Overview
The Gilded Age surveys America's rapid economic, social, demographic, and political changes from the end of the Civil War to the dawn of the twentieth century. In doing so, it will highlight the contributions of men and women closely associated with this turbulent era in American history, from industrial titans like Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller to reformers and activists such as Samuel Gompers and Ida B. Wells-Barnett. The volume also explains how various hallmarks of this era -- including rapid industrialization and urbanization, the economic divide between rich and poor, political corruption and reform, and social and religious activism -- laid the groundwork for the United States we live in today.