![]() Some tried to improve life for their employees, donated millions to charities and nonprofits and supported their communities by providing funding for everything from libraries and hospitals to universities, public parks and zoos. While it’s true they built huge monopolies, often by crushing any small business or competitor in their way, they were also generous philanthropists who didn’t always rely on political ploys to build their empires. Rockefeller and Henry Frick are often referred to as robber barons but may not exactly fit the mold. Some wealthy entrepreneurs such as Andrew Carnegie, John D. They soon accumulated vast amounts of money and dominated every major industry including the railroad, oil, banking, timber, sugar, liquor, meatpacking, steel, mining, tobacco and textile industries. Robber barons were relentless in their efforts to amass wealth while exploiting workers and ignoring standard business rules-and in many cases, the law itself. These men used union busting, fraud, intimidation, violence and their extensive political connections to gain an advantage over any competitors. ![]() Railroad tycoons were just one of many types of so-called robber barons that emerged in the Gilded Age. Meanwhile, thousands of African American-many of them former slaves-were hired as Pullman porters and paid a pittance to cater to riders’ every need. In many cases, politicians cut shady backroom deals and helped create railroad and shipping tycoons such as Cornelius Vanderbilt and Jay Gould. This enormous railroad expansion resulted in rail companies and their executives receiving lavish amounts of money and land-up to 200 million acres, by some estimates-from the United States government. It also made it much easier to transport goods over long distances from one part of the country to another. In 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad was finished and led to rapid settlement of the western United States. It wasn’t long before trains overtook other forms of long-distance travel such as the stagecoach and riding horseback. Soon, the development of Pullman sleeping cars and dining cars made rail travel comfortable and more enjoyable for passengers. Map of the transcontinental route of the Atlantic Pacific Railroad and its connections, 1883.īefore the Civil War, rail travel was dangerous and difficult, but after the war, George Westinghouse invented the air brake, which made braking systems more dependable and safe. ![]()
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