| Term | Definition |
|---|
| trust | a way of organizing corporations to get around the monopoly laws |
| vertical integration | a company acquiring all companies that contribute to the making of their product |
| horizontal integration | a company buying out all other companies within that industry |
| economy of scale | the process of skilled craftsmen losing their jobs to factories, which mass produce products at a lower quality and cheaper price |
| laissez- faire | french term meaning "hands off" referring to the government staying out of the economy |
| scab | a nonunion worker that replaces a worker on strike |
| philanthropist | a wealthy person that donates a lot of money to charities |
| Henry Bessemer | a British manufacturer who created the Bessemer Steel Process, a cheap way to make steel by injecting air into iron to remove impurities |
| anarchist | a person who doesn't believe in government, and believes civilization would prosper better without one |
| Brooklyn Bridge | was symbolic of the importance of cheap steel |
| Thomas Edison | invented an entire system of electricity (perfected the incandescent light bulb) |
| Alexander Bell | invented the telephone with Thomas Watson in 1876 |
| transcontinental railroadd | stretched across the entire nation, the first one was completed in 1869 |
| Pullman strike | George Pullman built a town for the workers of his railroad car factory, but his refusal to lower rent caused a strike in 1894. After Pullman hired strikebreakers, the strike turned violent and federal troops were sent to end it |
| Andrew Carnegie | one of the richest men in the world, ended up owning most of the steel industry through horizontal and vertical integration |
| John Rockefeller | one of the richest men in the world, controlled most of the oil refining industry, once he ruled the market he drove prices up |
| Social Darwinism | a philosophy born out of Darwin's theory of evolution, stated that human society was survival of the fittest, used to justify wealthy |
| labor union | a group of workers united to engage in collective bargaining with management. Mainly focused on improving wages, working conditions and hours |
| Great Railroad Strike of 1877 | workers from several railroad companies went on strike against a wage cut, they stopped more than 50,000 miles of traffic for over a week. Federal troops were sent to end the strike by President Hayes |
| Haymarket Square Affair | in 1866, a protest gathered in Chicago against police brutality. A radical laborer threw a bomb into the supervising policemen, which retaliated with gunfire. Men from both sides were killed. Public opinion turned against the unions because they were associated with violence |
| monopoly | a company that had bought out all competitors and had control over an entire industry |
| socialism | a system based on government control of the economy and equal distribution of wealth |
| collective bargaining | a negotiation between representatives of labor and management |
| Pinkertons | armed guards hired by Henry Clay Frick to protect the scabs during the Homestead strike |
| piecework | employment where a worker is paid a fixed rate per unit produced |
| bimetallic currency | a system using both silver and gold to back printed money |
| gold standard | printed money represented an amout of gold in a vault |
| Populist movement | a movement focused on the rights of farmers: "People's Party" or "Populist Party". Base supporters were farmers from the Midwest, west and south, and the working class from cities. They fought for bimetallic currency, inflation and government help for farmers and the working class |
| William Jennings Bryan | nominated by the Democrats for the election of 1896, was a big supporter of the Populist movement and a young, energetic speaker. He lost, but his "Cross of Gold" speech rallied Democrats and the working class against the wealthy and bankers |
| Homestead strike | Homestead was a steel plant with a strong union, despite the fact that it was owned by Carnegie. Workers believed they had a right to their jobs. He wanted to get rid of the union, so he locked them out of the plant. Frick hired Pinkertons to proctect the new workers of the mill. The workers drove out the Pinkertons and shut down the factory. Public opinion turned against the union after the attempted assasination of Henry Clay Frick. The strikers finally agreed to go back to work, but it was too late, Carnegie and Frick had won |
| push/ pull theory | when people emigrate, there are two factors to consider. 1) push: factors that compel a person to leave; 2) pull: factors that attract a person to their chosen destination |
| gilded age | a term coined by Mark Twain, "a layer of glitter over a cheap base," reffering to the industrial revolution |
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