The Gilded Age/ Second Industrial Revolution Flashcards
How long did the Gilded Age last?
It started and ended roughly between 1870-1890
What was the second industrial revolution?
A technological revolution during which a number of inventions and innovations emerged in manufacturing, transport and communication.
What were the innovations and inventions that changed the way goods were produced, distributed and sold?
-Moved production into factories increasing efficiency (by eliminating waste, speeding up work, established long hours and breaking work into small tasks).
-Automatic signals and air brakes on the railways.
-The open-hearth and Bessemer methods of production in steel mills (better quality steel and greater productivity).
-Development of telephone, electric light and typewriter.
-Elevators and structural steel enabling skyscrapers to be built.
-Electric generator (resulted in electric powered homes which also led to refrigerators and washing machines).
-Internal combustion engine (led to automobile and powered flight).
-Gramophone and motion pictures.
What paradox did the expansion of agricultural lands led to?
The more farmers there were and the more productive farmers became the smaller was agriculture’s share of the economy
What happened when farmers production increased?
-They produced more than the country could consume with less labour
-They exported the excess
-Children of farmers migrated to cities and towns
-At the beginning of the century exports had 10% of darm income increasing to 20-25% by the end of the century
When was the first railway made and where did they travel?
-1828
-Ballimore and Ohio
When was the first transcontinental railroad made and where did they travel?
-1869
-Central Pacific and Union pacific
How did the federal government and Congress encourage the expansion of railways?
-Federal government: Provided subsides by the mile to railway companies in exchange for discounted rates
-Congress: Provided federal land grants to railroad companies
What factors contributed to the rise of capitalism?
-Expansion of railways
-Immigrant labour
-Post-Civil war reconstruction
-Discovery of oil
-Mass production
What were the reasons for the Gilded Age?
-Lots of natural resources
-Increased population
-Immigration (14 million)
-Improved transport systems
-Technological innovations improving communication and production
-Increased capital investment in industry
-Levels of government assistance
What is significant about Andrew Carnegie?
-Owner of Carnegie Steel Company in Pittsburgh
-Expanded Steel industry making it cheap through mass production
-Used vertical integration to maintain market dominance
What was significant about John D. Rockefeller?
-Founder of Standard Oil Company
-Used horizontal integration to buy out competition
-First US business trust
What was significant about Cornelius Vanderbilt?
-Steamboat and railroad tycoon
-laid thousands of miles of railroad tracks and established standard gauge for railroads
-Bought real estate in Manhattan and Staten Island
-Established the Staten Island Ferry
What was significant about Theodore Roosevelt?
-26th U.S. president
-Launched a collection of progressive domestic policies known as the ‘Square Deal’
-Youngest president at 42
-Involved in ‘trust busting’ and regulation of industry
What was significant about Robert La Follette?
-Wisconsin governor
-One of the most prominent progressives in the early 1900s
What was significant about William Howard Taft?
-27th U.S. president
-Involved in ‘trust busting’
-Strengthened Interstate Commerce Commission
-Passed 16th Amendment
-Was the handpicked successor to Roosevelt in 1908
What was significant about JP Morgan?
-Financier and banker
-Formed General electric
-Created US steel
-Stopped panic of 1907
-Modernised US business
What was significant about W.H Hearst?
-Newspaper publisher who built nation’s largest newspaper chain
Define Vertical integration?
-It is the expansion of a business into different steps (remove middlemen from production line) along it’s production path or supply chain
-This business might have a farm, distribution business and green grocer (like Coles and Woolworths)
Define Horizontal integration
-Process of acquiring or merging with competitors, leading to industry consolidation- it is a strategy, where a company acquires, merges or takes over another company in the same value chain creating a monopoly
-Bakeries buying bakeries for example
What does the nickname ‘Robber barons’ refers to?
-‘The Captains of industry’ cared little for consumers and did anything to increase profit earning the nickname ‘Robber barons’
What behaviours applied to these ‘Robber barons’?
-Engaged in unethical and monopolistic practises
-Wielded widespread political influence
-Amassed enormous wealth
Define trusts
-A business structure in which seemingly rival and multiple companies are managed by a single director
What was the three main ideas for Theodore Roosevelt’s square deal?
-Protection of consumers
-Control of large corporations
-Conservation of natural resources
