Chapter 20, Section 2: The Rise of Big Business
Main Idea:
A. Growth of the Steel Industry
· Growth of ______boosted the ______industry (needed ______, locomotives, etc)
Making Steel a New Way
· ______Process
o Developed in 1850s by ______in US & Henry Bessemer in ______.
o Made steel ______& ______.
o As a result, many things began to made of ______(RR rails, nails, screws, ______(girders) for taller ______, etc.).
Thriving Steel Mills
· ______towns spring up throughout Midwest & ______becomes the ______of US.
· Many ______created, but also a lot of ______, as well (yellow ______, ______air, black ______)
B. Andrew Carnegie’s Steel Empire
Controlling the Steel Industry
· ______immigrant who opened a ______after seeing Bessemer Process on a trip to England.
· Bought out ______mills, as well as ______, RRs, steamships & warehouses.
· Created a ______in steel through ______(control all phases of ______– ______to ______product)
The “Gospel of Wealth”
· He believed ______had a ______to help ______& improve society (“gospel of wealth”)
· ______– he spent his later years giving tens of millions of $ to ______& helping people. His favorite cause was ______- “I started life as a poor man, and I wish to end it that way.”
C. The Corporation & the Bankers
· As ______factories gave way to big, national ones, the way businesses ______& operated changed.
o Capital = ______for investment (needed to ______)
The Rise of the Corporation
· Corporation - business owned by ______who buy shares of ______(stockholders)
o Stock - ______in a business ______by investors
o $ is used to ______business & increase ______
o ______- corporate ______shared with ______
o Board of ______– elected by investors to ______the business & increase ______(1 ______= 1 ______)
· Buying stock is less ______than starting & ______your own private business
o ______must pay all ______if a private business goes ______; Stockholders can only lose what they ______if a public business ______
Banks & Industry
· Corporations also ______large amounts of ___ from ______to expand even faster
· ______was the most powerful banker & used his power & $ to control corporations
· He ______heavily in ______corporations during ______economic times in order to ______of their ______.
· Then, he ______competition & ensured ______
o “I like a little ______, but I like ______more.”
· He gained control of most of the major ______& bought up many ______companies, including Carnegie Steel. By 1901, his US Steel Company was worth over ______.
D. Rockefeller’s Oil Empire
· US was rich w/ ______(raw materials), such as ______, coal, lumber, ______, etc.
· ______was first discovered in ______, PA in 1859
Rockefeller & Standard Oil
· John D. ______built an oil refinery to ______crude oil into ______for stoves & lamps
· He bought up other ______& ______them to create the ______of Ohio
· He did whatever he could to ______competition
o ______prices to drive others ______
o ______customers to ______with other oil companies
o Forced ______to grant ______to his company only
The Standard Oil Trust
· Trust - group of ______run by 1 ______.
o Standard Oil now ______all former ______by controlling their ______.
· ______- control of an ______by 1 ______.
o Standard Oil controlled ______of all US ______.
· Other corporations in other industries did the same.
o By 1890s, monopolies & ______controlled most industries.
E. The Case For & Against Trusts
For
1. ______argued that too much competition ______businesses & put people ______: Wealth & Its Uses - “______are the ______that make the most ______, and contribute most to the ______even after they have ______themselves”
2. Goods could be made more ______to keep ______down
3. Americans enjoyed ______& better ______than before (______in the world by ______)
Against
1. Lack of ______drives up ______& keeps product ______down
2. ______businesses can’t ______& have no chance to ______
3. Trusts had too much ______influence & “bought” ______($ = power)
4. ______of corporations are often ______& ______
v ______Antitrust Act – 1890
v Banned formation of ______& monopolies, but too ______to be effective
F. Captains of Industry or Robber Barons?
Captains of Industry (+)
1. Their ______made the US the #1 ______of the world
2. They were ______(______to ______)
3. They gave back to ______later in life (______)
Robber Barons (-)
1. They used ______tactics to drive out others (many now ______)
2. They had too much ______& ______(political ______)
3. They were ______businessmen whose ______were often ______(______work, low ______, ______conditions)