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.
Although industrialists of The Gilded Age brought about a new societal sophistication, those of the lower class were not blessed by these of the social graces. The men of The Gilded Age the steelmaker Andrew Carnegie, the banker J.P. Morgan, the oilman John D. Rockefeller, and the railroad magnates Jay Gould and Cornelius Vanderbilt, contributed to the low income and poverty lives of their workers. Often labeled at robber barons, these industrialists took away the rights of their workers and helped make higher class children have an unfair advantage, especially in the sense of education, over the lower class youth. These men, distinctly different in their investments, all had one goal in mind. To earn a profit, no matter the cost.
During the late 1800s there was a time period called the “Gilded Age”. The Gilded Age is a time period the economy was struggling along with the people of the era. Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and Thomas Edison were some examples of successful business owners and Robber Barons of that time. Robber Barons were the people who stole money from the public along with natural resources such as soil, land, etc. These men were supposed to be great leaders, but instead they enforce horrible working conditions.
There is a broad line between a captain of industry and a robber baron. A captain of industry brought an advanced, modern economy. They might have done a few shady acts, but people can look past it. A robber baron can be considered as thieves because of the way they gained money by destroying other companies. Many could say these millionaires are both.
For example, John D. Rockefeller made millions off of the Standard Oil Company. His company easily grew and did well because of his timing and the circumstances that the economy was in. Another example of a robber baron is J. P. Morgan. He was a banker but he was very unfair to the people that he worked with. Some of the things that these two have in common are they were both very powerful in society
The late 19th century is referred to as the “Gilded Age”. Although everything seemed fine on the surface, it was corrupt underneath. From the end of Reconstruction in 1877 to the Panic of 1893, the economy in America nearly doubled in size. At the time, the government was very pro-business and looked favorably upon the growth. The wealthy were given the title of either a captain of industry, a businessman whose means of acquiring a fortune contributed positively to the country, or a robber baron, a businessman who used immoral methods to get rich.
The Gilded Age has been often portrayed as one of those dark periods in American history—a period of greed and corruption, of brutal industrial competition and harsh exploitation of
The Gilded Age, around the 1870s to the late 1890s, led to immeasurable success within the American economy and society. Wealth for a few led to hope for the many, and the idea of becoming immensely wealthy appealed to people. People saw that anybody could rise to the top through hard work and it was exemplified in people like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller. This gave them hope and advanced the idea of American exceptionalism and superiority. The process of obtaining wealth led to industrialization and urbanization but also to many problems.
The era of the Gilded Age was an era of growth and power. From the 1870’s to the 1900’s there was an extreme surge of economic advancements, in business, government, and technology. Although the downfall in most eyes was the noticeable split in social classes, Christians, Americans, and scientists all supported and understood this idea. The Gilded Age was known to most as the shallow worship of wealth, to the wealthy the Gilded Age protected them, however for the farmers, workers, women, and minorities it continued to throw them into a downward spiral. Although most would use the term “Gilded Age” this era would be also come to be called “The Second Industrial Revolution” it is known as this because how it changed the lives of everyone in
The Gilded Age was an age of rapid economic growth. Railroads, factories, and mines were slowly popping up across the country, creating a variety of new opportunities for entrepreneurs and laborers alike. These new inventions and opportunities created “...an unprecedented accumulation of wealth” (GML, 601). But the transition of America from a small farming based nation to a powerful industrial one created a huge rift between social classes. Most people were either filthy rich or dirt poor, with workers being the latter.
During the period of 1870 to 1900 large corporations, such as the railway company, grew significantly in size, number, and influence. The cause of this was the need for a new way of transportation, the demand was great so the railways expanded all over the United States so that they could meet these demands. These large corporations affected the economy by making it easier to pay for everyday chores, politics in the way that it gave politicians too much power but in doing so gave normal limited power. The corporations had great power and influence which made them a huge impact to society.
Although the Gilded Age may seem like a clean cut time period on the outside, it was actually very destroyed underneath. There was in fact a great load of manufacturing going on, but the work put into that production was unimaginable. Workers worked long, vigorous hours, with low pay, children worked, and little health safety. These terrible work conditions were endured as long as possible by desperate people who
Wealthy people spent their money however they pleased. The middle class struggled during the Gilded Age, their incomes stayed low for many years. That made many middle class people feel less and insecure of themselves. They feared losing their jobs and not being able to pay their houses or afford to see the doctor when sick or injured.
The Gilded Age was a period of time in the United States where industrialization was advancing at an alarming rate and the economy was expanding quickly. However, through all of this success many people were in poverty and the rich got richer while the poor got poorer. The monopolies were the main cause of the Gilded Age and the problems that came along with it. Jacob Riis’s views were biased to an extent, because he is a product of his time and blamed the immigrants for most of the problems during the Gilded Age.
Wealth, poverty, technology, decadence, the Gilded Age was a time of change and uprooting of past systems, schools of thought, and standards. It was a time of both hope and doubt for the majority of the population and brought many to be empty handed or exceedingly wealthy. The dynamic between rich and poor was shifting to a gap of wealth never before seen in the young country. The gilded age’s built up wealth disparity faded away over time. Yet today it seems that a resurgence of these features is rearing its ugly head again.
