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Why Is Industrializing America The Great Divide

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Brett Riley Pryor HIST 2112 29 August 2017 Industrializing America: The Great Divide In the 19th century, America was labeled with the name the Gilded Age because of the industrialization taking place across the country. The owners of major corporations felt that they had the right to do whatever it took to increase their wealth. This caused workers to push themselves to work for long hours in terrible working conditions as well making children work. Since there were such harsh conditions workers often formed labor unions to try to fight these issues. These unions caused conflicts between the businessmen and the workers. A conflict between the managers at Carnegie steel mill and the Association of Iron and Steel Workers was one of the most …show more content…

It stated that the conflict had “virtually ended” and labeled the rioters as desperate and law-breakers. It also described the situation as a possible blessing, if in the end, it taught that lawlessness was a crime. The union workers were protesting a contract proposed by Carnegie that would cut their pay by 26 percent. Since the editorial was written for businessmen, it presented the union members as lawless because they were standing up to an elite industrialist, Andrew Carnegie. This editorial blamed the divide in America on the workers instead of the greedy management of the company. By never condemning the businessmen, the blood of the seven workers killed in the conflict seemed …show more content…

Some media outlets praised the working class while shaming the business leaders for making millions off of their labor. Other media outlets were against labor unions and their steps toward better working conditions. This showed the differences of opinion in America during industrialization. The Manufacturer and Builder wrote that the Homestead Affair was over, but in reality, it was hardly ended for America. Riots, strikes, and violence continued for many years. America had been divided on topics before, and this was just one more problem that split the country. Some even went as far as to say that these incidences showed that America was not ahead of European nations, but behind them in democracy. How could America, the land of democracy and liberty, fall behind European nations? The businessmen of America denied the very workers that made all of their wealth their human rights. America had to deal with an internal struggle for power and find a

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Andrew Carnegie had 12 mills within Homestead and in 1892 steelworkers decided to strike against him over the organization of labor within the mills. The process of the Homestead Strike began when the Amalgamated, who were one of the most acclaimed unions in the AFL (American Federation of Labor), tried to renew their contract with Andrew Carnegie. While the mill had both skilled and unskilled workers, the company had decided that they wanted the majority to take over the minority completely, and although Andrew Carnegie was known for being in favor of labor unions he saw that his contract only benefit everyone but him. After the Amalgamated had brought this issue to Carnegie he then passed if off onto the CEO of his company, Henry Clay Frick, who also happened to be anti-labor. When presented with the contract, Frick decided to completely ignore their wishes and instead did not even want to recognize the union at all.

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Emily Veit Mr. Tubbs AP US History 24 January 2023 APUSH DBQ The Gilded Age was an age of political and economic growth that occurred after the Civil War and before the 20th century. The transcontinental railroad made travel easier and let people expand westward. Companies began to set up and mass produce products for cheap via production lines. Although the United States experienced great economic and political growth during the 1870s to 1900s, because of the working conditions and the government being influenced by large corporations, many Americans were dissatisfied with the effect of these corporations that caused this growth.

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Carnegie, saw a new method to produce steel;he came to the U.S and built a million-dollar steel plant. He made sure Congress passed tariffs keeping out foreign steel, and keeping its price to $28 a ton. Workers were looked down on because they were poor. These businessmen were very corrupt, they maintained high prices, but kept wages very low, and still used the government's subsidies. This act left 200,000 men working twelve hours and not winning enough money to keep their families alive.

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Throughout the Progressive Era the government worked to restrict the power of unregulated big business and provide tariff and banking reforms. I believe one of the central debate initiators was when trusts and monopolies became customary, people were usually forced to accept expensive prices and poorer quality product. Laborers were exploited through the smallest salary and dangerous working circumstances, even though employers wanted to prevent the development of labor unions Muckrakers, who were influential journalists, worked to show unjustness and error in American. In 1902, urban political machines were called out by the muckrakers. Lincoln Steffens began strikes against unethical government relationships with large businesses in

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Among the many issues they wanted resolved, some were like many other workers’ union goals. They were fighting

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The Knights of Labor, founded by Terence Powderly and Uriah Stephens in 1869, helped create a union contract with Carnegie’s Braddock Mill. While the Knights of Labor were trying to have broad social reform around the country, they created a lockout in the Braddock Mill. Workers like Kratcha did not care as much about the union’s goals, instead they wanted the mills to be open so that they could earn money (25). Large business owners, like Carnegie, tried, and usually succeed, at breaking strikes and unions in their mills. In Homestead and Braddock, Kratcha experienced the effects of strikes, and they were not positive.

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As previously mentioned, industrialization significantly altered how work was done in the United States. At this time, large corporations began popping up and taking over the industry. By this I mean, they either bought out smaller family business’ or ran them out of business due to the power and control they had over the United States economy. Moreover, because large corporations tend to be much less “personal” and much more “profit,” working conditions were often not to code, or plain outright illegal; nonetheless, the exploitation of cheap work was possible because Americans had few choices. Former president, Theodore Roosevelt (TR), was one of the most important important Progressives; especially in relation with business.

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During the Industrial revolution in America, there were two classes. Those two were corporations and the industrial workers. The industrial work force were treated kind of like slaves for the most part. On the other hand, the corporations like mangers and CEO`s were very rich and did not really care for their employees. Conflict and cooperation influence so many factors of developments.

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Between two wars The Civil War and World War I was called the Glided Age. The Gilded Age grew a accelerated industrialization of factory based steel mills, also a country based on railroad for transporation,blooming cities and in science. The Gilded Age also grew in social chage and economic growth, creating new opportunites for entrpreners. The effects of the industrialization on American 's were work labor which lead to the orgin of The Kinghts of Labor. In addition with such the rising of industrial the citites grew which lead to immigiration and also the creation of the hull house.

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Industrial workers responded to industrialization in the Gilded Age by forming labor unions such as the Knights of Labor and by fighting for his or her rights through strikes and riots. Farmers during the Gilded Age were angry with industrialization because the rapid increase in industry caused an economic decline and caused the farmer’s profits to decrease significantly. Industrialization is defined as the development in industry in a country or region. Due to J. D. Rockefeller, who was a very wealthy entrepreneur of his time who found a product he could use, improve, and make a successful business out of selling, and other

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The author of this editorial described the strikers as bold and determined and willing to change the conditions of the companies out of sympathy. Although the strike may

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Once the workers started to organize at this scale the police started to panicked on what to do. In their minds they couldn’t find a harmless solution to this problem. The police

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The time period from when the Second Industrial Revolution was beginning, up until President McKinley’s assassination in 1901, is known as the Gilded Age. After the Civil War, many people headed out West to pursue agriculture, and many immigrants moved to urban areas to acquire jobs in industrial factories. It is in this context that farmers and industrial workers had to respond to industrialization. Two significant ways farmers and industrial workers responded to industrialization in the Gilded Age, were creating the Populist Party and the American Federation of Labor (AFL).

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Labor strikes and riots were common during the time. Policies were put into place to prevent individuals from gaining this much power ever again. In todays’ modern Gilded Age loopholes have been exploited and the rich are becoming just as powerful as they have ever been. Individuals such as the Koch Brothers have taken up the plutocratic mantle, they “buy politicians” in order to further their agenda and business

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During the Progressive Era, most employers were not concerned with workers rights and focused more on profit than human rights or safety. The poor working class, as well as immigrants who had worked in the United States for a while, became infuriated over the unfair treatment and working conditions of which they suffered. Hugh Rockoff explains, “…industrialization had alienated the workingman…” (Rockoff 747).

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