HIST 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Mass Production, Nordstrom, Montgomery Ward
Document Summary
Speed was the key to success in business enterprise; this ideal was present in the creation of corporations. Political economy- tariffs, hard money, unregulated market (republican party) Technological and managerial innovation- business historian alfred chandler"s the "visible hand" Railroads were the first real taste of business, and began to foreshadow how business would boom in the future. Accidents were common, details were vitally important when planning and organizing how goods would be sent/processed, and the business as a whole needed control. Army of clerks was a managerial group helping maintain the flow. Laissez faire- william graham sumner- consolidation was natural, expected, and necessary. The production was not a problem at a time, but rather the distribution. While companies were able to make plenty of whatever they were looking to sell, they were not able to distribute them to the customers without the presence of the railroads.
