Industry DBQ
The time period of 1870 to 1900, often called the Gilded Age, saw the rapid growth of corporations in number, size, and especially influence. To fully understand this time period, one must look at the context. Before this time period, the United States had recently ended the Civil War with the Union defeating the Confederacy. The Union was only able to win largely due to the growing industries which were rapidly developing in the North, while the South failed to industrialize greatly and mostly kept to agriculture. For example, the North had over twice the railroad lines of the South which would greatly impact the war as Northern forces could be transported quickly from one area to another. After the war from 1865 to 1877 the Reconstruction period took place in America, which during its course Republicans sought to maintain that freedmen …show more content…
Also, the U.S. began to partake in more foreign interactions as seen through the Spanish-American war. From 1870 to 1900 rapidly growing corporations impacted the United State’s economy by concentrating wealth in a small class of affluent individuals. As a result of this change, rich Americans responded by seeking to justify their wealth, while workers voiced growing dissent with harsh working conditions. A major impact of big business on the economy from 1870 to 1900 was that the expanding corporations led to the centralization of wealth in the hands of a small group of wealthy men. Evidence of this is often found in cartoons of the era in which cartoonist display a tiny group of men holding almost all of the wealth for themselves. That through trusts and monopolies the rich were able to effectively gain and maintain most the wealth for their greedy selves due to big business. In addition, by having lower wages the rich become “fatter” with money as the workers become part of a system which enables the industrialists to take all of the wealth for themselves.
The time period of 1870 to 1900, often called the Gilded Age, saw the rapid growth of corporations in number, size, and especially influence. To fully understand this time period, one must look at the context. Before this time period, the United States had recently ended the Civil War with the Union defeating the Confederacy. The Union was only able to win largely due to the growing industries which were rapidly developing in the North, while the South failed to industrialize greatly and mostly kept to agriculture. For example, the North had over twice the railroad lines of the South which would greatly impact the war as Northern forces could be transported quickly from one area to another. After the war from 1865 to 1877 the Reconstruction period took place in America, which during its course Republicans sought to maintain that freedmen …show more content…
Also, the U.S. began to partake in more foreign interactions as seen through the Spanish-American war. From 1870 to 1900 rapidly growing corporations impacted the United State’s economy by concentrating wealth in a small class of affluent individuals. As a result of this change, rich Americans responded by seeking to justify their wealth, while workers voiced growing dissent with harsh working conditions. A major impact of big business on the economy from 1870 to 1900 was that the expanding corporations led to the centralization of wealth in the hands of a small group of wealthy men. Evidence of this is often found in cartoons of the era in which cartoonist display a tiny group of men holding almost all of the wealth for themselves. That through trusts and monopolies the rich were able to effectively gain and maintain most the wealth for their greedy selves due to big business. In addition, by having lower wages the rich become “fatter” with money as the workers become part of a system which enables the industrialists to take all of the wealth for themselves.