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The death of President Lincoln sparked a new era in the United States. It set forth new boundaries for what would take place in the American frontier. At age 16, Cornelius Vanderbilt bought his first ferry boat with a loan of $100. With his shipping industry well under way, he was given the nickname of “The Commodore”. He was very competitive and earned the reputation of being a “cut-throat” business man.
Cornelius Vanderbilt, and John D. Rockefeller are both labeled as robber barons. Robber barons is a term that means that they stole and were granted special rights, so that they could create monopolies in their fields. This concept is completely wrong though, since both Vanderbilt and Rockefeller worked hard to earn everything they received. Rockefeller and Vanderbilt were both businessmen who made wise business decisions, and created deals that would benefit them.
The late 19th century was full of growth, production, and business. People were craving power and seemed to achieve this through any means necessary. Consequently, a new business elite formed consisting of the richest men alive. The way in which these individuals acquired all their profits is something very contradictory even over one-hundred years later. Some historians characterize these businessmen as “robber barons” who used extreme methods to control and concentrate wealth and power, and being supported by multiple sources, this statement is justified but only to some extent.
Jay Cooke and Co. became largely invested in railroad construction, such as the Northern Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific line. The companies were supplied by federal land grants, including over 60 million acres that were signed over to Jay Cooke’s firm. The firm uses the land as a collateral to secure more loans and sell more stock. Jay Cooke’s firm closed their doors in the fall of 1873, declaring bankruptcy and unable to repay its debts. Following the fall of the firm, many banking firms and industries who’ve also invested had mirrored the decline of Jay Cooke and Co.
Morgan, Rockefeller, and Carnegie all had their times when they acted like robber barons but the things they did as Captains of Industry over power what they did wrong which shows they did more good than bad. For example Carnegie donated more than $350 million to further public education, and build over 2,500 libraries. He did have times when he had his workers work long hours with little pay but his good, overpowered his bad. Another example was made by Rockefeller, in 1913, The Rockefeller Foundation was officially established and Rockefeller transferred $235,000,000 to it by 1929. He donated his money and proved he was a captain of industry.
His work, The Tycoons: How Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan Invented the American Supereconomy, allows readers to see a more picture perfect outlook on what the lives of these men entitled. Morris’s book was published in 2005, which allows readers to get a perspective from a long period of time and closer to reality rather than other historians writing on this era. The last author that allows readers to view the Robber Barons in a different manor is James Nuechterlein in his journal article Gifts of the “Robber Barons.” Nuechterlein wrote this article in 2007 allowing readers to view the men through historical resources that he uncovered. His stance shows a more balanced approach to the Robber Barons rather than saying one or the other was a better man than the other.
Entrepreneurs controlled the Gilded Age creating a growing economy with booming businesses and yet this has not changed over the years. John Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie can be compared to those with the names Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Multibillionaires, who know what the consumers desire, is what these men are best at. They knew and now know business well enough to be able to control our country’s’ economy. However, these successful business men do not do it together.
Robber barons, specifically Andrew Carnegie, an industrialist and John D. Rockefeller, a philanthropist, were the chosen, elite members of society according to the doctrine of Social Darwinism. Darwinism is when evolution occurs and the strongest organisms of an ecosystem survive and reproduce to outnumber the weaker, less fit organisms of an ecosystem. Similarly Social Darwinism follows the same concept, but in a capitalist sense of thought. Those who were able to exploit the Gilded Age’s laissez faire economy to their own benefit, like the robber barons Andrew Carnegie of Carnegie Steel and J. D. Rockefeller of Standard Oil, were the fittest members of society because they were able to survive in the grueling and ruthless free economy. By usurping all of the fresh yet unfit immigrants that were flowing into the States due to the rise of urbanization, these two men integrated these easily-manipulated people into their factories to augment their profits.
The combination of the government’s post-Civil War conservative laissez-faire economic policy and its aid to the industry, such as the land grants to the railroad companies and infusion of capital and favorable tax, brought industrial boom and the creation of big corporations at the last third of the 19th century. The big corporations used unfair practices to monopolize the industry and maximize their profits. These practices included “pooling”, the agreement to divide territory and share earnings between companies, favorable “rebates” offered by the railroads to large shippers yet charging small shippers such as farmers, and frequent “kickback” bribes to government officials. As a result there was an increasing disparity between the rich and
Ultimately, they worked to twist these concerns into attempts to influence the financial markets (White, 23). During the Gilded Age, the development of transcontinental railroads could now demonstrate a connection between the corruption of information within
Vanderbilt, and Rockefeller for that matter, are often treated poorly by many people or uneducated historians. As they are affectionately called "robber barons" (a term given to them by their competition), these entrepreneurs are often viewed as the greatest thieves of society, despite the fact that there was no consensual taking involved in their success. These "monopolists" of the 19th century oversaw the creation of the platform which lead to the rise of America as an economic superpower in World War I and World War II. The American industrial revolution, and these monopolists involvement are essential to America's success. America, like some Western European nations like Great Britain, Prussia and France, oversaw the expansion of efficient travel, manufacturing, and the increased quality of life for many of the working poor.
Money. Everyone wants it but doesn’t want to work for it. It’s a common necessity in everyday life and it always will be. These two gentlemen took their passion for money and obtaining fine things and turned it into a profession. Cornelius Vanderbilt and Ted Waitt both had similarities and differences, both strong and weak.
The mid to late 19th Century, into the 20th Century, created a vacuum of opportunity for capitalists in America to dawn their influence and make a great impact on American society. With the Industrial Revolution storming full speed ahead in the United States, men like John D. Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, and J.P. Morgan used their business ingenuity of ‘trusts’, ‘pools’ and other business tactics to rein supreme in their respective markets. These influences, however, were not perceived well by the lower classes, as many felt the brunt of these tactics, and ended up getting hurt, as the capitalists got richer. Thus despite the philanthropy and economic strife gained through these men, it will fall on deaf ears as their
Both a successful banker and a financier who brought organization to the national economy, J.P. Morgan had a major impact on the advancement and prosperity of the United States. Through the funding of railroads, Morgan aided in the construction of new systems which in turn provided for fast and easy transportation of goods, people, and livestock. He then went one step forward and linked railroads to each other, all of them to banks, and banks to insurance companies, which enabled the railroads to be easily funded by the banks. Despite his positive achievements that heavily impacted the U.S., Zinn presents Morgan’s achievements and character in a negative fashion. Zinn includes a statement written by Gustavus Myers describing how Morgan and other companies were in cahoots to monopolize the railroads and eliminate fair competition; thus, at the detriment of the people of the country.
Was Cornelius Vanderbilt a Robber Baron or Captain of Industry? A cruel businessman or an industrious leader? Henry J. Raymond believed that Vanderbilt was “a monopolist that crushed other competitors”(T.J Stiles). While he is also deemed one of America’s leading businessmen, and is also credited for helping shape the United States. His fortunes were made unfairly in some cases but his million dollar contribution to the Navy was very generous.
