2000 Dbq Analysis

In the years 1865 to 1900 the United States had flourished in their industry business, giving the era the rightful name of the Industrial Revolution. During this time period thousands of submitted patents and successful inventions connected the country, brought life to cities and boosted both the Northern and Southern economy post-Civil War. This revolution made the rich like John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie richer while the middle class workers like the new immigrants remained in poverty with terrible working condition. This 35 year time frame was both prosperous for some while long and grueling for others. During the years following the Civil War corporations like the steel, oil and railway businesses were booming. Businessmen like
Carnegie did believe in survival of the fittest and that the rich was more competent and educated than the poor, middle class but, he also believed in aiding the less fortunate in a non-direct way by “ ...bringing to their service his superior wisdom, experience and ability to administer,...”(Doc 4). In controlling multiple industries he provided the less fortunate with jobs and work experience, bettering them in a non-direct way. John D. Rockefeller on the other hand believed in boosting himself using horizontal integration, monopolizing the smaller businesses, expanding his industry further and further. Rockefeller once had monopolized almost 90% of the oil and oil refining businesses. He lowered his prices to attract a customer base slowly eliminating all of his competitors by either buying them out or forcing them out of business, to then jack up his prices once he owned most of the industry. Because of his monopoly in the oil industry he and the railroad tycoon Vanderbilt were in league together giving “discriminating rates” to outside , small business competitors (Doc 7). In 1890 the Sherman Antitrust Act was passed to
These new inventions lead to the creation of new jobs and the rapid growth of cities. The Southern cotton industry was booming due to the increased need for cotton thread in the northern textile mills. The increase in machinery and advanced technology also lowered the prices of food, lighting and fuel (Doc 1). Although the revolution brought about positive effect like more jobs and lowered prices on goods; it also brought about negative effects like overcrowding and poor conditions. Immigrants started to flood the cities in search for factory jobs resulting in areas with extremely high populations, overcrowded houses and poor sanitation. Not only did the middle class factory workers have poor home conditions, they also underwent extremely poor working conditions. Both men and women factory workers worked in dim, dangerous factories for long, grueling days spanning up to 12 hours to be paid the bare minimum. Factory workers were not looked at like human beings by the big corporate business men; their lives did not matter to them at all. The only positive to come out of the extremely dangerous condition was the rise of unions. Unions that formed during the Industrial Revolution were meant to unite the working men against the wrongdoings of the wealthy business owner. Unions demanded things like “...reduction of the hours of