American Legends

*Includes pictures *Includes Carnegie's own quotes about his life and career *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading *Includes a table of contents "While the law of competition] may be sometimes hard for the individual, it is best for the race, because it insures the survival of the fittest in every department. We accept and welcome, therefore, as conditions to which we must accommodate ourselves, great inequality of environment, the concentration of business, industrial and commercial, in the hands of the few, and the law of competition between these, as being not only beneficial, but essential for the future progress of the race." - Andrew Carnegie A lot of ink has been spilled covering the lives of history's most influential figures, but how much of the forest is lost for the trees? In Charles River Editors' American Legends series, readers can get caught up to speed on the lives of America's most important men and women in the time it takes to finish a commute, while learning interesting facts long forgotten or never known. The Gilded Age and the dawn of the 20th century are often remembered as an era full of monopolies, trusts, and economic giants in heavy industries like oil and steel. Men like John Rockefeller built empires and financiers like J.P. Morgan merged and consolidated them. The era also made names like Astor, Cooke, and Vanderbilt instantly recognizable across the globe. Over time, the unfathomable wealth generated by the businesses made the individuals on top incredibly rich, and that in turn led to immense criticism and an infamous epithet used to rail against them: robber barons. Dozens of these men would be pilloried as "robber barons," but few of them were as wealthy or influential as Andrew Carnegie, who built America's foremost steel empire. Ironically, Carnegie epitomized the American Dream, migrating with his poor family to America in the mid-19th century and rising to the top of the business world in his adopted country. A prodigious writer in addition to his keen sense of business, Carnegie was one of the most outspoken champions of capitalism at a time when there was pushback among lower social classes who witnessed the great disparities in wealth; as he once put it, "Upon the sacredness of property civilization itself depends-the right of the laborer to his hundred dollars in the savings bank, and equally the legal right of the millionaire to his millions." In a similar vein, he said, "Those who would administer wisely must, indeed, be wise, for one of the serious obstacles to the improvement of our race is indiscriminate charity." While Carnegie's rise and wealth didn't necessarily separate him from other 19th century business magnates, it was in the field of philanthropy that he left his most unique mark, even as it paved the way for others to follow his lead. One of his most famous quotes was that "the man who dies thus rich dies disgraced," and for the last 15 years of his life, he contributed to countless causes, including the Carnegie library, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Carnegie Institution for Science, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Carnegie United Kingdom Trust, Carnegie Hero Fund, Carnegie Mellon University and Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh. Carnegie put it succinctly, "Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community." American Legends: The Life of Andrew Carnegie examines the life and career of America's most famous entrepreneurs. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about Carnegie like never before, in no time at all.