Question

Some historians have characterized the industrial and business leaders of the 1865-1900 period as robber barons who used extreme methods to control and concentrate wealth and power. To what extent is that characterization justified based on the historical evidence?

Answer 1

Shortly after Reconstruction, people saw the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. During the Industrial Revolution, industry leaders would sometimes use scandalous methods for their own personal gain. For example, Jay Gould allowed William Boss Tweed to run one of his railroads, and in turn Boss Tweed would ensure that legislatures would pass what Gould wanted. Because of this, most historians depict some of these business/industrial people as “robber barons,” people that did horrible things for wealth. Although some of these methods to gain profit were extreme, most of these methods were ways to make more money. Through new waysto produce materials faster, monopolies, and Social Darwinism, these “robber barons” were nothing more than business people.