The Second Industrial Revolution
By: Gary Collins, Michael Karas, and Drew Martin
“If a Western Rip Van Winkle had fallen asleep in 1869 and awakened in 1896, he would not
have recognized the lands that the railroads had touched. Bison had yielded to cattle;
mountains had been blasted and bored. Great swaths of land that had once whispe red grass
now screamed corn and wheat. Nation -states had conquered Indian peoples, slaughtering
some of them and confining and controlling most of them. Population had increased across
much of this vast region, and there were growing cities along its edges . A land that had once
run largely north-south now ran east-west. Each change could have been traced back to the
railroads.”
–Richard White, Railroaded
During the time known as the Second Industrial Revolution, approximately 1865 to 1917,
many innovations were made that changed not only the United States but also the world. The
Second Industrial Revolution marked a huge shift in America’s economy from what it once was.
Previously, America’s economy and industry relied heavily upon the manufacturing of such
items like leather, cotton, and textile1; however, as technology and science advanced, America’s
changed its focus onto manufacturing items like steel, petroleum, electric power, and machinery2
. The advancement of technology and sciences also brought innovations in communications,
transportations, and innovations that would eventually modernize the United States.
The mass production of metal up until the 1850’s has been of mostly iron3; steel,
benefitting in being stronger and more malleable than iron, was very expensive to refine, but the
innovation of the Bessemer’s process made steel and the production of steel much cheaper and,
thereby, more prominent4.
The steel industry effectively modernized the United States. During the Second Industrial
Revolution America became more mobile due to the large use of steel in railway construction;
over 30,000 miles of railroad was built using steel, making the transportation and the migration
to western America much easier5. The Second Industrial Revolution erected skyscrapers with
steel skeletons and electric elevators-perfected by the invention of the electric safety brake by
Elisha Otis in 18876: one of the first being a now impish ten-story building in Chicago in 18857.
1
John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, US History Preparing for the Advance Placement Examination (New
York: Amsco School Publications, 2003), 337.
2
Joel Mokyr, Twenty-Five Centuries of Technological Change: An History Survey (Poststrasse, Switzerland:
Hardwood Academy Publishers, 1990), 75.
3
Ibid, 77-78.
4
John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, US History Preparing for the Advance Placement Examination (New
York: Amsco School Publications, 2003), 337.
5
“New Steel: The Bessemer converter,” The Science Museum, accessed on May 16, 2012,
http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/stories/the_second_industrial_revolution/05.ST.01/?scene=3
6
John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, US History Preparing for the Advance Placement Examination (New
York: Amsco School Publications, 2003), 362.
The Second Industrial Revolution also modernized the United States Navy. The innovation of
steel production eventually led to steel’s use in Christening of modern steel cruisers; the first
four were called the A, B, C, D ships (Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, and Dolphin) and were
commissioned by Congress in 18858. Steel found its popularity due its low cost. Andrew
Carnegie when commenting on steel’s unbelievably low price when compared to other raw
materials said, “That’s all that need be said about the steel business.”9
Although electricity found its footing earlier in the 19th century with the prominence of
the telegraph, during the second industrial revolution use of electricity was greatly investigated
and expanded upon. Scientists like Thomas Edison were leading the way with the use of
electricity; in addition to Edison’s experiments with early photographs, motion pictures, and
audio recording, Edison created one his most important inventions, the light bulb. Patent
#223,898 issued on January 27, 1880, marked another step into modern America; the light bulb
allowed people illuminate the dark more efficiently, safely, and easily10. Innovation of the light
bulb continued, and by 1900 incandescent light bulbs were not only one fifth cheaper but were
also twice as efficient as twenty years earlier11. Croatian-born inventor/scientist Nickola Tesla
was another American trailblazer of electricity. In 1889 Nikola Tesla created the first alternating
current, electric motor12. Alexander Graham Bell patented the telephone in 187613. Other
7
David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey, The American Pageant (Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 2006), 558.
8
John Roach, Maritime Entrepreneur (New Hampshire: Ayer Company Publishers, 1980), 185.
9
Harold Livesay, Andrew Carnegie and the Rise of Big Business (Boston: Little Brown, 1975), 189.
10
“Lightbulb,” last modified Janurary 30, 2007,http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/lightbulb.htm
11
Joel Mokyr, Twenty-Five Centuries of Technological Change: An History Survey (Poststrasse, Switzerland:
Hardwood Academy Publishers, 1990), 83.
12
Ibid, 83.
13
Ibid, 91.
inventions that came into existence during the Second Industrial Revolution included the
typewriter, the cash register, the first few calculators, fountain pens, and the Kodak camera14.
