" At that time, immigrants from many countries were pouring into the United States after being fed propaganda that America was a place for opportunity and wealth. Names like Vanderbilt, Carnegie, and Rockefeller were well known world wide and their stories were proof to the foreigners that America really was what people claimed it to be. Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant, worked hard for little pay for many years until a man from the Pennsylvania Railroad took notice of him and made him his assistant. By the age of twenty-four, he was the divisional superintendent for the Pennsylvania Railroad. Rockefeller was the same age when he built the Standard Oil Company. The stories of these fortunate men were dispensed as though they were the norm, although they were the exception to the rule. Carnegie Steel and Standard Oil did accomplish many notable achievements during this time period, however. They did in fact make a handful of men extremely wealthy, and provided jobs to hundreds of thousands of people who were just arriving from other countries or who were in need of work. They revolutionized the way that American's lived their lives and forever changed the social and economic standards in the country. Due to their extremely modern technology, the men were able to use their products to serve the American people in ways that drastically altered the lives of almost every single citizen. From the railroads and other forms of transportation, to bridges and skyscrapers, to gas and kerosene which allowed for more lighting and therefore sparked the nightlife of the Americans, these men were indisputably Captains of Industry.
The argument, however, doesn't stop there. Carnegie and Rockefeller reached a level of power and wealth never before seen in American history, but they were only able to obtain this through acts that were dishonest and often times, illegal. Among the positive aspects of the industrialists, Rockefeller and Carnegie are remembered for their unwavering ruthlessness.
