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The Triumph of Industry

The Triumph of Industry. Technology & Industrial Growth. The Civil War forced industries to become more efficient, employing new tools and methods like never before. The country’s growth was fueled by its vast supply of natural resources (coal,oil)

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The Triumph of Industry

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  1. The Triumph of Industry

  2. Technology & Industrial Growth • The Civil War forced industries to become more efficient, employing new tools and methods like never before. • The country’s growth was fueled by its vast supply of natural resources (coal,oil) • Due to several factors many new immigrants came to America hoping for a fresh start. • Entrepreneurs fueled industrialization.

  3. Government Policies • To encourage buying American goods, Congress passed proactive tariffs, which placed heavy taxes on imported goods. • The government also encouraged laissez-faire policies, which minimized the gov’t’s role in business.

  4. Innovation Drives the Nation • During the 1800s the gov’t issued more patents than ever before. • Thomas Edison’s light bulb revolutionized the industrial world by allowing businesses to work 24hrs a day to increase product and profit. • The Bessemer process was used in the construction of suspension bridges. (Brooklyn Bridge) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_edison

  5. Linking the Nation by Rail • As railroads expanded, they made use of new technologies and encouraged innovation. • Using air brakes and refrigerated cars by 1883 there were 3 transcontinental railroad lines in the U.S. • In 1884, the world was divided into 24 time zones, which was adopted by the railroad. • Railroads also led to the mass production of goods to meet the growing demands of an expanding country.

  6. The Rise of Big Business • To take advantage of expanding markets, investors developed a form of group ownership known as a corporation. • Some corporations tried to gain a monopoly by buying out its competitors and driving them out of business. • John D. Rockefeller made deals with railroads to increase his profits. • Andrew Carnegie gained power by diversifying his interests among different businesses.

  7. Social Darwinism • Based on the ideas of Charles Darwin’s work the Origin of Species. • Yale professor Graham Sumner applied Darwin’s theory to explain American capitalism. • Wealth was a measure of one’s value and those who had it were the most “fit.” • Believed against helping the poor.

  8. Government Regulations • In 1890, the Senate passed the Sherman Antitrust Act, which outlawed any trust that operated “in restraint” of trade and commerce among several states. • Many big businesses used the Act to their advantage saying labor unions restricted trade. • The Act began a trend toward federal limitation on corporations’ power.

  9. The Organized Labor Movement • In the 1880s and 1890s, factory owners took advantage of immigrants who would work for low wages. • Factory owners often treated the workers like machinery. • Sweatshops employed thousands of people, mostly women, who worked long hours on machines making mass-produced goods.

  10. Labor Unions Form • Factory workers used collective bargaining to argue for better working conditions and higher wages. • The views of Karl Marx became known as Socialism and focused on public rather than private control of property and income. (Communist Manifesto)

  11. Labor Unions Cont. • In 1869, Uriah Smith Stephens founded the Knights of Labor to help unite workers across the country. • Terence V. Powderly led the Knights at their height and made them a more public organization. • In 1886, Samuel Gompers formed the American Federation of Labor (AFL). • The AFL was a union for more skilled laborers.

  12. Strikes Rock the Nation • On May 1, 1886, thousands of workers mounted a national demonstration for an 8-hr workday. • The Haymarket Riot, three days later, raised suspicion about the motives for labor unions in the U.S.

  13. The Homestead Strike • Henry Frick tried to cut workers wages at Carnegie Steel, union called for a strike. • Frick hired the Pinkerton police to end the strike. • Several workers were killed and the factory later opened under militia protection.

  14. The Pullman Strike of 1894 • The company made sleeping cars for trains and had plans to cut wages by 25% and lay off workers. • Pullman fired three workers who attempted to negotiate a settlement. • Eugene V. Debs represented the workers. • The strike affected the mail service and was stopped by federal troops.

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