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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 on a well drilled especially to produce oil, at a site on Oil Creek near Titusville, Pennsylvania. -
Rockefeller founds Standard Oil
On May 15, 1911, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of Standard Oil Company, ruling it was in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The Ohio businessman John D. Rockefeller entered the oil industry in the 1860s and in 1870, and founded Standard Oil with some other business partners. -
The first transcontinental railroad in the United States.
On May 10, 1869, a golden spike was driven at Promontory, Utah, signaling the completion of the first transcontinental railroad in the United States. The transcontinental railroad had long been a dream for people living in the American West. -
Carnegie Steel Company is formed
Carnegie began the construction of his first steel mill, the Edgar Thomson Steel Works in 1872 at Braddock, Pennsylvania.[1] The Thomson Steel Works began producing rails in 1874.[2] By a combination of low wages, efficient technology infrastructure investment and an efficient organisation, the mill produced cheap steel, which sold for a large profit in the growing markets of industrial development. -
First electric trolley line, Richmond, VA
The Richmond Union Passenger Railway, in Richmond, Virginia, was the first practical electric trolley (tram) system, and set the pattern for most subsequent electric trolley systems around the world. It is an IEEE milestone in engineering. The Richmond system was not the first attempt to operate an electric trolley. -
Bell patents telephone
1876: Bell Patents the Telephone. American inventor Alexander Graham Bell tested his telephone in 1876, calling his assistant to say "Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you." On March 7, 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for the telephone. -
First telephone on White House
On this day in 1877, President Rutherford B. Hayes has the White House's first telephone installed in the mansion s telegraph room. President Hayes embraced the new technology, though he rarely received phone calls. -
Edison perfects incandescent light bulb
Thomas Edison perfects the first commercially practical incandescent light bulb. Using a filament of carbonized cotton thread, his first attempt at this design results in a bulb that lasts about 13.5 hours before burning out. He later extends the life of the bulb to 40 hours. -
Railroads set up standard time zones
Operators of the new railroad lines needed a new time plan that would offer a uniform train schedule for departures and arrivals. Four standard time zones for the continental United States were introduced on November 18, 1883. -
Sherman Antitrust Act is passed
Approved July 2, 1890, The Sherman Anti-Trust Act was the first Federal act that outlawed monopolistic business practices. The Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 was the first measure passed by the U.S. Congress to prohibit trusts. -
J.P. Morgan forms U.S. Steel
United States Steel Corporation, leading U.S. producer of steel and related products, founded in 1901. At the beginning of the 20th century, a number of businessmen were involved in the formation of United States Steel Corporation, including Andrew Carnegie, Elbert H. Gary, Charles M. Schwab, and J.P. Morgan.
