USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -In the 19th century, a captain of industry was a business leader whose means of amassing a personal fortune contributed positively to the country in some way. This may have been through increased productivity, expansion of markets, providing more jobs, or acts of philanthropy.

Detailed explanation-2: -Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Henry Ford, and Andrew Carnegie would by today’s standards be measured in the hundreds of billions of dollars-far more than tech giants like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and even Jeff Bezos, the wealthiest individual in the world as of 2019.

Detailed explanation-3: -The practice of controlling an entire industry is known as having a monopoly over that industry. Four men in particular created monopolies and gained vast wealth during the Gilded Age: JP Morgan, Cornelius Vanderbilt, John D. Rockefeller, and Andrew Carnegie. JP Morgan was born John Pierpont Morgan on April 17, 1837.

Detailed explanation-4: -The men that used ingenious business methods to create monopolies and vast wealth were also known as Captains of Industry because they exhibited leadership in their field and commanded the respect of the business world. Often times these Captains of Industry gave back their communities by participating in philanthropy.