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The First Oil Well Drilled
Long before Americans knew of the oil properties in Pennsylvania, Native Americans kept this hidden. It had been reported that early European explorers found seeps of oil and natural gases in the area. Scientists had the oil to convert crude oil into kerosene. They started drilling in Titusville, Pennsylvania. -
The Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad
By the time of May 10, 1869, the transcontinental railroad was completed. This took about six years to build covering hundreds of miles of the United States. This sparked transportation and industry due to the much faster travel time. -
Rockefeller found Standard Oil
In the 1860s and 1870s, Rockefeller found himself in the oil industry with some other business partners. He started by buying out small oil businesses to build his empire and get rid of the competition. Standard oil later controlled about 90 percent of the country’s oil production. -
Bell Patents Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell received the patent to invent the telephone on March 7, 1876. When created, the telephone changed the way the country communicated with one another. This allowed people to instantly communicate with each other over long distances. After he died, the Bell Telephone Company became AT&T and is still operating today. -
The First Phone Installed in White House
In 1877, former President Rutherford B. Hayes had the first telephone installed in the White House. The only line that could communicate with the White House at the time was the Treasury Department. This was the first item of new technology implanted in the White House. -
Edison Perfects Incandescent Light Bulbs
Before Edison perfected the incandescent light bulb, he tested about 3,000 different models. In November 1879, Edison finally received a patent to start his new light bulb. Edison and his team later realized that a carbonized bamboo filament could burn for more than 1,200 hours. This was how he first perfected his incandescent light bulbs. -
Railroads Set Up Standard Time Zones
In 1883, railroads began using four continental time zones to end the confusion of different local time zones. North American railroad companies did not feel the need to go to the federal government to set time zones. They took it into their owns hands to divide the country into four different time zones. These are still very similar to the time zones we have today. -
The First Electric Trolly Line
Franklin Julian Sprague came from New York City to help create a sort of transportation system in Richmond, Virginia. He and his team built four-wheeled cars connected to an overhead wire called a troller. Thus giving the name “trolleys”. -
Sherman Antitrust Act is Passed
The Sherman Antitrust Act was passed on July 2nd, 1890. This was the first federal act that outlawed monopolistic businesses. Meaning that one person could not have dominant control over a business. -
Carnegie's Steel Company is Formed
Andrew Carnegie started his ventures into the industry by investing in major companies of oil and iron. By the 1870s he entered the steel business and within the next two decades, became a dominant force over all other steel companies. -
JP Morgan Forms U.S. Steel
With the help of J.P. Morgan, the U.S. steel business was formed. This included; National Steel, National Tube, American Steel and Wire, American Steel Hoop, American Sheet Steel, and American Tinplate. This was the first billion-dollar corporation in American History.