Chapter 14 Review Key Terms

Thomas Alva Edison

An American inventor known for inventing the phonograph and the electric light bulb.

Bessemer Process

A method for producing steel by blasting air through molten iron to remove impurities.

Samuel Gompers

An American labor union leader and a key figure in the development of the American Federation of Labor.

Christopher Sholes

The inventor of the QWERTY keyboard layout for typewriters.

Andrew Carnegie

A Scottish-American industrialist who led the expansion of the American steel industry.

The Grange

An organized movement among U.S. farmers that aimed to promote agricultural interests.

Laissez Faire

An economic philosophy of minimal government intervention in the economy.

Entrepreneurs

Individuals who start and run their own businesses, often bearing most of the risks.

Sherman Antitrust Act

A landmark federal statute in the history of United States antitrust law.

Haymarket Affair

A violent confrontation between police and labor demonstrators in Chicago in 1886.

Time Zones

Regions of the world that have the same standard time.

Alexander Graham Bell

An inventor credited with developing the first practical telephone.

Corporation

A legal entity that is separate and distinct from its owners.

Credit Mobilier Scandal

A railroad scandal involving the Union Pacific Railroad and the Crédit Mobilier of America construction company.

Professor C. F. Dowd

The individual credited with proposing the division of the world into time zones.

William Le Baron Jenney

Often regarded as the 'father of the skyscraper' due to his innovation in steel frame buildings.

Vertical Integration

A business strategy where a company controls multiple stages of production.

Horizontal Integration

A business strategy where a company increases production of goods or services at the same part of the supply chain.

American Federation of Labor

A national federation of labor unions in the United States.

Three Major Economic Systems

Capitalism, socialism, and communism.

Eugene V. Debs

An American union leader and five-time presidential candidate.

Closed Shops

Workplaces that only hire workers who are members of a union.

Unions

Organizations formed by workers to promote their rights and interests.

Monopoly

The exclusive possession of a market by a single seller.

Transcontinental Railroad

A continuous railroad line linking the east and west coasts of the continental United States.

Munn v. Illinois

A landmark Supreme Court case that upheld the power of government to regulate private industries.

George Pullman

An industrialist known for establishing the Pullman Company and designing the Pullman sleeping car.

Mary Harris 'Mother' Jones

A prominent labor and community organizer in the U.S.

Holding Company

A company created to buy and possess the shares of other companies.

Trust

A legal arrangement in which a person or company holds property or assets for the benefit of another.