Who had the monopoly in the railroad industry?

Answer 1

The early Nineteenth Century was a time of Westward expansion and Westward development. Thousands of prospectors and hopeful American businessmen flocked to the frontier with the intent of making their fortunes in this previously untouched area. It was not until the development of the railroads, however, that Westward expansion reached its furious pace. Once this new form of transportation was in place, it was no longer necessary for every settlement to be self-sufficient: It could simply "import" whatever it needed via the rail. This interconnectedness was extremely attractive to businessmen, who saw the opportunity to increase their wealth by exploiting the untapped resources of the West. The developing railroads rapidly became huge businesses, imperative to the success of American enterprise. The material needs of the railroads helped create several other big industries, such as iron, steel, copper, glass, machine tools, and oil. Soon, Wall Street had to be reorganized into a national money market, capable of handling the enormous capital that was needed to build and operate the railroads. The result was a revolution in the organization and scale of enterprise: "Big business reached greater markets than were ever conceived of before and could benefit from the ability to raise vast amounts of capital that made possible the cost economies of large-scale production" (Chalmers). The need for all of these industries to stay successful was worrisome for railroad owners. To avoid the loss of production in any of these areas, large corporations attempted to stabilize their situations by pooling markets and centralizing management. By combining all of the fields into one conglomeration, the railroads had a new power, as they acquired control of many facets of the new economy. This body now had the ability to "squeeze out competitors, force down prices paid for labor and raw materials, charge customers moreÉ and get special favors and treatments from National and State government" (Chalmers). The railroads had all the power, because they controlled all the prices. Since the new residents of the West could not survive without the use of the railroads, they were forced to pay whatever rates the raildroad companies set. Malik Davis yo http://cse.stanford.edu/classes/cs201/Projects/corporate-monopolies/development_rrmon.html

Answer 2

Cornelius Vanderbilt had a monopoly in railroad industry.