The Gilded Age

1865-1900

Second Industrial Revolution

• Railroad expansion• New Inventions– Telephone, typewriter, cars, etc.

• New Energy Sources found– Oil – Coal– Electricity

Capitalism

• America operated (and operates) primarily under a capitalist or market economic system. – private businesses run industries– Prices and wages are determined by

competition and the laws of supply and demand. – laissez-faire capitalism = government should

stay out of the economy – Benefits of capitalism include quality products

and good prices. – Capitalism does cause inequality.

Rise of the Super Rich (Robber Barons)

• Andrew Carnegie – Steel• John D. Rockefeller – Oil• Cornelius Vanderbilt – Railroads• Jay Gould -- Railroads• J.P. Morgan – banking

Iron Law of Wages

• ‘Pay as low as the worker would accept’

• Immigrants made this easier• Govt. officials had ties to big

business

Gospel of Wealth

• All lived lavish lifestyles but many also became great philanthropists

• Many promoted the idea of Social Darwinism- Stronger people, businesses, and nations prosper, weaker ones fail.

• Believed that “survival of the fittest” would strengthen society as a whole

Rise of Labor Unions

• Upset by harsh working conditions, unions organized strikes– Railroad Strikes of 1877 and 1886–Haymarket Riot in Chicago– Pullman Strike

• Government always sided with business (Corruption)

Political Machines

• Organizations that powered friendly candidates to office

• Run by ‘Bosses’• Used underhanded methods to gain

votes– Stuffing ballot boxes– Bribed vote counters– Intimidation

Tammany Hall

• Most famous of the Political Machines (NYC)

• Run by William ‘Boss’ Tweed

Progressives

• Group of Reformers hoping to improve society

• Goals:– Fight crime, disease and poverty–Work for better working conditions– Establish public education

Muckrakers

• Progressives were spurred on by a new class of journalists – muckrakers

• Wanted to ‘expose’ the bad side of society

• Focused on issues such as:– Child labor – Racism– Slum housing– Corruption

Movement to Cities

• NY, Philly, Chicago all had over 1 million residents

• Introduction of skyscrapers and elevators

• Increase in crime and rise of organized crime

Economic Vocabulary

• Capitalism – economic system where the means of production and distribution are privately controlled

• Socialism – economic system where the means of production and distribution are controlled by the community or centralized entity (usually government)

• Laissez-Faire – economic policy of a government not interfering with commerce

• Monopoly – gaining exclusive control over an industry

• Philanthropy -- concern for human welfare marked by donations of money, property or work