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19th Century Factory Workers

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The late 19th Century was a time in the United States of America where the majority of the country 's wealth belonged to few men. Marked in history as the “Gilded Age”, this was a time of immense industrial growth through building factories and territorial expansion through the development of railroads. At the helm of this industrial growth were men such as J.P. Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and John D. Rockefeller, railroad and factory owners who experienced incredible financial success during this time period. While these men prospered, most of the country was poor and struggled to survive despite working full time for the railroads and factories. “While the rich wore diamonds, many wore rags. In 1890, 11 million of the nation 's 12 …show more content…

While some may label these railroad/business tycoons as “Captains of Industry”, it becomes clear through their oppression of workers, payment of below sufficient wages, and use of child labor that they were merely “Robber …show more content…

Workers for these railroads and factories faced many hardships. “Thomas Hobbes described life in nature as poor, solitary, nasty, brutish, short—and for many workers that was the case” Unfortunately their tough lives were mostly inescapable. The only available jobs at the time was working for companies owned by a lot of the same men with the same intentions. All wages for these jobs were so low, workers couldn’t fare the expense of trying to find better work. The average annual income of these families was around three hundred and eighty dollars, well below the poverty line of this time period. Yet a different picture was painted of the United States to other countries. Different types of literature was spread to foreign countries creating an idea of ample job opportunities leading to immense wealth only found in America. Immigrants poured into America with hopes of becoming successful through American job opportunity. People found themselves lost in the system these railroad/factory owners created. This system impoverished workers while making the owners incredibly

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