The Growth of
Industrial
Society in the
Unites States of
America
Chapter 18
Does the industrial process
create good or evil?
Post-Civil War America
witnessed perhaps the
greatest industrial
expansion in the
history of recorded
events. It transformed
the United States of
America into the most
powerful nation on
earth.
Development of Infrastructure
The map to the left shows
U.S. railroad mileage in
the 1850s. The two maps
on the next frame show
the rapid growth of the
American rail system
from the year 1850 to
1860. Most construction
was in the industrial
Northeast and the
recently settled Midwest.
U.S. rail
mileage by
1925
Completed May The Transcontinental
10, 1869 The Railroads worked the Railroad**
largest changes of all from the
mid-19th century forward**
Commemoration of Completing the
Transcontinental Railroad
What was it the
engines said,
Pilots touching,--head
to head
Facing on the single
track
Half a world behind
each back
Bret Harte (1836-1902)
Standardization of the
Rail System**
• Standard gauge (distance between
rails) in 1866
• Adoption of standard schedules,
signals, and equipment
• Creation of Time Zones
Difficulties and Problems
with the Railroads
• Consolidation forced many companies into
heavy debt
• Unfair Business Practices Implemented
Rate wars—necessary to operate at a loss
since capital was already paid for
• Illegal Practices
Illegal Practices
• Rebate—discount on normal shipping
charge (if not offered equally to all
customers, was illegal)**
• Pooling—agreement by managers of several
companies to share in carrying certain
%age of freight so all could remain in
business**
• Bribery & promises not to cut rates = other
illegal acts**
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Celebration of the Achievements of
the Railroad
Thy black cylindric body, golden
brass and silvery steel. . .
Thy great protruding head-light
fix’d in front,
Thy long, pale, floating vaporpennants, tinged with delicate
purple
Thy knitted frame, thy springs
and valves, the tremulous
twinkle of thy wheels,
Thy train of cars behind,
obedient, merrily following. . .
Type of the modern—emblem of
motion and power—pulse of the
continent. . .
Fierce-throated beauty!
Walt Whitman (right, 1819-1892)
The Raw
Materials
Of National
Greatness
Rise of American Industry
COAL
TIMBER
IRON
Mesabi iron
ore range in
Minnesota
PETROLEUM
WATER
Manpower / Labor
Massive immigration
in the late-19th
century helped
create a large supply
of labor to staff
burgeoning U.S.
industry—RQ15
The U.S. had ALL the
resources necessary for
national greatness**
Emergence of
the Steel Industry
In the 1850s, Sir Henry
Bessemer (English,
1813-1898—right) and
William Kelly (US,
1811-1888)
independently
discovered blasting cold
air through iron heated
in large furnace caused
impurities to burn (“air
boiling”). ** 17A
The first Bessemer steel
was produced in 1864.
The Bessemer Process Made
Steel**
• More cheaply (only needed 1 ton of
coal where 7 were used to make 1
ton of steel)
• Stronger and more durable
• Less likely to rust
• The Bessemer process
(left) increased
production from 2,000
tons in 1864 to 7 millions
tons by end of 19th
century.
• Iron ore came in
abundant supply in the
American Midwest (see
map to right). The Great
Lakes proved to be an
auspiciously located for
the transportation of iron
ore to the steel mills that
would refine the ore into
marketable products.
Brooklyn Bridge connecting Brooklyn to
Manhattan Island used steel
The Background
Colonel Edwin L. Drake, a former railroad conductor, became the
first man to drill on oil well (see “Drake #1,” above).** His
discovery came in Titusville, Pennsylvania on August 28, 1859.
Drake’s auspicious find proved to fuel the growth of one of the
most important industries in American history.
Spindletop—Beaumont,
Texas, 1901
Uses for Petroleum Included
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Lubricating oil
Grease
Paint
Wax
Varnish
Naphtha
Paraffin
American Invention and
Entrepreneurship
Edison’s
incandescent
light bulb—
1879
Thomas Alva
Edison, 1847-1931
Late-1800s: A
time of
incredible
explosion of
inventiveness.
America
became
the home of
invention
Refrigeration
Philip Armour** (18321901)—used refrigeration
in meatpacking industry;
Chicago converted into
railway hub between
Great Plains farms and
big Eastern cities. Beef
slaughtered in Chicago
and stored in refrigerated
warehouses, shipped in
refrigerated cars to East
Armour’s innovation affected Texas—Ft.
Worth became major meatpacking center; Ft.
