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The Epic Quest For Oil Money And Power Summary

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Colby Rachor ENTM 40803 Dr. Morgan 12/10/14 The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, & Power—Review “The Prize,” by Daniel Yergin articulates the history of how oil, a naturally occurring resource, became one of the most valuable and sought after commodities in the world, and did so as early as the late 19th century. Through drastic advances in technology as the years progressed, the ability to refine and utilize oil commercially became a reality. This widespread extraction led to the wealth of many, and with the wealth, came greed. The modernization of the oil industry has led to many successes and failures, both in business and politically; but today, oil still remains a resource that every country needs and wishes to possess. “The Prize,” …show more content…

The investors behind the project were two corporate big shots: lawyer George Bissell and banker James Townshend. Upon completion of the project, Silliman awaited his monetary reward, though never received it. “Rock oil” was the term they used to describe a dark and smelly substance found in springs of the hills around Oil Creek in northwestern Pennsylvania. Prior to this project, the rock oil had been used to make medicines. In Benjamin’s findings, he concluded that the group could market and sell this product to be burned as fuel for lamps or lubricate the moving parts of factory machines. Though to do this and become successful, the source would have to be harvested at a significant rate. With scarce and expensive whale oil being used to heat lamps prior, the demand for a cheaper and more readily available resource was …show more content…

A man by the name of John D. Rockefeller decided to enter the market in 1865. Rockefeller, having the capital funding to support him, took what was already good and made it even better. He improved product quality and took the transportation and distribution concerns into his own hands. In a partnership with Henry Flagler, the two created Standard Oil Company in 1870 with the end goal of controlling the refining market all together through “vertical integration,” or an arrangement in which the supply chain of a company is owned by that company. Rockefeller’s business model could later be classified as a monopoly over the market. The company took advantage of railroad companies by negotiating price advantages on his distribution that would make him better off than his competitors. This, as one could imagine, created turmoil between Standard and its completion. The other independent companies within the marketplace got together to boycott, or shun, Standard refineries and its associated railroads alike. However, their efforts rarely fazed Rockefeller, as his cutthroat mentality was relentless when the profitability of his business was in jeopardy. In response to the boycotts, he would cut prices to where these companies couldn’t survive. By 1879, not only did Standard Oil Company control the pipelines, gathering systems, and

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With Standard Oil being the leading oil company, this limits other oil companies to sales because Standard Oil had the rights to many companies to produce and sell oil leaving very few businesses that other oil companies could sell to. This puts the little companies into a decrease in sales while Standard Oil makes a huge increase in sales. Small businesses worry about becoming bankrupt while Rockefeller becomes wealthy. Rockefeller was the reason why there were limits to big businesses because he was in control with oil companies not allowing others to succeed as

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Not long after his first company took off, in 1870, he created Standard Oil Co., which was a combination of a few of the other businesses he had started. Rockefeller used refineries to extract oil, rather than some of his competitors who preferred to use oil rigs. What truly helped Rockefeller rise above his competitors was actually undercutting their prices, and even offering money to railroad companies to only ship materials to him, which caused his competitors’ businesses to go bankrupt. He used a business tactic called the trust, where he took shares in other companies, offering the owners a place on the board of directors and dividends in the company. This tactic gave Rockefeller more control over his competitors’ businesses, which affected everyone else negatively.

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Rockefeller states that, “We must ever remember we are refining oil for the poor man and he must have it cheap and good” (Folsom, 2010, p. 83). In the market for oil, prices were not consistent, and Rockefeller was determined to remove any unnecessary aspects and use oil efficiently to mass produce and provide at the lowest cost. The work it took Rockefeller to offer the availability of oil allowed his market entrepreneurial persona to succeed within the process of creating a remarkable product that created the wealth of the oil

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Rockefeller created a monopoly with the refinery businesses and Scott and Vanderbilt decided to pull out of business with Rockefeller to make him pay going rates. Instead of caving in Rockefeller builds pipelines to transport the oil, and he no longer needs

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May 15, 1911, the United States Supreme Court has declared that Standard Oil to being an “unreasonable” monopoly and orders the company to be dissolved under the Sherman Antitrust Act. Founder of Standard Oil John D. Rockefeller entered the oil industry during the 1860s; and working alongside his business partner was able to create a oil empire. A ruthless businessman, he used his wealth to buy out the competition and as the company expanded they receive benefits such as discounted rates from railroads. By the year 1882, he controlled almost every aspect of the oil industry: distribution, marketing, refining, you name it he has complete control of it. He eventually controlled almost 90% of the United States oil production.

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John D Rockefeller wanted to make sure he gained control over pipelines, oil terminals, kerosene, distributors, and plants. John and the company was focusing on trying to accomplish the remaining of Cleveland oil refineries. In 1872, John offered money to buy the remaining of Cleveland oil refiners. The Owners of Cleveland could accept the offer or take the offer in the Standard oil stock and run out of business. With the South improvement Company still alive entity and given the size of Oil itself.

