John D. Rockefeller Sr., American capitalist, painting by:John Singer Sargent, 1917

Robber baron was a term revived in the 19th century in the United States as a pejorative reference to businessmen and bankers who dominated their respective industries and amassed huge personal fortunes, typically as a direct result of pursuing various allegedly anti-competitive or unfair business practices. The term may now be used in relation to any businessman or banker who is perceived to have used questionable business practices in order to become powerful or wealthy. John D. Rockefeller, painted in 1917 by John Singer Sargent File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... John D. Rockefeller, painted in 1917 by John Singer Sargent File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... John Davison Rockefeller, Sr. ... In economics, a capitalist is someone who owns capital, presumably within the economic system of capitalism. ... Self Portrait, oil painting, 1907 John Singer Sargent (January 12, 1856 – April 14, 1925) was the most successful portrait painter of his era, as well as a gifted landscape painter and watercolorist. ... Unfair business practices encompass fraud, misrepresentation, and oppressive or unconscionable acts or practices by business, often against consumers and are prohibited by law in many countries. ...

The term derives from the medieval German lords who illegally charged exorbitant tolls against ships traversing the Rhine river (see robber baron). There has been some dispute over the term's origin and use. It was popularized by U.S. political and economic commentator Matthew Josephson during The Great Depression in a 1934 book. He attributed its first use to an 1880 anti-monopoly pamphlet in which Kansas farmers applied the term to railroad magnates. The informal term captains of industry may sometimes be used to avoid the negative connotations of "robber baron". The word toll has several meanings. ... The Rhine (German: ; Dutch: ; French: ; Italian: ; Romansh: ) is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe at 1,320 kilometres (820 miles), with an average discharge of more than 2,000 cubic meters per second. ... // Typical toll tower on Rhine in Bingen The term robber baron (German: ) dates back to the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, originally referring to certain feudal lords of land through which the Rhine River in Europe flowed. ... Matthew Josephson (born 15 February 1899 in Brooklyn, New York; died 13 March 1978 in Santa Cruz, California) was an American journalist and author of works on nineteenth-century French literature and twentieth-century American economic history. ... The Great Depression was a global economic slump that began in 1929 and bottomed in 1933. ... A monopoly (from the Greek language monos, one + polein, to sell) is defined as a persistent market situation where there is only one provider of a product or service, in other words a firm that has no competitors in its industry. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Captain of industry was a term originally used in the U.S. during the Industrial Revolution describing a business leader whose means of amassing a personal fortune contributes positively to the country in some way. ... For the more specialised meaning of Connotation in semiotics, see connotation (semiotics). ...

Impact on Society

Some historians consider that the vast accumulation of wealth and power among the men known as robber barons constituted a substantial mis-allocation of resources across society. The harsh reality of the existence of robber barons in the United States inspired the 19th century economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen to write The Theory of the Leisure Class. In this work, Veblen argues that the modern businessman, including the international banker, is not different from a barbarian because he uses brute force, cunning and competitive skills to make money from others, and then lives off the spoils of conquests rather than producing things himself. Modern scholars, such as the Professor of Economics Robert Heilbroner, describe robber barons in a similar way. In his book The Worldly Philosophers Heilbroner claims that robber barons used deception, violence, kidnappings and extraordinary dishonesty to gain economic power and industrial supremacy. Thorstein Bunde Veblen (born Tosten Bunde Veblen July 30, 1857 – August 3, 1929) was a Norwegian-American sociologist and economist and a founder, along with John R. Commons, of the Institutional economics movement. ... The Theory of the Leisure Class is a book, first published in 1899, by the American economist Thorstein Veblen while he was a professor at the University of Chicago. ... Robert Heilbroner (March 24, 1919 – January 4, 2005) was an American economist. ... The Worldly Philosophers: The Lives, Times And Ideas Of The Great Economic Thinkers is a book by Robert L. Heilbroner. ...

