Economic Growth
USH-4.2 & 4.3
I. Factors
A. During and after Civil War
the US began rapid
economic growth (boom)
B. Factors
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Land and natural resources
Labor – workers
Capital – money
Technology
Entrepreneurship – starting
businesses
II. Beginnings
A. US government provided
environment that helped
businesses
1. Protective tariff to help
northern business
2. National bank provided
capital and regulated
lending
B. Westward expansion
opened new markets and
raw materials
1. Gov’t removing NAs helped
II. Beginnings
C. Supreme Court helped
1. Dartmouth v
Woodward held up
contracts and
protected patent laws
2. Gibbons v Ogden
regulated interstate
commerce
D. Steam engine
1. Steamboat
2. Railroad
3. Oil drilling
III. Growth
A. Congress helped railroads
and regulated banking
1.
War contracts stimulated
many businesses
B. Gov’t provided protection
for settlers
C. Raised tariffs
1.
Higher wages but higher
prices
D. Promoted open
immigration to have lots of
workers
1.
Chinese Exclusion Act was
passed after the railroad was
completed and they no
longer needed them
III. Growth
E. Gov’t helps break up
and end strikes
1. Helps Big Business
and hurts poor
workers
F. Surplus of goods
become exports
1. Gov’t wants to expand
(imperialism)
IV. Capitalism
A. Economic system that has
private ownership of
property and it is used to
make a profit
1.
For individuals or
corporations
B. Supports democratic ideas
of freedom and opportunity
1.
2.
Hard work = more money
No work = no money
C. Corporations grow during
Civil War and have greater
influence
V. Railroads
A. Transcontinental RR;
markets; opportunity;
resources (USH-4.1)
B. Leads to the growth of
other industry
1. Lumber – RR ties
2. Steel – rails & engines
3. Coal – for steam and
transporting it
4. Meat packing – special
cars for transporting it
V. Railroads
C. Grow so big that when
some RRs go bankrupt,
the whole country goes
into a depression
VI. Vertical Integration
A. Form of a monopoly
where every aspect of
production is controlled
B. Andrew Carnegie – owner
of US Steel
1.
2.
3.
4.
Owned coal mines
Owned iron ore mines
Owned steel mills
Controlled steel
distribution
5. Able to drive prices down
to kill competition
VII. Horizontal Integration
A. To entirely control one
facet of production to
create a monopoly
B. John D Rockefeller –
owner of Standard Oil
1. Controlled almost all oil
refineries in US
2. Undersold competition
3. Forced retail outlets to
NOT sell competitors
4. Forced RR to give him
sweet deals
VIII. Robber Barons?
A. Were business leaders:
1.
Robber Barons
a)
2.
Ripping off the public for
their personal wealth
Captains of Industry
a)
Using capitalism to make
the US wealthy
B. Monopolies lead to the
Sherman Anti-Trust Act
1.
Limits on Big Business
and breaks up
monopolies
VIII. Robber Barons?
C. CEO’s used cut-throat
practices justified by:
1. Social Darwinism
a)
Survival of the fittest for
people and businesses
2. Laissez-faire
a)
b)
“Let it be”
Gov’t doesn’t touch the
economy
D. They still wanted gov’t
protection against labor
VIII. Robber Barons?
E. Many became
philanthropists
1. Gave away millions for:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Schools
Hospitals
Libraries
Theaters
Orphanages
Charities
2. “Buying their way into
Heaven”
IX. Standard of Living
A. Life got better for most
people
1. New products
2. Electricity
3. Typewriter and telephone
a)
New jobs for women
4. Mass production lowers
prices
a)
Henry Ford’s moving assembly
line in 1913
B. Some farmers & factory
workers still have nothing