Worth stockyards opened in 1890
Chicago meatpacker Gustavus Swift (18391903) gave an additional boost to the meat
industry
Swift implemented the
idea of distributing meat
nationwide by use of
refrigerated railcars
• Meatpacking goes from $65
million/year business in 1870
to $500 million by 1890s.
Refrigeration changed eating
habits of nation—it gave
wider variety of meat to
American public AND
provided thousands of jobs
Air Brake for Railroad Cars
• George Westinghouse
(left, 1846-1914)–
enabled engineer to
stop all cars himself
instead of a brakeman
on each car; made for
 Passenger safety and
comfort
• Longer, faster trains
Electrical Inventions
Electricity was a far more flexible
source of power than water or wind.
It allowed change in high-voltage
current traveling long distances on
power lines into low-level current
for
use in homes, offices. People
From
. . . To
initially
feared
Franklin.
. . electricity because
Edison
Electricity—more
flexible
they didn’t
understand how it
and effective than water or
worked
wind**
Typewriter
Christopher Sholes
(1819-1890)
introduced it in 1867
This marvelous innovation eliminated
handwritten business letters and created
an new opportunity for women in the
workplace**
Telephone (a.k.a., the “Speaking
Telegraph”)
On March 10, 1876,
Alexander Graham
Bell (left, 1847-1922)
spoke the first
sentence—“Mr.
Watson, come here; I
want you.”—over the
telephone that he
invented.
Photography
In 1879, George Eastman
(right, 1854-1932),
developed a process
that laid the
foundation for
producing both
celluloid film and
moving pictures.
By1888, Eastman was
marketing the Kodak
camera.
Cyrus Field (1819-1892) and the
Trans-Atlantic Cable
• Field laid in the first
cable in 1858 but it
broke. He succeeded in
1876.
• Field’s
accomplishment linked
European and
American telegraph
networks.
The Philosophy of Laissez-faire**
• Carnegie’s “Gospel of
Wealth”
• Defended
accumulation of
wealth
• Asserted responsibility
of wealthy to spend
properly
• Act as “trustee” for
poorer brethren
• Donate money to
worthy causes
The book
expressed a
paternalistic
view, i.e., the
poor are not
capable of
making their
own (a.k.a.,
wise)
decisions**
The “Self-Made Man”** 17B2
The Boot-strap Philosophy—Combination
of hard work and good luck = fortune. . .
How is this argument true?
The Horatio
Alger stories
(left)
popularized the
idea that hard
work led to
upward
mobility.
Across the Atlantic, author Samuel Smiles
(1832-1904, right) published an English
version of this philosophy
Social Darwinism and Survival of
the Fittest 17B3
Darwin’s seminal
work appeared in
1859
Charles Darwin
(above, 1809-1882)
Survival of the Fittest
Herbert Spencer
(1820-1903) applied
Darwinist principles
to human society
William Graham Sumner (above, 1840-1910), was a
Yale University political and social science professor -arguments like his suggested that millionaires were the
products of natural selection. In 1883, Sumner
published What Social Classes Owe One Another. **
Government
interference /
regulation in
business world went
against natural law.
Laissez-faire
economic philosophy
rejected government
involvement in
economy, planning
over a free market
economy. Free
market forces were
good since they
eliminated weaker
competitors from
business. **
Social Critics and Dissenters
John Greenleaf Whittier (18071892. left)—aging rural poet who
critiqued the influence of
urbanization and
industrialization. At the
Centennial Exhibition held in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in
1876, Whittier refused to view
the exposition’s focal point—the
powerful, giant Corliss steam
engine—suggesting that this
symbol of emerging American
industry was like the serpent in
the Garden of Eden.**
17B4
Business Organization
Caricaturists of the
day represented the
overbearing power
of industry—and,
as the U.S. Capitol
in the background
suggests, its
influence on
Congressmen and
other policymakers—as both
overwhelming and
malevolent.
Vertical Integration**—New form
of Organization
Carnegie realized fortunes
of his steel plant depended
on forces outside his own
control, e.g., mining
companies, ships and rail
lines for transport, so he
bought these entities.
Andrew
Carnegie and
Steel Industry
(1835-1919)
“Andrew
Carnegie emerged
as the undisputed
master of the
[steel] industry.”
He insured control of process from
securing raw material through turning it
into the finished product.
He believed in value of competition, free
enterprise--he opposed trusts since they
violated laws of competition
Horizontal Integration**—New
form of Organization
Rockefeller believed competition was wasteful-he ruthlessly eliminated the competition
through price cutting to capture competitor’s
business (he thereafter raised prices). By 1879,
he controlled 90% of U. S. refining capacity.