Other historians argue that the robber barons were essential to the transformation of the United States into a world power, due to their significant investments in industry, infrastructure, and education. Novelist Ayn Rand stated that such men were among the "greatest humanitarians and the greatest benefactors of mankind who had ever lived because they had brought the 'greatest good' and an impossible standard of living - impossible by all historical trends - to the country in which they functioned." Economist Thomas DiLorenzo has argued that industrialists such as James J. Hill, John D. Rockefeller and Cornelius Vanderbilt gained their wealth, for the most part, through legitimate economic means on the free market and have been unfairly labelled as robber barons. The true robber barons were those who used political means to enrich themselves and their political cohorts through government subsidies, protective tariffs and government-enforced cartels. The USA and USSR were the two superpowers during the Cold War. ... Ayn Rand (IPA: , February 2 [O.S. January 20] 1905 – March 6, 1982), born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum (Russian: ), was a Russian-born American novelist and philosopher,[1] best known for developing Objectivism and for writing the novels We the Living, The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged and the novella Anthem. ... Thomas DiLorenzo Thomas J. DiLorenzo (born 1954) is an American economics professor at Loyola College in Maryland. ... James J. Hill at about age 35, ca. ... John Davison Rockefeller, Sr. ... Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt I (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), also known by the sobriquets The Commodore [1] [2] or Commodore Vanderbilt [3], was an American entrepreneur who built his wealth in shipping and railroads and was the patriarch of the Vanderbilt family. ...

New York City owes much of its monumental architecture and many of its museums to the patronage of these men, most notably Rockefeller Center, Grand Central Terminal, Cooper Union, The Frick Collection, Carnegie Hall and The Astor Library. Carnegie sought to encourage literacy and funded the establishment of 2,500 public libraries across the U.S. and around the world. Although men such as J. P. Morgan were sometimes noted for uncharitable statements such as "I owe the public nothing", Morgan nevertheless made significant contributions to the arts and universities. New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... A monument is a structure built for commemorative or symbolic reasons rather than for any overtly functional use. ... Architecture (from Latin, architectura and ultimately from Greek, a master builder, from αρχι- chiefs, leader , builder, carpenter)[1] is the art and science of designing buildings and structures. ... A museum is a non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, the tangible and intangible evidence of people and their environment. ... ... Lower Plaza at Rockefeller Center. ... The main concourse Grand Central Terminal (GCT, often unofficially called Grand Central Station) is a terminal rail station at 15 Vanderbilt Avenue (42nd Street and Park Avenue) in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. ... The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art is a privately funded college in Lower Manhattan of New York City. ... Frick Collection Holbeins portrait of Thomas More is one of the highlights of the Frick Collection. ... Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Andrew Carnegie (November 25, 1835 – August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, a major and widely respected philanthropist, and the founder of the Carnegie Steel Company which later became U.S. Steel. ... A Carnegie library, opened in 1913 in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA, designed in Spanish Colonial style Carnegie libraries for both public use and academic institutions were built with money donated by Scottish-American businessman Andrew Carnegie, earning him the nickname, the Patron Saint of Libraries. ... John Pierpont Morgan (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier, banker, philanthropist, and art collector who dominated corporate finance and industrial consolidation during his time. ...

The cultural impact of the massive riches accumulated by the robber barons was influential in defining the "American Dream" as it appeared to prove that a "rags to riches" story was possible in America. This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

J. P. Morgan assaulting photographers (he hated being photographed due to facial disfigurement caused by the skin disease Rosacea, and had all of his official portraits retouched).

Image File history File links Jpmorgan. ... Image File history File links Jpmorgan. ... John Pierpont Morgan (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier, banker, philanthropist, and art collector who dominated corporate finance and industrial consolidation during his time. ... Disfigurement is the state of having ones appearance, especially that of ones face, deeply and persistently harmed by a medical condition, such as wounds (accidental or intentional), disease, or a birth defect. ... Dermatology is a branch of medicine dealing with the skin, its structure, functions, and diseases (from Greek derma, skin), as well as its appendages (nails, hair, sweat glands). ... Rosacea (IPA: ) is a common but often misunderstood condition that is estimated to affect over 45 million people worldwide. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into photo manipulation. ...

List of businessmen who were called robber barons

• John Jacob Astor (real estate, fur) – New York City
• Andrew Carnegie (railroads, steel) – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Jay Cooke (finance) – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Daniel Drew (finance) – New York state
• James Buchanan Duke (tobacco) – near Durham, North Carolina
• James Fisk (finance) – New York state
• Henry Flagler (railroads, oil, the Standard Oil company) – New York City and Palm Beach, Florida
• Henry Ford (automobile) – Dearborn, Michigan and metropolitan Detroit, Michigan
• Henry Clay Frick (steel) – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and New York City
• John Warne Gates (steel, oil) – Chicago and Texas
• Jay Gould (finance, railroads) – New York (both state and city)
• Edward Henry Harriman (railroads) – New York state
• Collis P. Huntington (railroads) – California, Virginia, and New York
• Mark Hopkins (railroads) - California
• Charles Crocker (railroads) - California
• Leland Stanford (railroads) – Sacramento, California and San Francisco, California
• John D. Rockefeller (oil) - Cleveland, Ohio
• John Mackey (premium natural and organic supermarkets) - Austin, Texas
• Mark Tilton (partier) Dyer, Indiana

