The belief that the rich could use whatever means necessary to increase their riches seemed to counter the ideals upon which the United States was founded. Robber Barons were vilified for using the capitalist system to exploit workers, form anti-competitive trusts, and place the accumulation of wealth above all else. Morgan led to the growth of the Progressive movement and to reform efforts, including antitrust legislation, and investigative journalism, or muckraking. Disgust with the power of corporate America and individuals like Andrew Carnegie, John D. At the turn of the twentieth century, crusading journalists and other critics scornfully labeled the leading business titans of the age, the "Robber Barons." The term grew from the overwhelming power these industrial giants wielded over many aspects of society and the resentment those suffering under their yoke felt. Rockefeller, Sherman Anti-Trust Act, Sixteenth Amendment, Cornelius Vanderbilt See also: Andrew Carnegie, Jay Gould, John P. They converted their business prowess into political might. The robber barons (especially the railroad men and the financiers who gained control of rail companies through stock buy-outs) hired lobbyists to work on their behalf to gain corporation subsidies, land grants, and even tax relief at both the federal and state levels. Though many American businessmen and women would make great fortunes in the twentieth century, by the end of the 1920s the era of the robber barons had drawn to a close. In 1913 the Sixteenth Amendment was ratified, allowing the federal government to collect a graduated income tax. The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was established in 1887 to prevent abusive practices. Workers continued to organize in labor unions with which corporations were increasingly compelled to negotiate. In 1890 the federal government passed the Sherman Anti-Trust Act which made trusts illegal (trusts are combinations of firms or corporations formed to limit competition and monopolize a market). economy, changes around the turn of the century worked to curb their influence. Reform-minded progressives complained that the robber barons lived in opulent luxury while their workers barely eked out a living.Īfter a decades-long domination of the robber barons over the U.S. In Washington, D.C., politicians grew tired of the advantage-seeking representatives of the nation's business leaders.
They reinvested profits into their businesses and their fortunes grew. Shrewd businessmen turned these factors to their advantage, amassing great empires. Many factors converged to make the robber baron businessman possible: the country was rich in natural resources, including iron, coal, and oil technological advances steadily improved manufacturing machinery and processes population growth, fed by an influx of immigrants, provided a steady workforce that was often willing to work for a low wage the government turned over the building and operation of the nation's railways to private interests and, adhering to the philosophy of laissez faire (non-interference in the private sector), the government also provided a favorable environment in which to conduct business. Hailed by some for expanding and modernizing the capitalist system, lauded by others for their philanthropic contributions to the arts and education, these businessmen were viewed by many more as opportunistic, exploitative, and unethical. Rockefeller (1839 –1937) steel mogul Andrew Carnegie (1835 –1919) financiers James J. They included banker and financier John Pierpont Morgan (1837 –1913) oil industrialist John D. The "robber barons" were industrial and financial tycoons of the late nineteenth century.
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