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Home Insurance Building
This 10 story building was built in Chicago and was considered the first skyscraper, as it was the first building to use structural steel in its frame. -
Carnegie Steel
The Carnegie Steel Corporation became the largest of its kind in the world. -
United States Steel
United States Steel was formed as the first billion dollar company. It was created from the consolidation of many companies, including Carnegie Steel, and was capitalized at about $1.4 billion. -
Peak of Mining Fatalities
3,242 miners died on the job, making 1907 the worst year for mining fatalities recorded in the United States. -
Assembly Line
Henry Ford opened his Model T car assembly line, speeding up production and necessitating more raw materials. -
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World War I
World War I increased production and employment in the United States, though not as drastically as World War II. -
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Great Depression
This economic recession made workers desperate for jobs, and industry continued to thrive, though to a lesser extent, despite the economy. Joining World War II in 1941, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, brought the United States out of the Great Depression by employing nearly every able-bodied American in either defense or the industry behind it. -
The Steel Mill
Thomas Hart Benton painted The Steel Mill, illustrating the harsh conditions that workers in steel mills had to deal with to keep up with the demand for steel, an important building material. -
Chrysler Building
The Chrysler Building was, on its completion, the tallest building in the world. It was surpassed, however, by the Empire State Building only 11 months later. It stands at 1,046 ft tall, and is still the tallest brick building in the world. -
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building, a 102-story skyscraper, was the tallest building in the world at the time of its construction, standing at 1,454 ft. It lost this rank in 1972, but remains one of the tallest in the United States. -
Death Underground
Coal fueled industry in America, and in the rest of the world. Hundreds of millions of tons of coal were mined in America in 1900 alone, and that number increased through the years of industrial advancement. However, coal mining was a dangerous job, and between 1,000 and 3,000 coal miners died on the job each year from 1900 to 1945. That number has fallen to around 20-50 each year with modern safety regulations and mining advance. -
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World War II
World War II increased production and employment, bringing the United States out of the Great Depression. -
Men of Steel
Samuel L. Margolies created Men of Steel, which illustrated the lack of safety regulation when it came to skyscraper workers.
