Analysis: Andrew Carnegie

The first 200 words of this essay...

Analysis: Andrew Carnegie

William Heiges

1/26/11

Period 3

A.P. US History

One of the captains of industry of 19th century America, Andrew Carnegie helped build the formidable American steel industry, a process that turned a poor young man into one of the richest entrepreneurs of his age. Later in his life, Carnegie sold his steel business and systematically gave his collected fortune away to cultural, educational and scientific institutions for "the improvement of mankind." Carnegie also was one of the first to call for a "league of nations" and he built "a palace of peace" that would later evolve into the World Court. His hopes for a civilized world of peace were destroyed, though, with the onset of World War I in 1914 ("American Experience: Andrew Carnegie." 1-2).In the business world he sought to become immune from competition by dominating all aspects of the production process. He was not content to own only the steel mills, but worked to control iron-ore barges, coal and iron fields and the railroads. Andrew Carnegie in many ways represented the American dream. He began with nothing and used his drive and intelligence to become the world's richest man for