Gilded Age and Industrial America Study Notes

The speaker recorded the lecture instead of presenting it live due to a holiday.

Focus on the Gilded Age: transformation of the economy post-Civil War and the overlapping Reconstruction period.
The U.S. underwent one of its most rapid economic revolutions (1850s to early 1900s).
Key elements driving economic change:
- Abundant natural resources.
- Increasing labor supply.
- Expanding markets for manufactured goods.
- Availability of capital for investment.
- Federal government support through high tariffs, land grants to railroads, and military action to remove Native Americans from desirable lands.

Stress on importance of understanding key terms related to the Gilded Age and economic developments.

The transition from small farms and artisan workshops to an industrial society post-Civil War.
By 1880, a U.S. census showed a majority of workers in non-farming jobs:
- Reports detail that two-thirds of Americans were wage workers by 1890.
Migration impacts:
- 11 million Americans moved from rural to urban areas between 1870 and 1920.
- 25 million immigrants arrived in the U.S. during this time.
Key industrial cities:
- Industrial cities in the North and Midwest became centers of manufacturing.
- Great Lakes region became the heartland of the Second Industrial Revolution:
- Steel, iron, machinery production.
- Pittsburgh became known as the steel capital.
- Chicago emerged as the second-largest city, thriving on meatpacking and heavy industry.

Railroads facilitated the Second Industrial Revolution:
- Investment and land grants fueled railroad expansion.
- Rail mileage tripled between 1860-1880, and again by 1920.
- Created vast markets for agricultural and manufactured goods.
- Introduced standard time zones in 1883, restructuring how society viewed time.

Innovations played a significant role in economic expansion:
- 1866: Completion of the Atlantic cable improved transcontinental communication.
- Inventions of the 1870s and 1880s:
- Telephone, typewriter, handheld cameras.
Thomas Edison as prominent inventor:
- Innovations included the light bulb and electric power generation, essential for industrial growth.
- Electricity provided a more reliable power source than previous methods.

Economic growth led to intense market competition:
- A market saturation caused price declines.
- Efforts to stabilize chaotic marketplaces led to the formation of trusts (management by a single director).
Massive corporate consolidation took place:
- Between 1897 and 1904, 4,000 firms merged or were acquired, leading to the dominance of corporations like U.S. Steel and Standard Oil.
Wealth concentration without taxation fed the fortunes of business leaders like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller:
- Carnegie established a vertically integrated steel company controlling every aspect from raw materials to distribution.
- Rockefeller's Standard Oil controlled 90% of the oil industry.

The term Gilded Age indicates a superficially attractive period hiding deep social issues:
- The term derives from a novel by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner.
Political corruption was rampant across levels of government:
- Influence of railroad lobbyists in Pennsylvania and conflicts of interest among lawmakers.
- Political machines, like Tweed's ring, manipulated urban politics while providing welfare to the poor.
National elections reflected intense party loyalty and high voter turnout despite corruption.

The labor movement sought reforms, including the eight-hour workday, but lacked enforcement.
Labor statistics illustrated harsh living and working conditions:
- Strikes became more common as workers faced poor conditions and low wages.
The ideology of Social Darwinism justified the economic divide, blaming individuals for their social conditions:
- Influential figures like William Graham Sumner argued against government intervention to help the poor.

The descaling of labor defined the industrial workforce:
- Increased automation reduced the need for skilled labor and led to the rise of women and children in factories.
Over 20,000 strikes and labor disputes occurred in the late 19th century.
Significant events included the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, showcasing worker solidarity and government repression.

The Knights of Labor focused on inclusive organizing, despite excluding Asian workers.
Labor reform movements called for a range of reforms, from public employment to socialist ideas.

A pivotal event demonstrating labor tensions:
- The Haymarket Square rally in 1886 after police killed strikers.
- The subsequent bomb incident led to the arrest and sentencing of several labor leaders, many of whom were foreign-born immigrants, highlighting xenophobic sentiments against labor movements.

Students should consider how industrialization transformed the American economy and the responses of workers to improve their conditions.
Reflect on the political landscape characterized by intense corruption and evolving social dynamics.
Reminder to review debrief questions for exam preparation, including thoughts on the economic structure and the future of labor activism.