Below—Standard Oil Company stock
certificate signed by Rockefeller
John D.
Rockefeller
(1839-1937) and
Standard Oil
Trust
The “Trust”—
stockholders of
independent
companies
exchange shares of
stock for trust
certificates issued
by large firms like
Standard Oil.
The “Trust”
Rockefeller took control
of entire refining industry
(necessary to turn raw
petroleum into saleable
product). In time,
Standard Oil used vertical
integration as well to form
a monopoly (complete
control over every aspect
of an industry).
“Dividends” -- %ages
of company’s profits
issued to holders of
trust certificates; to
receive, holder gave
up right to help
manage the firm
Ida Tarbell’s History of Standard Oil,
1904**
Tarbell exposed his
cut-throat tactics,
ruthlessness.
Rockefeller had driven
Tarbell’s father out of
the refinery business.
Tarbell (1857-1944) is
pictured on a
commemorative stamp
show to the left.
Materialism and the Origins of Our
Consumer Society
brought
modern
products to
customers far
and wide**
Mail Order
Catalogs. . .
The Rotary Press and the Rise of
Advertising
Rise of Department Stores
R. H. Macy in New
York
Marshall Field in
Chicago
They enabled 19th century Americans the relatively new opportunity
to leisurely browse and buy while they shopped**
Chain Stores
A&P Grocery
Store
F. W. Woolworth and the “Five and
Ten Cent Store”
Department Stores
Richard W.
Sears
Alvah C.
Roebuck
The mail-order option brought
modern products to unseen
customers far and wide, both in
urban and rural settings. In the
department stores themselves,
people could leisurely browse
and/or buy.**
Robber Barons or Industrial
Statesmen / Captains of Industry?**
•
•
•
•
Robber Barons—focus on the acquisitive
Sought own advantage
Lost sight of public interest
Drove smaller competitors out of business
undermining healthy competition
• Took advantage of workers; created extra
poverty and hardship
Industrial Statesmen—focus
on the creative**
• Developed new, effective business
methods
• Helped American economy to grow
Bottom Line: by 1900,
Americans had highest
standard of living in world
The Working Class
In spite of some positive
developments—a rise in real
wages, improved working
conditions, and an increase in
the working man’s influence in
national affairs—work
conditions, a grueling and
impersonal routine, and poor
safety standards in the work
place prompted the growth of
unions to improve conditions.
Who Worked: Mostly White
Males (vs. Women and Blacks)
• Discrimination--policy or attitude
denying certain rights to a certain
group
• Often resulted in receiving less
desirable jobs, less pay for same work
Immigrant Work Force RQ15
By 1870, about a third of America’s factory work
force were foreign-born. Coming out of low
standard of living in Europe, they were willing to
take low paying jobs.
• Slavs--steel mills in Gary, Indiana
• Jews--New York City’s garment industry
• 13.5 million emigrants came to U. S.
between 1865-1900--they sped the pace of
industrialization
Work Conditions
Most factories were difficult work places for the worker
because they were :
• Poorly lighted—strain on eyes
• Poorly ventilated—especially a problem where
textile workers
• Hazardous— high-speed machines very dangerous
or, danger of explosions or cave-ins in mines, or
sparks of hot metal in steel mills—accidents
frequently happened
• Over-work--e.g., swing shifts of 24 straight
hours in steel mills
• Deafening noise--screech of steel saws,
constant vibrations
• Low wages
• Periodic unemployment -- no
unemployment insurance
• No buffer against illness
• Child labor
In face of stiff competition,
owners didn’t want to pay for
expensive safety features. By the
late-1800s, some 35,000 died in
industrial accidents. Firing could
be result of complaining or
refusing to work overtime (even
without pay). There was no one to
protect the workers.
