Andrew carnegie family background
Andrew Carnegie: Early Life and Career
Andrew Carnegie, whose life became a rags-to-riches story, was born into modest circumstances on November 25, , in Dunfermline, Scotland, the second of two sons of Will, a handloom weaver, and Margaret, who did sewing work for local shoemakers. In , the Carnegie family (who pronounced their name “carNEgie”) moved to America in search of better economic opportunities and settled in Allegheny City (now part of Pittsburgh), Pennsylvania.
Andrew Carnegie, whose formal education ended when he left Scotland, where he had no more than a few years’ schooling, soon found employment as a bobbin boy at a cotton factory, earning $ a week.
Did you know? During the U.S. Civil War, Andrew Carnegie was drafted for the Army; however, rather than serve, he paid another man $ to report for duty in his place, a common practice at the time.
Ambitious and hard-working, he went on to hold a series of jobs, including messenger in a telegraph office and secretary and telegraph operator for the superintendent of the Pittsburgh division of the Pennsylvania Railroad.
In , Carnegie succeeded his boss as railroad division superintendent.
Andrew carnegie biography united states history 6th grade Archived from the original on March 15, Throughout his later career, he made use of his close connections to Thomson and Scott, as he established businesses that supplied rails and bridges to the railroad, offering the two men stakes in his enterprises. Carnegie's empire grew to include the J. In , Carnegie took his family, including his year-old mother, on a trip to the United Kingdom.While in this position, he made profitable investments in a variety of businesses, including coal, iron and oil companies and a manufacturer of railroad sleeping cars.
After leaving his post with the railroad in , Carnegie continued his ascent in the business world. With the U.S. railroad industry then entering a period of rapid growth, he expanded his railroad-related investments and founded such ventures as an iron bridge building company (Keystone Bridge Company) and a telegraph firm, often using his connections to win insider contracts.
By the time he was in his early 30s, Carnegie had become a very wealthy man.
Andrew Carnegie: Steel Magnate
In the early s, Carnegie co-founded his first steel company, near Pittsburgh. Over the next few decades, he created a steel empire, maximizing profits and minimizing inefficiencies through ownership of factories, raw materials and transportation infrastructure involved in steel making.
In , his primary holdings were consolidated to form Carnegie Steel Company.
The steel magnate considered himself a champion of the working man; however, his reputation was marred by the violent Homestead Strike in at his Homestead, Pennsylvania, steel mill. After union workers protested wage cuts, Carnegie Steel general manager Henry Clay Frick (), who was determined to break the union, locked the workers out of the plant.
Andrew Carnegie was on vacation in Scotland during the strike, but put his support in Frick, who called in some Pinkerton armed guards to protect the plant.
Andrew carnegie biography united states history 1820 1859 Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie. Nearly 70 years old, Margaret Carnegie had long been accustomed to her son's complete attention. Australia Qatar Rwanda Silicon Valley. His father soon quit his position at the cotton mill, returning to his loom, and was again removed as a substantial breadwinner.A bloody battle broke out between the striking workers and the Pinkertons, leaving at least 10 men dead. The state militia then was brought in to take control of the town, union leaders were arrested and Frick hired replacement workers for the plant. After five months, the strike ended with the union’s defeat. Additionally, the labor movement at Pittsburgh-area steel mills was crippled for the next four decades.
In , banker John Pierpont Morgan () purchased Carnegie Steel for some $ million, making Andrew Carnegie one of the world’s richest men.
Andrew carnegie biography united states history Alec Baldwin. The demand for iron products, such as armor for gunboats, cannons, and shells, as well as a hundred other industrial products, made Pittsburgh a center of wartime production. Government regulation, which had never been an issue, was being taken more seriously as reformers actively tried to curtail the excesses of businessmen known as "robber barons. Sleepy Hollow Cemetery Historic Fund.That same year, Morgan merged Carnegie Steel with a group of other steel businesses to form U.S. Steel, the world’s first billion-dollar corporation.
READ MORE: Andrew Carnegie Claimed to Support Unions, But Then Destroyed Them in His Steel Empire
Andrew Carnegie: Philanthropist
After Carnegie sold his steel company, the diminutive titan, who stood 5’3”, retired from business and devoted himself full-time to philanthropy.
In , he had penned an essay, “The Gospel of Wealth,” in which he stated that the rich have “a moral obligation to distribute [their money] in ways that promote the welfare and happiness of the common man.” Carnegie also said, “The man who dies thus rich dies disgraced.”
Carnegie eventually gave away some $ million (the equivalent of billions in today’s dollars), which represented the bulk of his wealth.
Among his philanthropic activities, he funded the establishment of more than 2, public libraries around the globe, donated more than 7, organs to churches worldwide and endowed organizations (many still in existence today) dedicated to research in science, education, world peace and other causes.
Among his gifts was the $ million required for the land and construction costs of Carnegie Hall, the legendary New York City concert venue that opened in The Carnegie Institution for Science, Carnegie Mellon University and the Carnegie Foundation were all founded thanks to his financial gifts.
A lover of books, he was the largest individual investor in public libraries in American history.
Andrew Carnegie: Family and Final Years
Carnegie’s mother, who was a major influence in his life, lived with him until her death in The following year, the year-old industrial baron married Louise Whitfield (), who was two decades his junior and the daughter of a New York City merchant.
The couple had one child, Margaret ().
The Carnegies lived in a Manhattan mansion and spent summers in Scotland, where they owned Skibo Castle, set on some 28, acres.
Carnegie died at age 83 on August 11, , at Shadowbrook, his estate in Lenox, Massachusetts. He was buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in North Tarrytown, New York.
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