Describes the period after the Civil War when the United States was becoming increasingly industrialized and technological, including the coming of the railroads, the rise of the large corporations, the development of labor unions, and government regulation.

A riveting narrative of Wall Street buccaneering, political intrigue, and two of American history's most colossal characters, struggling for mastery in an era of social upheaval and rampant inequality.
It seemed like no force in the world could slow J. P. Morgan's drive to power. In the summer of 1901, the financier was assembling his next mega-deal: Northern Securities, an enterprise that would affirm his dominance in America's most important...

In the century after the Civil War, an economic revolution improved the American standard of living in ways previously unimaginable. Electric lighting, indoor plumbing, home appliances, motor vehicles, air travel, air conditioning, and television transformed households and workplaces. With medical advances, life expectancy between 1870 and 1970 grew from forty-five to seventy-two years. Weaving together a narrative, historical anecdotes, and economic...

In Illiberal Reformers, Thomas Leonard reexamines the economic progressives whose ideas and reform agenda underwrote the Progressive Era dismantling of laissez-faire and the creation of the regulatory welfare state, which, they believed, would humanize and rationalize industrial capitalism. But not for all. Academic social scientists such as Richard T. Ely, John R. Commons, and Edward A. Ross, together with their reform allies in social work, charity,...

"From Pulitzer Prize-winner Michael Hiltzik, the epic tale of the clash for supremacy between America's railroad titans"--

This series takes readers on a journey through each era in American history as it relates to the leaders of the country. Events that shaped the nation are outlined with reference to the powerful people who guided the nation through its founding, wars, economic depressions, and exciting moments in history. From each leader's early childhood and education to his entry into politics and achievements as president. Includes a timeline, activity, and quiz...