Gilded Age DBQ

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The Gilded Age

An accurate characterization of these capitalists during the Gilded Age that began in the 1870s would be “robber barons”. Despite the fact that many of these robber barons came from rags to riches, many of them reach the riches through corrupt means, such as vertical consolidation or horizontal consolidation. Once, these robber barons became wealthy they still remained avaricious, they had terrible conditions for labourers and bribed government officials. These robber barons after becoming incredibly wealthy, they still urged to be more wealthy. In (Doc A), Henry George explains how the wealthy are becoming wealthier, while the poorer class is becoming more dependent. What George states is true, considering how throughout …show more content…
They had many people work long hours, many times children had to work to help support the family, which can be supported through (Doc G). (Doc G) displays a picture of a group of young boys working in the Woodward Coal Mining in Pennsylvania. The quality of the workplace can also be displayed in (Doc F) where E. Levasseur has an article in where he explains how the quality of the workplace was in England was superior to that of the United States. Levasseur continues and tells of how england workers were excited to work, while american workers were degrading into machines. Labourers in the United States also experience unfair wages and unsanitary work conditions. Many robber barons even cut the wages of labourers by half. Unfortunately to robber barons labourers were expendable, since a wave of immigration(usually from east europe) approach the United States. Robber barons also ruined many lives of the poorer class as shown in (Doc E) where trust decided that part of their mill should be closed, putting many out of a job. Unfortunately this was the norm and as stated before the poor continued to be more …show more content…
Unfortunately there was also corruption within Grant’s cabinet members as the Vice President, who was taking brines from the Credit Mobilier in which the Union Pacific Railroad hired themselves as the Credit Mobilier company at inflated prices. Then Grant’s private secretary and the secretary of war were both involved in the Whiskey Ring, where they robbed the treasury of millions. Unfortunately congress was also involved, however congress and Grant’s cabinet was given extreme leeway. Also there were many events in where the government has sided with giant business such as during the railroad strike of 1877. During this event many labourers were protesting because their wages were cut in half. Sadly, the federal government sent troops to stop the protest. The government did issue a law applying more restrictions on giant businesses, however they were not enforce. Unfortunately, the government associated themselves with robber barons allowing for an increase of their wealth, but at the cost of failing the
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