With the end of the Civil War, American industry expanded and millions of people left their farms to work in mines and factories.
The federal government gave grants to railroad companies to encourage railroad construction. Transcontinental railroads increased industrialization by bringing settlers and miners to the West and moving resources to the factories in the East.
James J. Hill built the Great Northern Railroad without any federal land grants or subsidies. It became the most successful transcontinental railroad and the only one not to go bankrupt. By 1900 big business dominated the economy of the United States.
To learn more, see this Industrialization (1865-1901) study guide (Microsoft Word 97 - 2003 Document) provided by Roswell Independent School District.
Tip! HistoryNewsNetwork.org shares Five Things Historians and Teachers Need to Do to Make History Fun.