Title: The 1900s Business and the Economy: Overview | Encyclopedia.com
Headings: The 1900s Business and the Economy: Overview
The 1900s Business and the Economy: Overview
The 1900s Business and the Economy: Overview

Content: The result was the elimination of competition. Many Americans became concerned about the continued rise of big business through trusts, trade associations, cartels, or pools. They feared that these business groups would destroy America's image as the land of opportunity where it was possible for an individual to succeed through his or her own business efforts. The 1900s witnessed the founding of numerous corporations that have since become fixtures in American life: Firestone Tire and Rubber Company (1900), United States Steel Company (1901), Quaker Oats Company (1901), J.C. Penney Company (1902), Pepsi-Cola Company (1902), Texaco (1903), Harley-Davidson (1907), Hershey (1908), and General Motors Corporation (1908). The general prosperity of the decade made many Americans eager consumers, especially as companies began to spend more time and money on product advertising. The rise of big business and poor working conditions for common laborers led to increased tensions between employers and employees. Throughout the decade many workers joined organized labor unions, but their efforts to improve pay and workplace conditions were often unsuccessful. Several long and violent strikes occurred during the 1900s, and some of these work stoppages required government intervention to resolve the disputes. The great differences in the lifestyles of owners and workers was highly publicized, notably through the Anthracite Coal Strike.