JP Morgan Captain of Industry Before his death in 1913, J.P.

Morgan proved to be the most powerful and influential financier in America. By the time of his death, he did more good for the community than bad while rising to the greatest heights of wealth. J.P. Morgan is a Captain of Industry because instead of manipulating the community into aiding his success, he rose in power and wealth by investing in the community, which led to an increase of jobs. Morgan also aided the success of America by bailing out the U.S. government in financial downfall. J.P. Morgan began to prove his dominance through his process of buying and starting new businesses. This creation of jobs provided the American community with opportunities that were never available before. America was finally living the American Dream. Citizens and immigrants could more easily find work with descent pay under these businesses that Morgan made available. An example of Morgans process was the merging of Edison General Electric and Thomson-Houston Electric Company to create General Electric. Another example is when he merged his Federal Steel Company with the Carnegie Steel Company and many other steel and iron businesses, including the Wire Company and Consolidated Steel, to create the United States Steel Corporation. By binding common businesses together, Morgan was creating large corporations that allowed for more jobs. Although he was creating monopolies, his big and powerful corporations were believed to be necessary for a thriving economy. People rely on one large corporation for a service because they prove reliable.

J.P. Morgan also proved his Captain of Industry title by saving the country when its gold reserves depleted and evaporated. When American creditors made the wrong decision to take three hundred million dollars worth of American securities and transfer gold abroad, America experienced a depletion of its dollar and J.P. Morgan was there to pull it up from downfall. Instead of letting America fall into debt, Morgan and a couple of his fellow financiers replenished the Treasurys gold stocks. Although he was very rich and powerful, J.P. Morgan used his wealthy advantages to aid his government and community to boost the economy and earn profit. J.P. Morgan was among many other influential wealthy men that lived during that time. Many of them were also Captains of Industry, like Andrew Carnegie, who rose from rags to riches and gave away more than $350 million by the time of his death. There were also wealthy and influential men during this time that manipulated the community and gained wealth in sly ways, known as robber barons, such as John D. Rockefeller. Rockefeller created powerful monopolies that dominated businesses with both horizontal and vertical integration. He eliminated competition and instead of creating more jobs, he took jobs away. He bought and humiliated his competition until he became the biggest and baddest to make his large amounts of wealth. On the contrary, J.P. Morgan benefited his community through his wealth and played his role as a Captain of Industry by investing in the community and financially aiding the government in its 1890s crisis.