Second Industrial Revolution

Bessemer process:

a method of removing impurities from pig iron to produce molten steel

Technology

New industrial technology was the foundation of the Second Industrial Revolution. The Bessemer process, for example, allowed steel to be mass-produced from iron. Steel was stronger than iron and became one of the main industrial products of the era.

Communication

New inventions such as the telegraph helped connect Americans by allowing people to send messages over large distances. Some historians have even dubbed the telegraph the "Victorian Internet." These connections aided business growth and helped expand markets.

Labor

Newly freed African Americans and immigrants from Europe and Asia led to growth in the U.S. population of workers. They provided a vital labor source for new factories. Workers were also important as consumers who spent part of their wages on new manufactured goods.

Natural Resources

Settlement of the West increased access to already abundant natural resources. U.S. lands offered manufacturers extensive stores of coal, iron, oil, lumber, and other raw materials for industrial development.

Transportation

After the Civil War ended in 1865, the U.S. rail network grew explosively. This expansion connected distant markets and allowed raw materials to be shipped cheaply and quickly from sources in the West and Midwest to factories in the Northeast. More than 70,000 miles of railroad track were laid in the 1880s alone. Most of these tracks were on land that had been given to railroad companies through government grants. As shown in the picture, bridges were necessary to maintain level track elevation in remote locations where mountains and valleys were common.

Entrepreneurs

Andrew Carnegie, who revolutionized the steel industry, and other entrepreneurs played vital roles in the rise of the Second Industrial Revolution. These entrepreneurs funded and managed growing industries. The huge profits that industrialists made earned them two distinct nicknames. They were known as "captains of industry" for the services they provided to workers and society. Some were also called "robber barons" by those who felt the industrialists got rich at the expense of society.

Government

The government encouraged railroad expansion and supported free trade among the states. At the same time, the government placed heavy tariffs on imports that made domestic goods much cheaper. This protected U.S. manufacturers from external competition. These policies helped businesses and industries grow.