Talk the Industrial Talk
This manufacturing method puts a product together as it moves along a conveyor belt, slicing production time and costs.
What is the assembly line?
Developed in the 1850s, this low-cost method produced stronger steel that quickly replaced iron as the primary building material for cities.
hat is the Bessemer process?
He established a research laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, nicknamed the "invention factory," where he developed the light bulb and phonograph.
He established a research laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey, nicknamed the "invention factory," where he developed the light bulb and phonograph.
These poorly built, overcrowded apartment buildings in downtown slums often lacked windows, heat, or indoor plumbing.
What are tenements?
Immigrants traveling to America on ships were usually crammed below deck in these crowded, airless compartments originally meant for livestock or cargo.
What is steerage?
This is a person who sets up new businesses in order to make a profit.
What is an entrepreneur?
This Scottish immigrant rose from poverty to dominate the steel industry and later donated hundreds of millions to charities and libraries under his "Gospel of Wealth" philosophy.
Who was Andrew Carnegie?
His 1876 patent for the telephone became the most valuable patent ever issued in history.
His 1876 patent for the telephone became the most valuable patent ever issued in history.
Located in the slums of Chicago, Jane Addams opened this famous settlement house in 1889 to provide assistance, classes, and daycare for the urban poor.
What was Hull House?
Native-born Americans who opposed immigration, arguing that newcomers stole jobs and could not assimilate, were known as this.
What are nativists?
The practice where labor unions negotiate with corporate management for workers as a group.
What is collective bargaining?
To limit competition and control prices, business leader John D. Rockefeller formed this massive group of oil corporations run by a single board.
What is the Standard Oil Trust?
By introducing the assembly line to mass-produce his Model T, this automobile pioneer made cars affordable for millions of ordinary Americans.
Who was Henry Ford?
Rapid urban expansion, the growth of factories, and improved public attractions like department stores and professional sports caused this process of rapid city growth between 1860 and 1890.
What is urbanization?
Passed in 1852 by Massachusetts and later adopted across the nation, these laws required children to attend school up to a certain age.
What are compulsory education laws?
The process by which immigrants blend into and become part of another culture.
What is assimilation?
Big business leaders used this philosophy—which applied Charles Darwin's "survival of the fittest" concept to human affairs—to justify crushing competition and maintaining harsh working conditions.
What is Social Darwinism?
On December 17, 1903, at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, these brothers made history with the first successful controlled, gas-powered airplane flight.
Who were Wilbur and Orville Wright?
On March 25, 1911, a horrific fire in this New York sweatshop killed nearly 150 workers because the company had locked the exit doors, leading to new factory safety laws.
What was the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory?
Authors like Stephen Crane and Mark Twain belonged to this literary movement, which aimed to show life exactly as it really was rather than idealizing it.
What is realism (or who are realists)?
Named after a popular comic strip character, this term describes the sensationalized, headline-grabbing reporting style used by newspapers in the late 1800s.
hat is yellow journalism?
Business giant John D. Rockefeller was known for holding this economic view regarding competition.
What is the view that competition in the marketplace is costly and harmful for business owners?
This African American inventor revolutionized the shoe manufacturing industry by creating a machine that sewed shoe tops to their soles.
Who was Jan Matzeliger?
Unlike the Knights of Labor, the American Federation of Labor (AFL)—founded in 1886 by Samuel Gompers—only admitted this specific group of workers.
Who are skilled workers?
This Hungarian immigrant bought the New York World in 1883 and created the first modern, mass-circulation newspaper complete with color comics.
Who was Joseph Pulitzer?