Industrialization was caused by

1. Westward Expansion• Gold was discovered in California in 1849.• Silver was discovered in Nevada in 1859.• Transcontinental railroad was started in 1863 and

completed in 1869.• Many immigrants wanted to farm out west.

2. Government subsidies• Subsidy=grant of land or money to a business.• Government gave 180 million acres to the railroads.• The railroads would sell the land to other people who

could build businesses on it.

3. Technology• Oil discovered in Pennsylvania in 1859 (new

technology—no one had used the “oozing” stuff for fuel ever before)

• Edison invented the light bulb in1879 and created an electric plant to light whole cities.

• Bell invented telephone in 1876. 300,000 businesses had telephones by 1885.

• Ford mass produced cars in 1900. He “invented” assembly in 1913.

• Wright brothers flew in 1903.

BIG BUSINESS EXPANDED IN AMERICA

1. Government did not regulate business. • Government followed idea of laissez-faire.

2. Companies issued shares of stock. • Many people could share the profits (and losses)

of the companies.3. Companies tried to win TOTAL CONTROL over

industries. • This is called a monopoly.• Rockefeller and Carnegie used trusts to create

monopolies.

Regular Company Trust

Standard OilTRANSPARENCY

Social Darwinist said “let the strong survive.”

But many others said that the big companies•Paid low wages—too low.•Made laborers work too long.•Gave their workers dangerous working conditions

•Example: Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911—fire escape doors locked, fire ladders too short, 150 people died

1. Knights of Labor formed in 1869.2. American Federation of Labor formed in

1886 and became country’s leading union.3. Labor unions relied on “collective

bargaining”—union negotiates for workers as a group.

4. Mary Harris “Mother” Jones campaigned for unions.