The Pros And Cons Of A Robber Baron

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary has two definitions listed for the term robber baron: “an American capitalist of the latter part of the 19th century who became wealthy through exploitation,” and “a business owner or executive who acquires wealth through ethically questionable tactics.” To call someone a robber baron implies that they were corrupt, perhaps through paying off the government, giving unfair wages, or using unethical business practices. “Robber Baron” is a loaded term, and should not be used lightly. That being said, the term “robber baron” aptly describes men such as Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and Cornelius Vanderbilt. The era in which they reigned, dubbed “The Gilded Age” by author Mark Twain, was well known to have

Plant superintendent Henry C. Frick, who was well known for his “ruthless anti-unionism,” (Marcus) enclosed the mill in a barbed-wire fence to prevent union interference (Adamczyk). 300 Pinkerton agents and 8,500 National Guard members were unleashed on the strikers, and they were eventually forced to give in to the twelve-hour work days and the twenty-five percent wage reduction (Marcus).

Throughout this entire exchange, Carnegie refused to listen to the cries of his workers, consistently demonstrating his favor for the productivity of the mill and his own profits over their needs. Time and time again, he displayed his willingness to use force to show that he was going to get his own way. Whether this was out of stubborness or pure greed, it is obvious that Andrew Carnegie did not place any value on the wellbeing and lives of his

Either way, however, the lives of many people are ruined. Such was the case in the Cleveland Massacre, a business play run by John D. Rockefeller that would later spur much controversy. Cleveland, the home of the Standard Oil Company, was a huge center for the oil business in the 1860s and early 1870s. One would not expect a city so far inland to be able to house the booming oil industry, but it made it up with its large network of trains. In February of 1872, Rockefeller made a secret deal with the railroad companies to lower his own shipping rates and raise those of everyone else. Rockefeller and his business partners at Standard Oil (then called the South Improvement Company) began to buy out all of their competitors at extremely low rates, since they could no longer afford to stay in business (Tarbell, 70-97). Rockefeller and those involved in his monopoly were able to profit from the affair. Oil drillers, small-time traders, and anyone who dared speak against the tyrannical deal were unable to compete (Bryan). Tarbell writes that he was “unhampered… by any ethical consideration” and that he had obtained the companies “by assault” (102-103). This was not where Rockefeller’s reign of terror ended, however; it was just where it began.

The Standard Oil Trust was formed by Rockefeller and eight other trustees in 1892 (Standard Oil Company and Trust). Together, they could