Rise of Unions 17D
Knights of Labor**
17D
• Formed 1869 as secret brotherhood
• Skilled workers only
• Main aims were 8 hour work day and
equal pay for men and women
• lected Terence V. Powderly as leader
in 1879
Terence V. Powderly
(1849-1924
Powderly’s Contributions
 Lifted veil of secrecy
 Opened ranks to women, Blacks,
immigrants, unskilled laborers—goal =
unify ALL workers
 Opposed strikes (work stoppage) as tool
 Wanted 8 hour work day
 Wanted safety in factories
 Wanted compensation for on-the-job injury
Strike of 1885 against Jay Gould
(1836-1892)
This rail strike
occurred when Gould
(dominating caricature
to left) cut railroad
workers salary—
strikers won back
salary and membership
in union rose to 700,000
by mid-1886
Haymarket Riot and Decline of
Knights of Labor** 17D2
• 80,000 Chicago workers
struck for 8-hour day in
1886
• Police killed several
strikers near McCormick
Harvester Works
• Anarchists (who opposed
all forms of government)
staged rally for May 4
• 100,000 met in
Haymarket Square to
hear anarchist
speakers denounce
police and
industrialists (below
right)
• Police moved in
• Someone threw a
bomb killing 1
policeman (above
right)
• Riot ensued with 7
police and 4 civilians
dying
Spies (lower right) was
convicted of murder and
executed for his role in the
Haymarket Square riot. At his
trial, he uttered the following
indictment against society: “Let
the world know that in A.D.
1886, in the state of Illinois,
eight men were sentenced to
death because they believed in a
better future; because they had
not lost their faith in the
ultimate victory of liberty and
justice!”
The riot turned
public against labor
organizations since
Knights were lumped
together with
anarchists;
membership dropped
to 100,000 by 1890.
Anarchist
August Spies
American Federation of Labor**
17D1
• Founded 1881 with
Samuel Gompers as 1st
president
• Membership open to
skilled workers only
• Members joined through
local craft unions and
then the local union
associated with the AFL
Samuel Gompers
(1850-1924) RQ 14
AFL’s limited goals**:
• 8 hour workday
• Right to collective
bargaining (right
of unions to
represent workers
as a group)
• Did not seek to
reorganize society
• Considered strikes
a legitimate tool
AFL Membership
Figures
• 1886—
150,000
• 1900—
500,000
• 1904—1
million
Management vs. Labor
Suspicion and Distrust Existed on
Both Sides
• Management’s position—Unions interfered
with management’s right to bargain with
individuals
Carnegie’s Homestead Steel Plant
Strike**— 1892 17D2
Smoke rising
from the
Homestead
Steel Plant.
Above left, plant manager Henry Clay Frick
(1849-1919) and above to the right, plant
owner Andrew Carnegie
Armed Suppression of the Strike:
• Workers angered by
unexpected wage cut
• Strike threatened
• Henry Clay Frick,
plant manager, closed
plant
• Frick hired 300
armed Pinkerton
guards
Was a stunning
•Angry union workers attacked
defeat for the
union**
•Seven Pinkerton men and 9 workers killed
Pullman Strike of May-July 1894—
the First National Strike in U.S.**
History 17D2
George
Pullman,
1831-1897
President
Grover
Cleveland,
1837-1908
Closure of
the Pullman
Plant
• Eugene Debs’ American
Railway Union boycotted the
rolling stock of the Pullman
Palace Car Company
• The boycott was in protest of
the company’s wage cuts and
victimization of union
representatives
• The company obtained a
federal injunction and used
federal troops to break the
strike
Eugene Debs, 18551926—the strike
brought Debs to
national attention
The outcome was a major setback for the American
labor movement
Opposition to Unions—Supreme
Court Decisions
• In re Debs, 1895--The Supreme Court upheld the
injunction that helped to break the Pullman Strike
of 1894**
• Holden v. Hardy, 1898—The Court upheld a law
that limited working hours for miners on the
grounds that work in the mines was dangerous
and long hours might increase the risk of on-thejob injury**
• Lochner v. New York, 1905—The Court struck
down a law limiting bakery workers to a sixtyhour workweek and a ten-hour day**
Opposition Continued
• Press usually sided with employers—
publishers depending on advertising
revenue from local businesses, and were
employers themselves
• Public generally opposed unions—People
considered them radical organizations
• Collective bargaining was foreign to
American traditions of individualism
The Socialist View
•
•
•
Government should make decisions
representing society as a whole
Profits gained from making products,
providing services should be distributed
evenly among workers
1877—Socialist Labor Party founded—
was small with limited influence
Eugene Debs
stirred railway
workers to
strike against
the Pullman
Company in
1894
Socialist campaign
poster
For his trouble—specifically his refusal to honor the injunction
issued against striking workers—Debs went to jail. Not only did
these events put Debs in the national spotlight; his experiences
moved him further to the political left and eventually to support
American socialism. Debs would later run as the 1912 and 1920
Socialist Party presidential candidate
Who Won?
• Nobody wins: workers lose wages and
employers lose profits
• Was “unfortunate byproduct of competitive
pressures in the new Industrial Age”