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What advantages did America have during its growth?
Natural resources Timber, coal,
water, iron, copperTransported via
railroadsDidn’t need to
import them Petroleum
Kerosene in lamps and stoves
Drilling oil wells
What advantages did America have during its growth?
Workforce US population
triples between 1860-1910 20 million
immigrants
More workers
More consumers
What advantages did America have during its growth?
Government policies Laissez-faire
Let people do as they choose without gov’t interference
Lower taxes Very few
regulations Those with money
decide how to use it
What advantages did America have during its growth?
Government policies (cont.) Entrepreneurs
Investors Risk money to
start a business Tariffs
Taxes on imported goods
More money spent on American goods
How did inventions
spur the developmen
t of American industry?
Telephone, 1876 Alexander Graham
Bell Use an electrical
current to transmit sound
“Come here, Watson. I want you.”
Bell Telephone Company AT&T (American Telephone and Telegraph Company)
How did inventions
spur the developmen
t of American industry?
Thomas Edison Phonograph, 1877
Early record player
Light bulb & electric generator, 1879
Edison General Electric Company (GE), 1889
Working towards providing electricity in American homes
How did inventions
spur the developmen
t of American industry?
Nikola Tesla Alternating current,
1893 Power for most of
North America today
X-rays Wireless energy and
communications
How did inventions
spur the developmen
t of American industry?
Refrigerators Ice Machine
refrigerated rail car Transport meat
without spoiling
Clothes Automatic loom
Shoes Mass produced shoes
End of cobblers
How did the
American railroad system
develop?
Transcontinental Railroads Pacific Railway Act
Public land for rail companies
Union Pacific vs. Central Pacific
Push towards West
Immigrants, veterans, miners, farmers
Tough conditions
How did the
American railroad system
develop?
Growth of Railroads Railroad consolidation
Linking of independent railways
Cornelius Vanderbilt
Shipping magnate – steamboats
Purchased and linked three Eastern rail companies
Profit!
Time zones No longer used the sun
How did the
American railroad system
develop?
Growth of Railroads (cont) Technology
More cars on a track
More products shipped in a single trip
Land grants Building railways cost
$$$
Government gave land to rail companies
Rail companies sold it to settlers
How did the
American railroad system
develop?
Robber Barons Insider trading
Using information to manipulate prices, or to buy low & sell high
Jay Gould
Bribery
Crédit Mobilier Scandal
Union Pacific stockholders set up construction company
Sold stock to Congress
Deal with themselves for lots of $
Distrust in Congress
How did corporations shape American industry?
Rise of corporations Owned by many people
(stockholders) but treated as one person
Can own property, pay taxes, sue (and be sued)
Economies of scale
Sell stocks to raise money
Use $ to make a lot of goods at low prices
Result = competition
What contributed to the rise of
business?
Rise of corporations Vertical integration
Company owns all different aspects it depends on for operation
What contributed to the rise of
business?
Rise of corporations Horizontal
integrationCombining
different companies in the same industry into one large corporation
What contributed to the rise of
business?
Rise of corporations Monopoly
Controlling an entire market
Trust Merging businesses
by managing others legally
Holding companies Doesn’t produce
anything but owns & controls businesses
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
What is a union? Association of
workers formed to protect rights and further interests
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
Causes of Unions Horrible working
conditionsImproved standard
of living? Inequality of wealth Deflation
Rise in value of $$$
Owners cut wages
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
Types of Unions Craft worker unions
Special skills Machines, stone,
iron, glass, shoes, etc.
Common laborers Fewer skills Lower wages
Trade unions Craft workers AND
common laborers in a particular industry
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
Resistance towards unions New hires forced to
pledge to not join a union
Private investigators Blacklist
Lockout Replaced union
workers with strikebreakers called “scabs”
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
Resistance towards unions (continued) Courts didn’t
recognize right to organize
Perception that unions were Marxist Workers vs. owners
Overthrow government
Communism
How did the
formation of unions
affect American industry?
Women in the workforce By 1900, women made
up 18-20% of labor force
Domestic service, teachers, nurses, secretaries, garment & food factories
Paid less than men for same job
Excluded by unions
Formed Women’s Trade Union League
Point
The man who has his millions will want everything he can lay his hands on and then raise his voice against the poor devil who wants ten cents more a day.
Counterpoint
Labor unions would have us believe that they transfer income from rich capitalists to poor workers. In fact, they mostly transfer income from the large number of non-union workers to a small number of relatively well-off union workers.
How successful were early
unions?
Great Railroad Strike of 1877 Panic of 1873 Railroads slashed
wages 80,000 workers across
11 states went on strike Destroyed equipment,
blocked rails
President Hayes sent in troops 100+ dead, millions of
$ in damages
How successful were early
unions?
Knights of Labor Nationwide labor
union8-hour workdayNational bureau of
labor statsEqual pay for
womenNo more child laborWorker-owned
factories
How successful were early
unions?
Knights of Labor Opposed strikes,
especially violent strikesPreferred arbitration
Third party decides
Successful strike against railroad wage cuts Membership from
100,000 to 700,000 in one year
How successful were early
unions?
Haymarket Riot Nationwide strike for 8-
hour workday
Clashes between strikers and police in Chicago left one dead
More protests Bomb police and protesters both open fire
7 police, 4 workers dead
8 arrested, including one Knights of Labor member
How successful were early
unions?
Pullman Strike Pullman Company made
railroad cars Forced employees to buy
from stores owned by company
Workers strike
US Mail on rail cars
President Cleveland: Deliver the mail or else!
Sent in 12,000 troops
How successful were early
unions?
American Federation of Labor Samuel Gompers
Stay out of politics
Focus on working conditions and legal recognition of unions
