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First oil well is drilled, Pennsylvania
On August 28, 1859, George Bissell and Edwin L. Drake made the first successful use of a drilling rig. -
Transcontinental railroad is completed
On May 10, 1869, a golden spike was driven at Promontory, Utah, signaling the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in the United States. -
Rockefeller founds Standard Oil
The Ohio businessman John D. Rockefeller entered the oil industry in the 1870's, and founded Standard Oil with some other business partners. -
Bell patents telephone
On March 7, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for the telephone; three days later, he and associate Thomas Watson successfully tested their invention. -
First telephone on White House
May 10, 1877, President Rutherford B. Hayes has the White House's first telephone installed in the mansion s telegraph room. -
Edison perfects incandescent light bulb
Edison made the first public demonstration of his incandescent light bulb on December 31, 1879, in Menlo Park -
Railroads set up standard time zones
It was inaugurated on Sunday, November 18, 1883, also called "The Day of Two Noons", when each railroad station clock was reset as standard-time noon was reached within each time zone. -
First electric trolley line, Richmond, VA
The Richmond Union Passenger Railway, in Richmond, Virginia, was the first practical electric trolley system, and set the pattern for most subsequent electric trolley systems around the world. -
Sherman Antitrust Act is passed
The Sherman Antitrust Act is a landmark federal statute in the history of United States antitrust law passed by Congress in 1890 under the presidency of Benjamin Harrison. -
Carnegie Steel Company is formed
Carnegie Steel Company was a steel producing company created by Andrew Carnegie, in order to manage businesses at steel mills in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area in the late 19th century. -
J.P. Morgan forms U.S. Steel
Morgan and attorney Elbert H. Gary founded U.S. Steel on March 2, 1901 by combining Andrew Carnegie's Carnegie Steel Company with Gary's Federal Steel Company and William Henry "Judge" Moore's National Steel Company for $492 million.
