After the Civil War ended, Americans looked to establish a whole, prosperous nation. Companies grew steadily as Americans migrated west. The proprietors would generate trust, buying out all of the smaller corporations in their line of work, and as a result controlling the whole field, Americans had mixed feeling about these corporations. Although, post Civil War companies hired many and offered low prices, they ultimately suffocated smaller business and seemed to have the government in restriction. As presented in (DOCUMENT A), food prices, fuel, and lighting prices decreased tremendously from 1870 to 1899. This is because of their trust allowed them to obtain their goods cheaply as if they were the only ones to sell to. Rockefeller monopolized the oil industry through horizontal integration. …show more content…
By doing this it allowed him to gain a monopoly through the failure of smaller companies to compete. Andrew Carnegie, whose social Darwinism ideas became popular, also supported his fellow businessmen through his gospel of wealth. In document D, he stated ¨the man of wealth thus becoming the mere agent and trustee for his poorer brother.” He justified that the wealthy should not be resented because they were helping the poor. Yet, they would easily lower wages or fire people for the benefit of themselves. In addition, working conditions began to change during this time. Factories were booming again and new groups, such as children and women, joined the labor force. Since one of the big business goals was efficiency, these factories adopted the assembly line. The world was first introduced to this by Eli Whitney and his interchangable parts. Henry Ford, the automobile magnate, was the one to use it effectively in order to produce affordable