Period 1: 1865-1898
Primary Source - Sherman Anti-Trust Act
The Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890 was passed in order to dissolve current trusts and prevent future trusts from being formed. Trusts were formed by big businesses with lots of market control in order to limit the competition of other businesses selling similar products. This act was significant because it tried to bring down the largest business monopolies that had dominated the market for so long, such as John D. Rockefeller's oil monopoly, or Andrew Carnegie's steel monopoly. This would allow smaller businesses in these industries to start to grow, rather than being immediately stomped out due to the monopolies that were in place. This source teaches about my topic because it explains how the massive monopolies formed by businesses prevented the growth of any smaller businesses in the monopolized industries. I learned that the Sherman Act was designed to restore competition between businesses, but was loosely worded, and failed to define essential terms such as "trust", and just 5 years later, the supreme court dismantled to Sherman act in United States v. E. C. Knight Company (1895).
Primary Source - Thomas Edison's Patent for the Light Bulb
This was a patent application filed by Thomas Edison for his invention, the light bulb. The patent explains the design of the light bulb, and how it works. This is significant because before the invention of the light bulb, large factories relied mostly on sunlight as a light source for their workers, this meant that work days often ended when the sun went down. With the invention of light bulbs, factories were able to remain lit for 24 hours, which meant that they were able to run for 24 hours a day and manufacture more goods. This was extremely beneficial for factory owners as they were able to increase their profits a lot, but not very good for the workers because they were forced to work much longer days. This source teaches about my topic by providing an explanation for how factories were able to boost their revenue and manufactured products. From this source, I learned how factories were able to stay lit for 24 hours a day.
This picture is showing the oil monopoly taking over America. This cartoon is showing how the monopolists kind of controlled everything because they had all the money. This cartoon teaches about my topic by showing how the monopolists controlled whatever they wanted.
This picture shows two children working on a machine in a factory. This picture was taken in a factory during the Gilded Age (1865-1900). This picture teaches about my topic because it shows how the monopolists weren't afraid to exploit children for their cheap labor.
This picture shows lots of people cramped together making clothing in a sweatshop. This picture was taken in the sweatshop during the gilded age (1865-1900). This teaches about my topic because it shows the bad working conditions the workers were forced to work in. It shows how little the big business owners cared about their workers.
This picture shows a bunch of kids working in a factory. This picture was taken in the factory during the gilded age (1865-1900). This picture really shows the awful working conditions all workers, even children were forced to deal with.