Preview

Robber Barons Research Paper

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
273 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Robber Barons Research Paper
What are robber barons? what did robber barons do during the railroad era?

• Robber Barons was the negative term for the titans of industry or, as Professor Donald Miller calls them, the capitalist conquistadors. These were the guys like Andrew Carnegie, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Gustavus Swift, Philip Armour, John D. Rockefeller and others who rose to the top and ran monopolies or near-monopolies in the Gilded Age (1870s-1900ish). They were seen as bad because they employed ruthless methods to run competion out of the market, but on the other hand, weren't breaking any laws or rules in this laissez faire timeperiod. These guys also gave a lot of money away: Carnegie built tons of libraries, and Carnegie Mellon University got a lot from him,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In the nineteenth century, there were two industrialists and one of them was the Captain of Industry. But, we’re going to focus on the Robber Baron, they’re known more for their dirty work. Some examples are bad political practices, business reforms, and treated their workers poorly in terms of labor. Many people don’t know what these industrialist did to the public to gain their wealth, but now you’ll know the bitter truth.…

    • 412 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I've never viewed either of these men as bad men or as robber baron, i've always admires the men of the 19th and 20th century who saw these new industries developing and adapted to make a mostly honest profit. These men were friends of consumers because the put pressure on their competitors to provide better goods and services and reasonable prices. They embraces competition, made good products and sold them for low prices. When companies compete the consumer usually…

    • 754 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Willie Sutton was a bank robber. He lived from 1901 to 1980, and over the course of time he stole around 2 million dollars. He escaped prison three times, and was awarded the nickname “The Actor,” and “Slick Willie.” He was a master of disguise, and robbed 11 banks. While he was a master criminal, he was known as quite a gentleman. Once someone asked if he ever robbed someone with loaded guns; he responded that he didn’t because he didn’t want anyone to get hurt. He married twice, and had one daughter, Jeanie Sutton.…

    • 240 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John D. Rockefeller has earned a spot in the hall of shame. He became wealthy because of ruthless and dishonorable business tactics which then hurt the nation. Rockefeller became wealthy because, he lowered his prices way down and forced the Pennsylvania Railroad to lower their prices, and he also ran smaller companies out of business and then took them over for his own. After he took over most of the smaller businesses, he raised his own prices back up in order to bring in a bigger profit. Rockefeller’s robber baron side was reflected by this action because, he went behind people’s backs and turned the other way when it came to business partners.…

    • 379 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Morgan,Rockefeller and Carnegie were robber barons They were considered cruel and ruthless. Carnegie made his employees work long hours and gave them little pay he even tried to stop unions in his company. Employees pointed out that Rockefeller could have paid his workers a fairer wage and settled for being a half billionaire. Morgan criticized for creating monopolies by making it difficult for any business to compete against his.…

    • 70 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This chapter went of many different things in a short amount of time. It delves into the time after the war to the full scale industrial revolution and the rise of the Robber Barons. Zinn also spares no expense when he expresses his opinion of the Barons. He also shows the effects that the Industrial Revolution had on the lives of the American people back then.…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    John D. Rockefeller was not a Robber Baron because he did nothing wrong, he was a product of the Industrial era, and played by its rules to attain the greatest victory, absolute economic success…

    • 683 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Thief Lord Book Assignment

    • 1626 Words
    • 7 Pages

    A3. The Thief Lord is about two brothers, who live with their aunt and uncle. When Esther and Max want to adopt Bo after their mother's death so the boys decide to run away to Venice, Italy. The boys arrive in Venice and are taken in by four other orphans: Hornet, Riccio, Mosca, and their mysterious leader, Scipio, or "The Thief Lord." The children survive by selling the things that Scipio steals from wealthy houses to an old shopkeeper, Ernesto Barbarossa. Prosper and Bo settle in to their new life; unbeknown to them, however, Esther and Max have deduced that they are in Venice, and they enlist the services of Victor Getz, a detective,…

    • 1626 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Long hours, dangerous work conditions, and low wages are just a few words to describe the treatment of workers at the turn of the 20th century. This was all in the hands of some powerful industrialist we refer to as "robber barons". There can be no mistaking their motives: wealth. It portrays men like Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Pullman, Ford and cruel and ruthless businessmen who would stop at nothing to achieve great wealth.They cared little about the lives and treatment of those that worked under them, and reside in their towns. They were in many cases accused of disregard of workers' rights, exploitation of resources, and concentration of wealth. In my perpective, it is true.…

    • 411 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the 1880’s, American industry grew due to many factors including “the emergence of a talented and often ruthless group of entrepreneurs” (Brinkley 396). According to those in favor of these entrepreneurs, these men worked hard, innovated technology and strategized competitively to transform the American economy; these “Captains of Industry,” such as Andrew Carnegie, Cornelius Vanderbilt, J Pierpoint Morgan and John D. Rockefeller, used their wealth to help their communities and should be honored for their philanthropy. An advocate for these entrepreneurs is John S. Gordon. As a specialist of business and financial history, Gordon claims…

    • 1182 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I thought that people like Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and J.p Morgan were all robber barons. Because they would employ people and put them in these unsafe, and unsanitary conditions. Also they made education for immigrants coming in difficult because even though they built libraries and hospitals would the immigrants would be illiterate and not be able to pay for hospital bills. Lastly theses men were robber barons because they were using vertical integration and horizontal integration to take over small businesses and to raise prices on railroads.…

    • 667 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    According to an excerpt from A Call To Action, by Populist presidential candidate James B. Weaver, capitalists often silenced the “interfering” government by using “threats, intimidation, bribery, fraud, wreck, and pillage.” Weaver and his Populist followers alike stood firmly to protect the traditional American ideals of social opportunity; they believed private greed should be subordinated to public need. Consequently, the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 was instituted to thwart the formation of trusts, but proved to be rather ineffective as seven of the first eight cases were ruled against the government. Along with the government, the American people became a target of the unethical practices instigated by greedy industrialists. Cornelius Vanderbilt, one of many tycoons, was guilty of discriminating against passengers, charging a greater amount for shorter haul than longer hauls on the same railway line, and demanding unwritten fees. Other magnates engaged in a practice known as stock watering, in which companies sold stocks and bonds at a price much higher than its real value. By disregarding the rules and regulations of the United States government and ethical human behavior, capitalists proved how deserving of the title “robber barons” they…

    • 881 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    They created so many job opportunities, built industries that benefited the whole country and gave away much of their hard earned money. Capitalists of the nineteenth century may have been considered robber barons but they were for the most part captains of industry. The American Industrial Revolution fundamentally changed politics, society, and the economy. Factory workers and consumerism had changed immensely in the Gilded Age; about 400,000 patents were made between 1875 and 1900 which signifies the departure of farming to the vast significance of industries. Trade Unions became an immense part in Urban communities since the people longed for shorter hours and higher pay rates.…

    • 1694 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    3. As a reporter covering the strike at the Homestead Mill, I would say that Frick and Carnegie are Robber Barons. Although they claim to be Captains of Industry, creating jobs and invigorating the economy, they take and take and take. Carnegie and Frick eliminate all…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As mentioned earlier, during the Gilded Age, there was a belief in monopolies by robber barons of society and taking out businesses. For example, a businessman named John D. Rockefeller known as a robber baron of society during this time period. This was because he ended up taking over the oil business by building trusts. These trusts then made him in control of the entire oil business and eventually eliminating all competing oil businesses. Although, these…

    • 802 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays