Title: Carnegie, Andrew | Learning to Give
Headings: Carnegie, Andrew
Carnegie, Andrew
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Biographical Highlights
Historic Roots
Importance
Ties to the Philanthropic Sector
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Important People Related to the Topic
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Content: His entrepreneurial ventures in America's steel industry earned him millions and he, in turn, made great contributions to social causes such as public libraries, education and international peace. "Andrew Carnegie was the pioneering tycoon of the Age of Steel" (Let's Talk Business Network 2002). His steel empire produced the raw materials that built the physical infrastructure of the United States. He was a catalyst in America's participation in the Industrial Revolution, as he produced the steel to make machinery and transportation possible throughout the nation. In his later life, he began to shift from a focus on industrialism to a more philanthropic view on life. Carnegie became the world's benefactor to education, as he is responsible for the construction and donation of approximately 2,509 public libraries in the United States, Europe and around the world (Ibid.). Historic Roots
Andrew Carnegie was born November 25, 1835, in Dunfermline, Scotland. In this area of Scotland, most residents earned a livelihood through the craft of linen weaving. Carnegie was expected to follow in the footsteps of his family and become a weaver also. As a boy, however, Andrew was educated on the history of the land of Scotland, the plays of Shakespeare, the poetry of Robert Burns, the United States and its heroes, and a radical view of politics.