From Farm to Factory

Industrial America

The Gilded AgeTerm applied to this

era by Mark TwainGilded: Covered

thinly with gold paint

Twain viewAmerican prosperity

during this era was the gold layer

American social ills was what the gold layer was hiding

AdvantagesAmerica had certain

advantages that propelled it to be the worlds leading industrial powerThe gov’t supported the

expansion of businessAmerica had vast

resourcesA growing labor supply

and expansion of markets

The emergence of new technology

The “Big Switch”Nation goes from the

farm to the cityAgrarian to

IndustryNot good for the

farmerThe worker

Becomes part of the cog rather than an individual

Black GoldEdwin L. Drake

Used steam engine to drill for oilMade process

easierOil Boom

ImportanceIt lubricated the

new machines of industryWill later take on

new importance as a fuel source

Bessemer ProcessHenry Bessemer

1856: Invents a process to turn Iron into SteelWanna know how?

Ask a scientistInvention will

revolutionize America

SteelIron was the metal

Rust and breaks easily

Remove carbon from Iron = Steel

Stronger, rust resistant

UsesRailroad is the

biggest- rails, engines, cars

Barbed wire for farmsStructures- bridges,

buildings

RevolutionariesInventions that

make life easierThomas Alva Edison

Electricity- 1876Christopher Sholes

Typewriter- 1867Alexander Graham

BellTelephone- 1876

Coast to Coast in 1915

RailroadTranscontinental

New Towns and Businesses

Between 1870-1880 the RR laid 40,000 miles of new track

FarmersLand grants meant for

farmers go to railroadsDifferent rates for

different customersGranger Laws

Fixed ratesMunn v. Illinois

Supreme Court upholds laws

Robber BaronsAndrew Carnegie

SteelJ.P. Morgan

BankingJohn D. Rockefeller

Standard OilCornelius Vanderbilt

Steam ShipsGeorge M. Pullman

Rail CarsStarted the first

American Company town

Vertical and Horizontal IntegrationVertical

Purchase companies at all levels of production

HorizontalPurchase all

competing companies in same industry

All this equals MONOPOLY

Scientific ManagementAlso named

“Taylorism”The author of the

idea Frederick Winslow Taylor

Principle idea: EfficiencyReduce time an

labor costsEach person has a

specific jobThink assembly line

Social DarwinismFather of the idea as

applied to business is Herbert Spencer

Applies Darwin’s ideas to societyFree competition

promotes human progress

Pits society against itselfStrongest rise to the topWeak perish

Deserve to be poor

The Gospel of WealthWritten by Andrew

Carnegie in 1889Counteracts the ideas of

Social DarwinismPrinciple Idea: The

wealthy have a responsibility to use philanthropy to help less fortunateHospitalsColleges and schoolsLibrariesArts and entertainment

Horatio AlgerSort of a mix of Social

Darwinism and Gospel of Wealth

Very popular during the Gilded AgeEspecially with the

working classesTheme of books:

Rising from humble means to wealthHard work Determination

Never forget where you came fromGive back

UnionsNLU-National Labor Union-

1866 Won 8 hr. work day

Knights of Labor- 1868 Opened to all- race or

gender 8 hour work day and equal

pay for equal workAFL- American Federation

of Labor- 1886 Craftsman Union Collective bargaining-

group negotiations Used strikes as major

tactic

Unions Con’tIndustrial Unions-

ARU & IWW- Led by Eugene V.

DebsLeading American

SocialistWanted to do away

with CapitalismGov’t owned and

operated business1892- won strike for

higher wages

Labor Unrest: RailroadsGreat Strike of 1877-

B&O RailroadBegan July 1877-

Stopped rail traffic across country

Ended Aug. 2 1877- Federal troops called inthreatened interstate

commerce

Like most strikes at RR it was caused by anarchists infiltrating unions

Labor Unrest: Haymarket Square RiotHaymarket Affair-

McCormick Harvester Plant- May 4, 1886Rioters gather in

Haymarket Square after striker is killed by police

Police arrive- a bomb is thrown- police open fire

Public turns against labor movement

Leads to go’vt intervention in labor affairs

Labor Unrest: Homestead and PullmanHomestead Strike

1892 and Pullman Strike 1894Strikers clash

with Pinkerton Detectives and Scabs

Both start because of management order pay cuts to some, but not all employees

Labor Unrest: Molly Maguire'sSecret society of

Irish-American Miners in Penn.

Used terrorist tactics to intimidate coal operators

Will later be crushed by the Pinkertons

Labor Unrest: Ludlow, ColoradoLudlow Massacre

Colorado Fuel and Oil Co. Owned by Rockefeller

Strike because of pay and conditionsEvicted from company

townSet up camp outside

LudlowApril 20, 1914

Militia & company guards surround tent city and open fire

11 women an children killed

Breaking the UnionFailure

failed strike would crush a Union

Government Industries used Sherman

Anti-Trust against Unions

strike would interfere with interstate commerce

Public OpinionStrike led to hire prices

for goodsAnarchist conditions