Topics to be covered:o Developing the Role of Big

Businesso Workers Endure Hardships

The Rise of Big Business

Developing the RoleOf Big Business

Robber Barons &Captains of Industry

o The era of industrialization was driven by a few great men labeled as industrialists.

o Some of these industrialists included:• Andrew Carnegie• John D. Rockefeller• Cornelius Vanderbilt• J.P. Morgan

o Their number one motive was wealth.

o Some believe these people should be referred to as “robber barons”, while others believed they should be referred to as “captains of industry”.

Robber Baronso This term portrayed the

industrialists as ruthless, cruel businessmen who would let nothing stand in their way of achieving great wealth.

o They were accused of misusing workers and forcing awful working environments upon the laborer.

Captains of Industryo This term portrayed the

industrialists as resourceful and productive leaders who changed the American economy with their business skills.

o They were commended for their skills.

Robber Baron or Captain of Industry?Andrew Carnegie*He helped build the formidable American steel industry, later gave his fortune to institutions.*Captain of Industry

John D. Rockefeller*He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, and he gave away more than $555 million during his lifetime.*Captain of Industry

Crornelius Vanderbilt*An American capitalist whose professions ranged from railroad builder and executive to financier and promoter.*Robber Baron

J.P. Morgan*He was one of the most powerful banking houses in the country, he helped the railroad industry recover, and made a fortune in railroads.*Robber Baron

Social Darwinismo Social Darwinism is an evolutional

theory about stating, that only the strongest and fittest should survive and flourish in society, and the weak and unfit should be left to die.

o It was present in factory life because if you died while working that means you were unfit to work in that society and you were left to die.

Charles Darwino February 12, 1809 – April 19, 1882

o He was an English naturalist

o He developed the theory of Social Darwinism, which many people accepted.

Workers EndureHardships

Working ConditionsIn Factories of the 1800s

o The conditions were pretty harsh, the factories were overcrowded, dark, dirty, and dangerous.

o Some of the machinery was dangerous to handle.

o Most of the workers didn’t even have protective gear to wear.

Factory Lifeo Many Americans worked 70 hours or

more per week, and most of those people started before the age of 7.

o Everyone knew at least 5 people working in these factories because so many people worked in them.

o The average wage earned was $16 a week, and some of them made less than that.

Sweatshopso Sweatshops were poorly lit and

ventilated rooms where seamstresses sat side by side doing piece work.

o The cloth would be piled high and the workers wouldn’t be allowed to talk.

o If their job wasn’t completed they wouldn’t get paid.

-role of women-role of children-physical effects on people

Families in the Workplace

Women had to work in factories

They were forced to work for little to no pay

Worked in a building a with horrible conditions (unsanitary)

Women had to work full days.

Women found jobs in domestic service, textile factories, and piece workshops. (sometimes coal mines)

Role of Women

Children as young as 6 years old worked hard hours for little or no pay.

Children worked up to 19 hours a day, with a 1 hour total break.

Worked in horrible conditions (large, heavy, and dangerous equipment).

After 1833 children were paid only a fraction of what an adult got.

Children orphans were subject to slave-like labor.

They’re pay was food, shelter, and clothing.

Role of Children

Children got treated cruel.

They’re safety was neglected.

People who served the children would abuse them

Boys were dragged naked from their beds and sent to factories only holding there clothes to be put on there.

Role of Children Cont.

Physical Effects on People

o In some factories they used a the chemical phosphorous, which could cause their teeth to rot and some died from breathing it into their lungs.

o The health conditions in the factories were low so people easily caught diseases and died.

o There were also some machine accidents at times and people faced the risk of losing a limb or possibly their life.

FACTORY/COMPANY TOWNS

o The company town was an economic institution that was part of the market for labor.

o The first large scale industrial community was in Lowell, Massachusetts, and it began in post revolutionary eastern US with textile mills.

o Today’s company towns are neither utopian nor exploitive.

WAY OF LIFEo In the Lowell Mill Company

Towns, like most others, the workers were told how to dress, how to act, when to speak properly, and they had a curfew.

o They were also told how to conduct themselves in public, and when to go to church.