Andrew Carnegie - (Economic)
Carnegie was a Scottish immigrant who became one of the first "captains of industry." He became an economic juggernaut during his time as head of the Carnegie Steel Company from 1873 through 1901. After retiring, he donated his money toward educational, c
Homestead Strike (1892)- (Economic)
The H-stead strike of 1892 was a violent strike at the Homestead Works in Pittsburgh over a lock out of unionists that lasted for 5 months and resulted in the end of the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel workers, which was one of the largest union
Railroad Boom- (Economic)
Starting around 1854, the government and the people were focused on improving this method of transportation. Lots of money and resources poured into these areas to continue this work. One railroad line was started in California and another in Nebraska and
Gustavus Swift- (Economic)
founded a meat-packing empire in the Midwest during the late 19th century, over which he presided until his death. He is credited with the development of the first practical ice-cooled railroad car. This allowed his company to ship dressed meats to all pa
Vertical Integration- (Economic)
The involvement by a company in more than one of the activities in the entire value chain from development through production, distribution, sales, and after-sales service. This streamlines the process, but also allows monopolies to develop. Jack Donaghy
John D. Rockefeller- (Economic)
An American industrialist and philanthropist, Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of modern philanthropy. In 1870, Rockefeller founded the Standard Oil Company and ran it until he retired in the late 1890s. He often
Consumer Marketing- (Economic)
The philosophy of enlightened marketing that holds that the company should view and organize its marketing activities from the consumer's point of view. This often involves using tests to determine what the consumer likes, so that things can be marketed a
Managerial Revolution- (Economic)
James Burnham's concept that as control of large businesses moved from the original owners to professional managers, society's new governing class became not the traditional possessors of wealth but those having the professional expertise to manage, lead
White Collar Jobs- (Economic)
These are jobs that do not involve manual labor. However, they require less education and provide a lower income than do the jobs held by the upper-middle class (nurses, small-business owners, salesmen). Many of them proliferated in industrial areas.
Southern Labor- Economic)
The South had a low-wage industrial sector which emerged after the Reconstruction as local boosters that tried to build a "New South" and catch up with the North. Textile mills appeared in the Piedmont country of the Carolinas as well as Georgia. They tri
Immigrant Workers- (Economic)
Most countries facing instability had immigrants heading towards America. This included Germany, Russia, Italy, and Ireland. Ethnic origin determined what work they would go into. Most Americans disliked the immigrants because they accused them of stealin
Great Migration- (Economic)
The movement of over 300,000 African American from the rural South into Northern cities after the Civil War. Many of them had a hard time finding jobs, and ended up working in conditions similar to the conditions they had faced in the South.
Working Women/Family Economy- (Economic)
Over four million women worked in industry as well as farming. Traditionally women were not supposed to work so jobs were gender-based. Mainly women worked as domestic servants or teaching, nursing, sales, or office work.
Mass Production- (Economic)
The manufacture of many identical products by the division of labor into many small repetitive tasks. This increases productivity. This method was introduced into the manufacture of pottery by Josiah Wedgwood and into the spinning of cotton thread by Rich
Collective Bargaining- (Economic)
Process by which management and union representatives negotiate the employment conditions for a particular bargaining unit for a designated period of time. This was a new innovation that gave workers some say in the condition of their workplace.
Closed Shops- (Economic)
Workplace in which a job seeker had to be a union member to gain employment. In the nineteenth century, the closed shop was favored by craft unions as a method of keeping out incompetent and lower-wage workers and of strengthening the unions' bargaining p
Knights of Labor- (Economic)
One of the most important American labor organizations of the 19th century. Founded by seven Philadelphia tailors in 1869 and led by Uriah S. Stephens, it demanded an end to child and convict labor, equal pay for women, a progressive income tax, and the c
Trade Unionism- (Economic)
The act of forming unions whose members are workers of a single trade. This practice was more successful than unions that consisted of unskilled workers. The number of unions grew over the course of the Gilded Age.
American Federation of Labor- (Political)
This organization was founded in 1886 to organize unions of skilled craftsmen into a national association. The loose structure of the organization differed from that of its rival, the Knights of Labor, in that this organization allowed individual unions t
Samuel Gompers- (Political)
One of the greatest men in American history Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and led the AFL from 1886 until his death in 1924. He promoted harmony among the different craft unions that comprised the AFL, and opposed industrial union
Haymarket Riot- (Political)
After the police fired into the striking crowd, the workers met and rallied in Haymarket Square to protest police brutality. A bomb exploded, killing or injuring many of the police. The Chicago workers and the man who set the bomb were immigrants, so the
Yellow Dog Contracts- (Economic)
A written contract between employers and employees in which the employees sign an agreement that they will not join a union while working for the company. This allowed big businesses to maintain low working wages and poor conditions.
The Great Pullman Boycott/Strike- (Political)
An 1894 railway workers strike for higher wages against the Pullman Company. Eugene Debs had American Railway Union refuse to use Pullman cars, and Debs was thrown in jail after being sued. President Grover Cleveland issued a court order to stop the strik
Eugene Debs- (Political)
Another truly great American; as leader of the American Railway Union, he voted to aid workers in the Pullman strike. After being jailed he emerged as avowed radical committed to lifelong struggle against a system that enabled employers to enlist the powe