The Development of American Business and Economics: Industrial Capitalism, Big Business, and Society

The economic development and growth of America was dynamic and unique from that of any European nation. Founded under the tenets of mercantilism, colonists soon rejected economic theories of limited growth and finite wealth for a form of capitalism. Characterized in the early national phase by small shop-based manufacturing and the yeoman farmer, by the late Nineteenth century America had developed into the world\u27s leading manufacturer and was an unmatched economic power. Economic development in America was the result of the creation of nationwide markets for similar goods and distribution capabilities that accompanied increased efficiency and proliferation of large-scale manufacturers. However, the rise of big business and industrial capitalism that favored unchecked and limitless growth in a form of economic Darwinism created social distinctions between labor and capital that had a destructive impact on American society and the plight of the farmer and factory worker. Economic development in America was not without its costs in the Nineteenth century, marking a fundamental shift in the order of society and politics