Movers and Shakers of the Industrial Age

“Who’s Who?”

Andrew Carnegie

Nov. 25, 1835 – Aug. 11, 1919 Born in Dunfermline, Scotland Emigrated to US with parents in 1848 Early employment: bobbin factory, book keeper,

messenger boy, telegrapher Invested in: railroads, bridges, and oil derricks Big MONEY: Steel / US Steel Philanthropic interests: education, libraries,

pension funds for former employees

March 3, 1831 – October 19, 1897 Born in Brocton, NY Early family life: Left school at age 14 Early employment: manufactured coffins,

helped move houses to newly built foundations, gold broker

Invested in: Luxury Sleeping cars Big MONEY: Pullman/Palace cars, factory town Philanthropic interests: education, built school

for children of his employees, church in honor of his parents

George Pullman

April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913 Born in Hartford, Connecticut Education: Boston, Switzerland, Germany Early employment: worked for father’s

banking/investment company Assisted government by “loaning” gold

when treasury was failing during Depression Big MONEY: investments, railroads, various

industries such as steel (US Steel) Philanthropic interests:

JP Morgan

April 27, 1791 – April 2, 1872 Born in Charlestown, MA Education: Phillips Academy and Yale University Early employment: talented painter Began quest for long distance communication

when wife died before he knew she was sick Big Invention: worked with Charles Thomas

Jackson to create a single wire telegraph using electromagnatism / created code (Morse Code)

Samuel FB Morse

Feb. 11, 1847 – Oct. 18, 1931 Born in Milan, OH Education: 3 months at church school, then homeschooled Early employment: sold candies, newspapers

and vegetables, telegraph operator Many Inventions/patents (1093): phonograph,

motion picture camera, electric light bulb, etc Nickname: The Wizard of Menlo Park

Thomas Alva Edison

Sept. 16, 1838 – May 29, 1916 Born in Ontario, Canada Emigrated permanently to St Paul, MN in 1856 Early employment: bookkeeper for grocery

store and railroads, worked in the coal industry Invested in: bankrupt businesses and resold

them, built a monopoly in steamboat business Big MONEY: Railroads / Great Northern Railway Philanthropic interests: church (Roman Catholic

Diocese of St Paul) and local universities

James J Hill

July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937 Born in Richford, NY Early family life: Father traveling salesman,

frequently absent from the home Early employment: raised/sold turkeys,

potatoes and candy, bookkeeper Invested in: Grocery business Big MONEY: Oil / Standard Oil Philanthropic interests: education, his church,

public health, medical training, handed out dimes to children everywhere he went

John D Rockefeller

March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922 Born in Edinburgh, Scotland Education: mediocre grades at Royal High School, attended University of Edinburgh Early employment: worked on speech and

language with students Best known invention: telephone Later inventions/experiments: photophone,

phonograph, tape recorder, solar panels, hydrofoils, aeronautics

Alexander Graham Bell

Oct. 21, 1833 – Dec. 10, 1896 Born in Stockholm, Sweden Education: 18 months at formal school, was

home tutored Early life: father was also an inventor,

started out poor, found success Best known invention: dynamite Most noted for: leaving most of his estate

for his Nobel prizes ~ Nobel did NOT want to be remembered as the “merchant of death”

Alfred Nobel

July 12, 1854 – March 14, 1932 Born in Waterville, NY Education: private school for a while, mostly self educated Early employment: worked for a photography

business Best known invention: Kodak camera with roll film Philanthropic interests: Massachusetts Institute

of Technology, Eastman school of Music, School of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Rochester

George Eastman

Feb. 19, 1858 – Jan. 8, 1939 Born on Dakota Reservation near Redwood Falls, MN Education: trained in Lakota and White

ways, attended several colleges including Boston University where he became a doctor

Doctor, Author, founder of 32 YMCA’s for Native Americans, and both the Boy Scouts of America and the Camp Fire Girls

Charles Eastman

April 25, 1874 – July 20, 1937 Born in Bologna, Italy Education: private education Considered a true genius but may not have

done well in school Best known invention: the radio and

transatlantic transmission of radio waves Credited because his invention saved a

great many survivors of the Titanic disaster

Guglielmo Marconi

July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947 Born in Greenfield Township, MI Early family life: lived on a farm, mom died

when he was 13 Early employment: watch repairman,

machinist, bookkeeper Invested in: automobiles / assembly line /

higher wages for workers Big MONEY: Ford Motor Co Philanthropic interests: community

improvement

Henry Ford

Jan. 19, 1813 – March 15, 1898 Born in London, England Education: on the job training in his father’s foundry in England Considered a true genius Best known invention: the Bessemer

Process for creating strong, inexpensive steel

Drew the attention of Andrew Carnegie who used the process in his own foundries

Henry Bessemer

May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877 Born in Staten Island, NY Early family life: worked for his father’s ferry

boat business, left school at age 11 Early employment: ferry boat business at age

16, business manager for others Invested in: Ferry boats, steamships and

railroad lines Big MONEY: Transportation systems Philanthropic interests: $1 million to build

Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN

Cornelius Vanderbilt