History of the Great American Fortunes, Vol. I

Gustavus MyersProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.8
Word count
508K words
Chapters
51

Tags

English Originals World HistoryFinance and Economics Business DecisionsEconomic HistoryWealth AccumulationFinancial Hot TopicsSocial CritiqueFamous FiguresWealth StoriesSocial Observation

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.History of the Great American Fortunes, Vol. I by Gustavus MyersAuthor: Myers, Gustavus, 1872-1942,Language: English, Class: HC: Social sciences: Economic history and conditions, Special topics, Release Date: Jan 13, 2010

Editor's review

This is Volume I of Gustavus Myers's History of the Great American Fortunes, a classic critical work in economic and social history. Tracing institutional and legal developments, the author examines how great fortunes were formed in early America, focusing on land speculation, monopoly charters, and political deals rather than attributing wealth simply to individual talent. Its value lies in offering a structural perspective that helps readers understand the origins of the nineteenth-century American economic order and remain cautious about "self-made" narratives. The writing is primarily narrative history with dense argumentation, organized by wealthy families and industries, making it a useful supplementary reader on American economic history, social criticism, and the ethics of wealth. It is best read alongside relevant historical background, tracking the three threads of people, industries, and policy to better appreciate the author's critical intent.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Start with the table of contents and introduction to identify the period and core themes covered in this volume, then move into the chapters.
  2. Keep pen and paper ready and take card-style notes on people, industries, and policy for easy cross-referencing.
  3. After each chapter, revisit the author's judgments on the sources of wealth, distinguishing factual statements from the author's evaluations.
  4. Read alongside a general survey of American economic history to fill in background, then return for a closer reading.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51

FAQ

Is this book about how individuals get rich? No. It is a work of economic history and social criticism that examines the institutional, legal, and political conditions behind the formation of great fortunes in early America, focusing on structural factors rather than personal finance techniques. It is not suitable for those seeking investment methods; for understanding the relationship between wealth and institutions, it offers a valuable perspective.
Can I understand it without a foundation in American history? You can, but it is difficult. The book involves many nineteenth-century figures, industries, and policy contexts, and without background you may get lost in historical detail. It is advisable to first acquire general knowledge of American economic history, or look up background as you read, before entering the main text.
Why read only Volume I? This volume is the first part of the whole work, examining early fortune formation by theme and by person, and it has a relatively complete line of argument on its own. Reading Volume I first lets you grasp the author's analytical framework and critical stance before deciding whether to continue with later volumes, which is a safer way in.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Gustavus Myers Author · American · 1872–1942

Gustavus Myers (1872–1942) was an American journalist and historian, born in Trenton, New Jersey, and long resident in New York. Through meticulous research he exposed the social costs behind the accumulation of wealth, and his representative works, History of the Great American Fortunes and The History of Tammany Hall, are regarded as important documents of the muckraking era; his other works include Great Fortunes from Railroads. His writing emphasizes the examination of historical sources and case-by-case tracing, focusing on capital concentration and the workings of political machines, and contributed to public debate during the American Progressive Era. He received a Guggenheim Award in 1941. Public information on his early life and education is limited.