Massive change and advancement of transportation occurred during the Second Industrial
Revolution. The steam engine, a product of the First Industrial Revolution, was the most
prominent engine for its efficiency, but once the process for refining crude oil and kerosene was
perfected, combustion engines became widely used in trains and ships15. The first commercial
oil well was drilled in Pennsylvania in 1859 by Edwin Drake16, and soon America became the
world’s largest producer of petroleum17. In 1903 America achieved the miracle of flight when
the two Wright brothers flew the first modern airplane in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina18. Henry
Ford used many of the recent inventions of the time to perfect the automobile, and, with Ford’s
creation of the assembly line, the Model-T automobile became the world’s first mass produced
car, allowing Americans to, for the first time, be free of the restrictions of rails19. The assembly
line was critical in the production of automobiles as well as almost every product since then.
The Second Industrial Revolution marked the start of packaged and massively produced
foods, something vital to American population today. The introduction of pesticides and
mechanized agriculture equipment allowed massive production of cash crops that could be
quickly transported across the country by locomotives20; however, the farmers suffered from low
crop prices due to over production and high train rates due to corrupt station owners21. Joseph
14
John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, US History Preparing for the Advance Placement Examination (New
York: Amsco School Publications, 2003), 340.
15
Ibid, 338.
16
Ibid, 338.
17
Joel Mokyr, Twenty-Five Centuries of Technological Change: An History Survey (Poststrasse, Switzerland:
Hardwood Academy Publishers, 1990), 88
18
Ibid, 87
19
Ibid, 87
20
John J. Newman and John M. Schmalbach, US History Preparing for the Advance Placement Examination (New
York: Amsco School Publications, 2003), 337.
21
Ibid, 340.
Glidden created barbed wire in 186922; with the invention of barbed wire also came a larger meat
packing industry that could now better hold and maintain cattle23.
The Second Industrial Revolution’s most important creation may be the American system
of manufacturing. The American system of manufacturing is the epitome of all the innovations
of the Second industrial Revolution. The American system of manufacturing allowed for mass
production and modernization of America.
Following the excess of technological innovation that this second industrial revolution
there were a plentitude of hungry capitalists ready to cash in on these including such famous
names as John D. Rockefeller and Franklin Gowen. Both of these men serve as prime examples
of the development of industries during the Second Industrial Revolution. John D. Rockefeller’s
Standard Oil Company, infamously known as the first trust, was one of the companies that
flourished during the late 1800s. Growing up in a very inconsistent life style, constantly moving
from town to town, Rockefeller learned tricks of the trade that would eventually help him
become an industrial giant24. He first dappled into the oil industry during the Civil War. While
the country was facing fierce division, Rockefeller managed to find a group of investors and
entrepreneurs to partner with and form Standard Oil Company25. Rockefeller now pursued an
aggressive consolidation of the company and quickly sought to make agreements with railroads
in order to guarantee cheaper rates for Standard Oil Company26. These methods would later be
imitated by other capitalists seeking to reproduce Rockefeller’s success. The next set in his
22
Joel Mokyr, Twenty-Five Centuries of Technological Change: An History Survey (Poststrasse, Switzerland:
Hardwood Academy Publishers, 1990), 90
23
David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey, The American Pageant (Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 2006), 605-606.
24
Kevin Hillstrom and Laurie Collier Hillstrom, editor, The Industrial Revolution in America: Iron and Steel,
Railroads, Steam Shipping (Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data, 2006), 60.
25
26
Ibid, 61.
Ibid, 61.
ascent up the ladder towards creating a trust was through buying all the competing oil refineries
in the area27. These processes known vertical and horizontal integration helped Standard Oil
Company become the company to control 90 percent of the whole industry28. Franklin Gowen is
another capitalist that serves as an example of the rise to industrial dominance practiced in the
Second Industrial Revolution. Making his mark in the Coal industry Gowen attempted to
achieve the same profits and dominance as Rockefeller. Gowen grew up as most of the
successful entrepreneurs did with very a comfortable economic situation29. After experiencing
brief failure investing into the mining business, Gowen moved to Philadelphia and quickly
became the head of the Reading Railroad30. Through his insistence, Reading Railroad started to
become heavily involved in the purchase of coalfields31. Gowen like Rockefeller use methods of
buying out the competition in order reduce any opposition32. Unfortunately of Gowen, he
became overly involved in a Union busting insistent which led to his downfall33. While these are
examples of dominating companies during the Second Industrial Revolution, Rockefeller’s
solicitor created the first trust.
At the time, Standard Oil Company controlled most the oil refineries in the United States,
but state laws and other complexities made its size hard to manage. Samuel Calvin Tait Dodd,
Standard Oil Company’s general solicitor, came up with a solution. This corporate trust as it was
known called for all partners to transfer their stocks to the trust34. This method of managing a
27
Ibid, 62.