John Jacob Astor, detail of an oil painting by Gilbert Stuart, 1794 John Jacob (originally either Johann Jakob or Johann Jacob) Astor (July 17, 1763 - March 29, 1848) was the first of the Astor family dynasty and the first millionaire in the United States, the creator of the first Trust... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... Andrew Carnegie (November 25, 1835 – August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist, businessman, a major and widely respected philanthropist, and the founder of the Carnegie Steel Company which later became U.S. Steel. ... Nickname: Motto: Benigno Numine (With the Benevolent Deity) Location in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States Commonwealth Pennsylvania County Allegheny Founded November 25, 1758 Incorporated April 22, 1794 (borough)   March 18, 1816 (city) Government  - Mayor Luke Ravenstahl (D) Area  - City 151. ... Jay Cooke (August 10, 1821-February 8, 1905), American financier, was born at Sandusky, Ohio, the son of Eleutheros Cooke (1787-1864), a pioneer Ohio lawyer, and Whig member of Congress from that state in 1831-1833. ... Nickname: City of Brotherly Love, Philly, the Quaker City Motto: Philadelphia maneto (Let brotherly love continue) Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Philadelphia Founded October 27, 1682 Incorporated October 25, 1701 Mayor John F. Street (D) Area    - City 369. ... Daniel Drew (July 29, 1797 – September 18, 1879) was an American financier. ... NY redirects here. ... James B. Duke James B. Dukes statue can be seen in front of Duke Chapel James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was a U.S. tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for his involvement with Duke University. ... Nickname: Location in North Carolina Country United States State North Carolina County Durham County Government  - Mayor Bill Bell Area  - City  94. ... James Fisk, Jr. ... Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 – May 20, 1913) was a United States tycoon, real estate promoter, railroad developer and Rockefeller partner. ... Natural olive oil Synthetic motor oil An oil is any substance that is in a viscous liquid state (oily) at ambient temperatures or slightly warmer, and is both hydrophobic (immiscible with water, literally water fearing) and lipophilic (miscible with other oils, literally fat loving). This general definition includes compound classes... Standard Oil (Esso) was a predominant integrated oil producing, transporting, refining, and marketing company. ... Being largely seasonal, downtown Palm Beachs streets are virtually vacant in the summer. ... Henry Ford (1919) Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was the founder of the Ford Motor Company and father of modern assembly lines used in mass production. ... Location in Michigan Coordinates: , Country United States State Michigan County Wayne County Government  - Mayor John B. O’Reilly, Jr. ... Nickname: Motto: Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus (Latin for, We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes) Location in Wayne County, Michigan Coordinates: Country United States State Michigan County Wayne County Settled 1701 Incorporation 1806 Government  - Type Strong Mayor-Council  - Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick Area  - City  143. ... Henry Clay Frick Henry Clay Frick (December 19, 1849 – December 2, 1919) was an American industrialist and art patron. ... John Warne Gates (May 18, 1855–August 9, 1911), also known as Bet-a-Million Gates, was a pioneer promoter of barbed wire who became a Gilded Age industrialist. ... Nickname: Motto: Urbs In Horto (Latin: City in a Garden), I Will Location in the Chicago metro area and Illinois Coordinates: Country United States State Illinois County Cook & DuPage Incorporated March 4, 1837 Government  - Mayor Richard M. Daley (D) Area  - City  234. ... Official language(s) No Official Language See languages of Texas Capital Austin Largest city Houston Area  Ranked 2nd  - Total 261,797 sq mi (678,051 km²)  - Width 773 miles (1,244 km)  - Length 790 miles (1,270 km)  - % water 2. ... Jay Gould (1836-1892) Jason Gould (May 27, 1836 – December 2, 1892) was an American financier. ... Edward Henry Harriman (February 20, 1848 – September 9, 1909), better known as E. H. Harriman, was a wealthy railroad executive. ... Collis Potter Huntington (October 22, 1821 – August 13, 1900) was one of the Big Four of western railroading (along with Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker) who built the Southern Pacific Railroad and other major interstate train lines. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area  Ranked 35th  - Total 42,793 sq mi (110,862 km²)  - Width 200 miles (320 km)  - Length 430 miles (690 km)  - % water 7. ... Mark Hopkins (September 1, 1813 – March 29, 1878) was one of four principal investors who formed the Central Pacific Railroad along with Leland Stanford, Charles Crocker and Collis Huntington in 1861. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... subject_name=Charles Crocker| image_name=ccrocker. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  Ranked 3rd  - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 770 miles (1,240 km)  - % water 4. ... Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824–June 21, 1893) was an American business tycoon, politician and founder of Stanford University. ... Location of Sacramento in California County Sacramento Government  - Mayor Heather Fargo Area  - City  99. ... Nickname: Location of the City and County of San Francisco, California Coordinates: , Country United States of America State California City-County San Francisco Government  - Mayor Gavin Newsom Area  - City  47 sq mi (122 km²)  - Land  46. ... John Davison Rockefeller, Sr. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ... John Mackey is the CEO and founder of Whole Foods Market. ... Nickname: Live Music Capital of the World Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Country United States State Texas Counties Travis County, Williamson County Government  - Mayor Will Wynn Area  - City  296. ... Dyer is a town located in Lake County, Indiana. ...