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Rockefeller was most known for his position in the oil business where his moto was “The best oil at the lowest prices” (Folsom np) describes how he ran his business. In 1885 he started his business but at that time is more expensive to ship the oil across the country then he could make off of it. So he created a system of railroads to ship his own oil. It saved his company millions. This business move eventually was the one of the causes of the down fall of his business.

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Standard Oil was founded by John D. Rockefeller, later developing into what others have called an empire of oil. As the company grew it started gaining more control over the oil industry until eventually Rockefeller had almost zero competition; becoming one of the monopolies that were taking over America society. Slowly Standard Oil started controlling more aspects of American life, concerning anyone who understood the implications of this. Udo J. Keppler illustrated a political cartoon, which was published on September 7, 1904 on Puck magazine, pertaining to Standard Oil and the control it was gaining. The illustration can be seen as undoubted or controversial depending on the people you ask, but one thing that is sure is that it showed a

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Rockefeller’s Contributions to the Industrial Era When leading the Standard Oil Company, John D. Rockefeller was innovative in the ways he maximized his profits; while his two major breakthroughs, one affecting the petroleum industry and the other the world of business itself, contributed to society, they were also part of how Rockefeller stayed ahead of his competitors. The first was researching new uses for the by-products of oil refining (Folsom, 1988, Discovering Crude Oil section, para. 9). According to Folsom (1988), Rockefeller was disgusted by the wastefulness of those already established in the oil business (Discovering Crude Oil section, para. 5 and 7).

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John Davison Rockefeller was perhaps the most influential force in the domination of the oil industry through his creation of the Standard Oil Trust. Even from a very young age, John Rockefeller was a strategic businessman with a powerful skill to utilize his resources. In 1870, when the Standard Oil Trust was formed, the oil industry was changed forever. Rockefeller was able to make oil affordable while still making an immense profit. Because of his staggering success in becoming one of the first successful trusts in the United States, Rockefeller generated a lot of controversy challenging his business methods and ideas.

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Standard Oil was an oil producing, refining, transporting and marketing company established in 1870. With time Standard Oil was able to use a corporate strategy called “horizontal integration”, which involved undercutting competitor’s prices and buying outwards in their industry to gain total control of their given industry ("The Dismantling of The Standard Oil Trust."). Due to the complete power over the industry the public began to be disgusted by the company. This allowed the government, or more specifically President Roosevelt to take action, and the action he took was based on public opinion, as displayed later in their research: The Congressional Industrial Commission's report to President Theodore Roosevelt laid the groundwork for Roosevelt's

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In 1870 the Standard Oil Company of Ohio got established by John D. Rockefeller and his brother William, together with Henry M. Flagler and Samuel Andrews. This took place while more than 250 competitors existed in the petroleum refining industry. Immediately Standard Oil began to consolidate the industry by using predator techniques, such as cutting down prices until competitors either went into bankruptcy or sold out to Standard Oil. Furthermore by buying up the needed components to prevent competitors to sell their oil and reducing the effective distribution cost by negotiating alliances with railroads, which gave Standard secret rebates. And by using industrial espionage, creating or buying oil-related companies, which seemed to be independent

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Then in 1904 the individual parts were combined as a book, The History of the Standard Oil Company(Allegheny College).”To know every detail of the oil trade, to be able to reach at any moment its remotest point, to control even its weakest factor—this was John D. Rockefeller’s ideal of doing business. It seemed to be an intellectual necessity for him to be able to direct the course of any particular gallon of oil from the moment it gushed from the earth until it went into the lamp of a housewife. There must be nothing—nothing in his great machine he did not know to be working right…”(Tarbell). The book attracted the public eye, and eventually the government’s. Consequently in 1911 The U.S Supreme

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In 1870, Rockefeller formed the Standard Oil Company of Ohio, along with his younger brother William (1841-1922), Henry Flagler (1830-1913) and a group of other men. John Rockefeller was its president and largest shareholder. In 1865, Rockefeller borrowed money to buy out some of his partners and take control of the refinery, which had become the largest in Cleveland. Over the next few years, he acquired new partners and expanded his business interests in the growing oil industry.

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Vanderbilt makes the deal with Rockefeller for 1.65$ a barrel and having all his trains filled with oil. After making the deal Rockefeller realizes he has over promised Vanderbilt. He searches for a way to refine oil and produce kerosine faster but it had been stated in the media to be dangerous. Rockefeller wanted to quiet everyone's fears of kerosine so He starts his company called Standard Oil. He had found his way to produce kerosine and Rockefellers industry has great success and expands tremendously and eventually outgrows Vanderbilt's deal.

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