William Henry Vanderbilt: Robber Baron or Captain of Industry?
Introduction:
During a class lecture on robber barons and captains of industry, our class learned about Cornelius Vanderbilt. However, as the video progressed an interesting fact was mentioned. Cornelius Vanderbilt’s son, William Henry, was able to double the fortune his father had amassed, a significant amount in itself. Hence, the purpose of this blogpost is to determine whether or not William Henry was a robber baron or captain of industry when creating this incredibly large fortune.
Early Life:
William Henry was born in the springtime of 1821, in New Jersey. He was one of the many children produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt, and his wife, Sophia Johnson. Towards the 1840s, William Henry started taking an interest in the Long Island Rail Road, which had Cornelius on the Board of Directors.
William Henry was born in the springtime of 1821, in New Jersey. He was one of the many children produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt, and his wife, Sophia Johnson. Towards the 1840s, William Henry started taking an interest in the Long Island Rail Road, which had Cornelius on the Board of Directors.
Long Island Rail Road Years:
William Henry soon proved his worth and was able to become a major executive at the Long Island Rail Road. However, when his father, Cornelius, died in 1877, William Henry had inherited the entire Vanderbilt industry. William continued his work in the railroad company, helped many major transportation projects in New York flourish, and was able to control numerous railroad companies, which had a direct influence on major cities, such as Chicago and Indianapolis.
William Henry soon proved his worth and was able to become a major executive at the Long Island Rail Road. However, when his father, Cornelius, died in 1877, William Henry had inherited the entire Vanderbilt industry. William continued his work in the railroad company, helped many major transportation projects in New York flourish, and was able to control numerous railroad companies, which had a direct influence on major cities, such as Chicago and Indianapolis.
Robber Baron Qualities:
William Henry Vanderbilt, like many contemporaries at the time who were in charge of large businesses, did not pay his workers well, made them work long hours, and did not care for the laboring conditions. Additionally, he had hundreds of dissatisfied workers who frequently striked on railways. Vanderbilt also used his power and influence to get Congressmen to not pass certain legislation, and introduce others that would benefit him, and other powerful wealthy capitalists. These actions were often at the expense of the poorer classes. It was even said that William Henry said that, “The public be damned!” when confronted about his influence over politicians and legislation.
Captain of Industry Qualities:
Despite some of his more unscrupulous actions, William Henry had skill as an entrepreneur. In 1857, he managed to put Staten Island Railroad back into business, and made it a profitable venture. In 1864, he became a Vice President at New York and Harlem Railroad, and the Hudson River Railroad. He was able to use company stocks and techniques such as vertical combination to control a vast portion of the railroad industry, and become very successful at it, as well. An interesting fact about William Henry is that unlike his father, he was not very philanthropic, and only gave small donations to the now titled Vanderbilt University. As stated previously, William Henry managed to increase his family wealth by two times as much, making the total Vanderbilt fortune a value of 200 million.
Conclusion:
William Henry, despite his amazing success in the railroad industry, is believed to be a robber baron. However, he still did do positive things in the business industry, helping shape the American economy today.
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I really like how you pulled a question you had on class and expanded on it, and it was really helpful to me because I was wondering about William Vanderbilt too. I think it's interesting that William Henry became a major executive at his father's company, something that is blatant nepotism. Given that the times had a lot of corruption, do you think William Henry was given the job out of nepotism or out of merit?
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good post. I find Historically controversial figures very interesting because they pose a debate but also raise a point that you can't ever define a person as simply "good" or "bad". I had a post similar to yours examining the ethics of John Rockefeller, and like Vanderbilt he has done both good and bad actions, thus making his legacy disputed by many.
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