph cable. • Almost a million by 1900

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J8YcQETyTw&feature=fvwrel

Tech – Communication

• Telephone – (The most important thing a majority of you!!)

• Created by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876

• Founded AT&T• First words spoken on a phone

– “Come here, Watson, I want you”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdIXoceFgk8

Thomas Edison

• The man of a thousand of inventions – Know for the inventions of the phonograph and

motion capturing device

– Most known however for the Light bulb• He improved a design for the light bulb • In 1880 the bulb changed the modern world

• Why?

Steel

• Andrew Carnegie – owner and contributor to steel in America– Met a English man named Henry Bessemer– Had developed a new strategy for making cheap

good steel – Called the Bessemer process

Process..

• Air burns out carbon from steel

http://videos.howstuffworks.com/discovery/35890-howstuffworks-show-episode-12-creating-steel-video.htm

Impact of steel

• Trains were improved

• Cities changed forever – Brought rise to the vertical cities

– Sky scrapers

Electricity

• By 1885, electricity had become more accessible – Street lamps

– Refrigerators

– Machine lines – mass production of things such as clothing

Beginning of Big Business

• With the expansion of electricity and steel business practices in America began to change

– Combinations of all the small businesses combined to form large companies

Two views

• 1st – Robber Barons – these businessmen were viewed as “robbers” – They stole from the public by eliminating

competition so they could jack up the prices

• - 2nd –Captains of Industry – These were the positive business leaders

– Viewed as someone who helped their country in a very positive fashion

– Creating new ways to improve quantity of goods

Money makers

• Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt

• Steel, Oil, railroad

• Three of the richest men in American history

Andrew Carnegie

• Lived in Pittsburg• Worked for the rail road in 65 – made 50K

• Started his own steel company four years later

• Created a monopoly on the steel company – Would be worth nearly 300 billion in 2007 – Bill gates is worth 59 billion…

Continued

• Gospel of wealth – People should give away some wealth

– Gave away 350 million by his death

Rockefeller

• He created a monopoly on standard Oil – Formed his own company in 1863

– Was a cut throat businessman

– Created a trust• What do you think a trust is?

Continued

• He has a net worth around 310 billion dollars

• Tiger woods earnings X 310

Cornelius Vanderbilt

• He had a major hand in the rail road– He gained considerable wealth from the rail roads

– He is the namesake of Vanderbilt University

Continued

• His net worth today would be around 178 billion dollars

• 3X as much as bill gates

The big three

• Between the three men, their value today would be a staggering – 788 billion dollars

– Fifteen times as much money as Bill gates has today

http://www.pagetutor.com/trillion/index.html

Creation of new jobs

• With all these innovations, thousands of jobs were created – Between the end of the civil war and 1900..

• 14 million immigrants came to America looking for jobs

• More than half of these moved into cities – Why the cities?

Sherman anti-trust act

• outlawed any combination of company or business act that would in return –create a monopoly – Was never enforced however

Child Labor

• There were no restrictions on who could work at this time…– 10-14 hour shifts – Tiny hands could fit into hard to reach places

– Awful working conditions• Toxic fumes and smoke

The work place

• Description of your new job!– Working hours – 12 to 14 hours– Paid by production

• You DO NOT get paid by the hour

– To Women – you have 0% chance to advance to higher paying jobs

» Would you take this job?

Work conditions

• During the late 1800’s there were more than 600 deaths a week at the work place

• NO – Sick days– Vacation– Overtime– Unemployment

• 1899- women's wages were around 260 dollars a year, a mans would be around 490 dollars.

Labor Strikes

• What is a Labor Union?– Late 1800’s –wanted better conditions for the

workers, as well as a higher wage– Wanted to reduce the work day– Knights of Labor – formed in 1869, planned to

Unite all workers –failure

Labor unions

American Federation• Founded in 1886

• Organized for only skilled workers

Industrial workers of the world • “Wobblies”

• Opposed the AF

• Was put together for the unskilled workers

The strikes

• Railroad strike of 1877

• Haymarket Riot

• Homestead Strike

• Pullman Strike

Railroad strike

• 1st major work strike in America

• Railroad companies cut wages

• Violence occurs

• Army brought in to end the riot – In 20 years there are over 24K strikes

Haymarket Strike

• Workers wanted an 8 hour work day• Fight broke out between workers and scabs

– Scabs are workers who are brought in during a strike

• Bomb was thrown – 7 killed– Lead to a huge riot

Strikes

• Homestead Strike– Caused from Carnegie

steel cutting prices • People die as a result of

riots

• Pullman strikes – Last of the great strikes

– George pullman cuts wages by 25%

Strikes

• 120K railroad workers eventually joined the strike

• Fed government had to intervene and get involved on strikes and working conditions

Employers views of strikes

• Hate unions and the strikes– Forbid union meetings – Wouldn’t recognize unions– Forced new workers to promise not to join a union– Firing anyone involved in a union