Terms to know: Gilded Age Presidents Grover Cleveland Legislation Homestead Act Dawes Act Sherman Anti Trust Act Interstate Commerce Act Indian Removal Act Chinese Exclusion Act Significant Elections William Jennings Bryan Big Business Captains of Industry Robber Barons John Rockefeller Standard Oil Company Andrew Carnegie Cornelius Vanderbilt JP Morgan Political Issues Populism Political Machines Tammany Hall Political Bosses William “Boss” Tweed Economy Laissez-faire Monopoly Trust Vertical Integration Horizontal Integration Boomtowns/Ghost towns Labor Strikes The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 Haymarket Affair Pullman Strike Homestead Steel Strike Literature/Art/Music Political Cartoons Geography Transcontinental Railroad Open Range Great Plains Cowboys Ellis Island Angel Island Social Reformers & Social Groups Philanthropist Social Gospel Eugene Debs Samuel Gompers Knights of Labor American Federation of Labor Social Events/Movements/Protests Social Darwinism Reservations Child Labor War/Battles/ People Battle of Little Big Horn Battle at Wounded Knee Sand Creek Massacre General George Custard Sitting Bull Crazy Horse Technology/Inventions/Innovators Henry Bessemer – Bessemer Process Thomas Edison – Light Bulb Joseph Glidden – Barbed Wire Alexander Graham Bell – Telephone Vocabulary Words Gilded Unions Strike Black List Americanization Assimilation Melting Pot Nativism Tenements Urbanization
Businesses had to slash prices to compete Debts rose, prices fell, bankruptcy Power capitalists tried to limit competition amassed huge amounts of money Buy or Bankrupt other companies John D. Rockefeller had great success with this Captains of Industry: Many of the more successful entrepreneurs became known as ‘Captains of Industry’. They became known for their ruthless tactics used to destroy their competition and methods used to keep workers’ wages low. Some of the best known were: John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, JP Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt Captains of Industry ruled America during the Gilded Age They amassed fabulous wealth and lavishly spent it while the majority of Americans were poor. These men were also called ‘robber barons’ and were glorified and vilified. Some became the richest men in the world. Monopoly and Trusts: Monopoly- a company that completely dominates a particular industry With competitors out of the way they could rise prices and reap great profits Approach to reduce competition Trusts- A set of companies that are managed by a small group known as trustees. They have the power to prevent companies in the trust from competing with each other. Pop-Up Questions: In what way does a Monopoly inhibit competition and business growth? In what way was a corporation different than previous business types? What are the characteristics of a corporation? John D. Rockefeller Andrew Carnegie Made his fortune in oil. Kerosene, for lighting, made him millions The gasoline industry, made him even richer. Used horizontal integration and ruthless tactics to push competition out of business then would buy them out. Made a deal to ship oil for cheaper to cut prices below competitors Standard Oil Co. became a trust, with him owning most of the shares. Made his fortune in steel mills in the Pittsburgh, PA. He used vertical integration Bought his own iron ore fields, coal mines and ships so he could control all phases of steel production. Crushed attempts to form labor unions, paid low wages, and forced laborers to work 12 hour days. The labor strike on Carnegie’s Homestead Steel Mill would be one of the eras most violent