Ibid, 60.
29
Ibid, 69.
30
Kevin Hillstrom and Laurie Collier Hillstrom, editor, The Industrial Revolution in America: Iron and Steel,
Railroads, Steam Shipping (Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data, 2006), 70.
31
Ibid, 71.
32
Ibid, 71.
33
Ibid, 73.
34
Barak Orbach and Grace E. Campbell, “The Antitrust Curse of Bigness,” Southern California Law Review (2011).
Accessed May 16, 2012. 3.
28
large company proved to be very efficient and became popular in other industries35. This
combination of all members helped further the dominance of the Standard Oil Company and
other monopolist organizations. There were many negative views towards these new trusts such
as those stated by Liang Qichao when he visited America.
Not living in America most of his life, Liang Qichao’s opinions about America proved to
be a valuable outside look into the trusts. Qichao comments that upon visiting J. P. Morgan,
another infamous trust king, which he was “deeply impressed” with Morgan’s motto for life
being “the outcome of any venture depends on preparations made ahead of time; once it is
started, its success or failure is already decided and can no longer be altered36.” In regards to
trusts, Qichao comments that they are a “monster” and an oddity to be such large amounts of the
industrial production but only controlled by a few individuals37. The concern over trusts did just
exist in America as he comments “domestic trusts will grow into international trusts, and the
nation that will be most severely victimized will surely be China38.” Clearly the fear over trusts
was not localized to just America.
The Second Industrial Revolution also created many responses which have had lasting
effects. The first of these are labor unions. Labor unions arose in response to industrialization
and were an attempt to achieve “improved conditions and wages.”39 Industrialization had
generalized work and caused a large portion of the population to work in the same types of job
field. This allowed for labor unions to become nationalized and to gain more power. For
example, there is the Knights of Labor which was the first national labor union. This group
35
Ibid, 4.
Qichao, Liang, “Observations on a Trip to America,” in Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook, ed, Patricia Buckley
Ebrey, (New York: The Free Press, 1993), 4.
36
37
Ibid, 4.
Ibid, 5.
39
Lewis Hackett, Industrialization: The First Phase,1992, http://history-world.org/Industrial%20Intro.htm
38
fought to “secure to the laborer the fruits of his toil” which they believed could only be
accomplished by the “thorough unification of labor .” This group, as many other unions have
been since this time period, also worked in the political sphere towards “the prohibition of the
employment of children in workshops, mines and factories before attaining their fourteenth
year…[and] the reduction of the hours of labor to eight per day.”40 The Knights of Labor and
other unions were a large factor in the fight for an eight hour day and the end of child labor along
with other benefits for the workers in American society thus making a large effect on America
society.
Another response to the Second Industrial movement was the Populist movement. This
movement was one which was opposed to the big businesses which were made possible by the
industrial revolution. Populists called for a return to agrarianism (similar to Thomas Jefferson’s
beliefs on the economy) and were opposed to the industrial revolution. This group was also
publicly against the railroad system of the times. As stated in the group’s constitution,
“Transportation being a means of exchange and a public necessity, the government should own
and operate the railroads in the interest of the people. The telegraph and telephone, like the postoffice system, being a necessity for the transmission of news, should be owned and operated by
the government in the interest of the people.”41 For this group, it felt that many of the
innovations of the Industrial revolution were too beneficial to be simply left to the robber barons
and railroad kings. These had to be protected by the government from the railroad corporations
or other forms of big businesses which came with the industrialization of America. While the
Populist was not successful in its endeavors and after an unsuccessful bid at the presidency “the
40
41
Terence V. Powderly, Thirty Years of Labor, 1859 to 1889 (Philadelphia, 1890), 128-130.
''People's Party Platform,'' Omaha Morning World-Herald, 5 July 1892.
party vanished from the larger electoral map.”42 This group was a significant response to the
industrial revolution and was an important political movement of the time period.
Another effect that is felt most in the modern age is the rise of the consumer culture.
Because items could easily be produced and sold due to factories with production lines and
interchangeable parts, and railroads which allowed for widespread sale of items, more products
became available to the general public for cheaper prices. Items had become easily available, so
the general public responded by buying these cheaper products. However, this has extended to
the modern day and has naturally expanded. Through the industrial revolution, there also came
consumerism along with Wal-Mart and other large franchises offering people almost anything at
one place for an affordable price. Industrialization gave the U.S. the available tools to create a
culture in which items are commodities instead of luxuries making this an important effect of
this time period in the United States as it completely changed the lifestyle of most American
people.
42
Rebecca Edwards, The Populist Party,2000, http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
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