In popular culture

In popular American culture, robber barons were usually depicted as men in suits with black top hats and canes as typified by Rich Uncle Pennybags, the icon for the board game Monopoly. Rich Uncle Pennybags, Monopolys mascot. ... Monopoly is the best-selling commercial board game in the world. ...

See also

• Antitrust
• Business magnate
• Business oligarch (Russian robber barons)
• Capitalism
• Captain of industry
• Competition law
• Competition policy
• Entrepreneur
• Gilded Age
• Industrial Revolution
• Industrialist
• Randlord
• Trust-busting

This article is about anti-competitive business behavior. ... A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a mogul, tycoon, or industrialist, is a person who has reached a prominent place in a particular industry (or set of industries) and whose wealth has been derived primarily therefrom. ... Business oligarch is a synonym of business magnate. The inclusion of the word oligarch describes the significant influence such wealthy people may have on the life of a state. ... Capitalism generally refers to an economic system in which the means of production are mostly privately[1] owned and operated for profit, and in which investments, distribution, income, production and pricing of goods and services are determined through the operation of a free market. ... Captain of industry was a term originally used in the U.S. during the Industrial Revolution describing a business leader whose means of amassing a personal fortune contributes positively to the country in some way. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with antitrust. ... For the computer game previously called Entrepreneur, see The Corporate Machine. ... The Breakers, a gilded-age mansion in Newport, Rhode Island. ... A Watt steam engine. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Business magnate. ... Randlord is a term used to denote the entrepreneurs who controlled the diamond and gold mining industries in South Africa in its pioneer phase from the 1870s up to World War I. A small number of European adventurers and financiers, largely of the same generation, gained control of the diamond... Trust-busting refers to government activities designed to break up trusts or monopolies. ...

References

Books

• Burton Folsom, Jr.. The Myth of the Robber Barons. Herndon, VA: Young America's Foundation, 1993. ISBN 0-9630203-1-5
• Robert Heilbroner. The Worldly Philosophers: The Lives, Times And Ideas Of The Great Economic Thinkers. Touchstone, 1999. ISBN 0-684-86214-X
• Matthew Josephson. The Robber Barons: The Great American Capitalists, 1861-1901, San Diego: Harcourt, 1995. ISBN 0-15-676790-2
• Howard Zinn. A People's History of the United States: 1492-present, HarperCollins, 2003 ISBN 0-06-052842-7
• Charles R. Morris. The Tycoons: How Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan Invented the American Supereconomy. Times Books, 2005. ISBN 0-8050-7599-2

Burton W. Folsom, Jr. ... Robert Heilbroner (March 24, 1919 – January 4, 2005) was an American economist. ... Matthew Josephson (born 15 February 1899 in Brooklyn, New York; died 13 March 1978 in Santa Cruz, California) was an American journalist and author of works on nineteenth-century French literature and twentieth-century American economic history. ... Howard Zinn (born August 24, 1922) is an American historian, social critic, playwright and political scientist and author of the book A Peoples History of the United States, originally published in 1980 and which routinely sells more than 100,000 copies a year, according to The New York Times... A Peoples History of the United States, 2003 hardcover edition A Peoples History of the United States is a nonfiction book by American historian and political scientist Howard Zinn, in which he seeks to present U.S. history through the eyes of groups he says are rarely heard...

External links

• The Truth About the "Robber Barons" excerpt from How Capitalism Saved America by Thomas DiLorenzo