Compare And Contrast Carnegie And Rockefeller Captain Of Industry

Carnegie and Rockefeller: Captains of Industry Money makes the world go around. As cliché as that may sound, it's accurate. Wealth and social class are both two concepts that are built into society that surround the initial title of money. Two people that were both ranked very high socially and were both very wealthy, were Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller. The time period in which they both flourished financially was considered the Gilded Age and this was roughly from the years 1877 to 1900. For many Americans, the Gilded age was an era of invention and creating new opportunities. Between 1860 and 1901, some 440,000 U.S. patents were issued, many of them for inventions that became regular features of American life (Telgen 15). Many

The name Rockefeller is the German version of the original French Rouquefeuille. The Protestant family left France for Koblenz, Germany, after the Catholic King Louis XIV renounced his policy of religious tolerance in 1865 (Laughlin 10). When John was young he would watch his mother read the bible and frequently participate in religious practices. That was when he too realized he received guidance and strength from his Baptist beliefs and practices. His attraction towards his very strict religion wasn't the only reason Rockefeller was considered a serious and orderly person. He was oftentimes considered the “Man of the house” when his father would go out with no return date. His mother heavily relied on him and that gave John D. Rockefeller a strong sense of duty and responsibility. The family later moved in 1849, near Owego, New York. John attended Owego Academy where he learned to write essays and give speeches. The family once again moved to Ohio but this time John’s father “Big Bill” started gaining popularity as a cancer specialist who could cure cancer with his bottle cures he sold for as much as 25 dollars per bottle. Money was the most important thing in Big Bill’s life and in 1855 he changed his name to Dr. William Levingston, and then married another much younger woman in Nichols, New York. After this Rockefeller realized he never wanted to be dependent on his father again so he began the search for a job. He

A strong belief that ran in the Carnegie family was that privilege was not necessary and that no one should struggle financially while others around them were indulging. Carnegie would see his father passionately talk about this message in public meetings. His fathers message of equality, of doing away with wealthy privilege, would stay with Carnegie throughout his life (Scirri 28). As previously mentioned, Carnegie arrived in America from Scotland while the Industrial Revolution was under way. Carnegie and his family took the Erie Canal to travel west of New York City. They decided on living in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania. Although he had little formal education, Carnegie grew up in a family that believed in the importance of books and learning (Biography. “Andrew Carnegie.”). His father had the job of handweaving and he traveled many places to sell the products that he eventually ended up creating. To help support her family, Margaret Carnegie (Andrew’s mother) started a job as a shoe binder for local shoemakers. She would sew parts of shoes together using needle and thread. Per week she made the family four dollars for her work, which would be around $119 today. At Andrew’s job, his employer realized Carnegie had a devotion for numbers and finances, and his employer then allowed him to start handling books, or accounts at his job. Carnegie really did the exact phrase of working his way up. Through so