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A man of Scotland, a distinguished citizen of the United States, and
a philanthropist devoted to the betterment of the world around him,
Andrew Carnegie became famous at the turn of the twentieth century and
became a real life rags to riches story.
Born in Dunfermline, Scotland, on November 25, 1835, Andrew Carnegie
entered the world in poverty. The son of a hand weaver, Carnegie
received his only formal education during the short time between his
birth and his move to the United States. When steam machinery for
weaving came into use, Carnegie’s father sold his looms and household
goods, sailing to America with his wife and two sons. At this time,
Andrew was twelve, and his brother, Thomas, was five. Arriving into New
York on August 14, 1848, aboard the Wiscasset from Glasgow, the
Carnegies wasted little time settling in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania,
a suburb of Pittsburgh, where relatives already existed and were there
to provide help. Allegheny City provided Carnegie’s first job, as a
bobbin boy in a cotton factory, working for $1.20 a week. His father
also worked there while his mother bound shoes at home, making a
miniscule amount of money. Although the Carnegies lacked in money, they
abounded in ideals and training for their children. At age 15, Carnegie
became a telegraph messenger boy in Pittsburgh. He learned to send and
decipher telegraphic messages and became a telegraph operator at the
age of 17. Carnegie’s next job was as a railroad clerk, working for the
Pennsylvania Railroad. He worked his way up the ladder, through his
dedication and honest desire to succeed, to become train dispatcher and
then division manager. At this time, young Carnegie, age 24, had
already made some small investments that laid the foundations of his
what would be tremendous fortune. One of these investments was the
purchase of stock in the Woodruff Sleeping Car Company.
In 1864, Carnegie entered the iron business, but did not begin to
make steel until years later. In 1873, he built the Edgar Thomson works
in Braddock, Pennsylvania, to make Bessemer steel. He established many
other steel plants, and in 1892, he merged all of his interests into
the Carnegie Steel Company. This act from Carnegie is fitting with one
of his most famous quotations, “Put all of your eggs in one basket, and
then watch that basket.” This firm became one of the greatest
industrial enterprises in America. Carnegie later sold it to J.P.
Morgan’s United States Steel Corporation in 1901 for $400 million,
which would be a little over $4 billion today!
After retiring, Carnegie’s fortune was estimated to be as large as
half a billion dollars. From that time on, with the philosophy that the
rich have a moral obligation to give away their money, he devoted
himself to philanthropy. Although ironic, this man of great fortune
strongly believed in the merits of poverty for the development of
character and work ethic, and determined that wealthy men should not
leave their fortunes to their children, but should give it away,
claiming “The man who dies thus rich, dies disgraced.” The picture of
community service, Carnegie is quoted as saying, “Pittsburgh entered
the core of my heart when I was a boy, and cannot be torn out. I can
never be one hair’s breadth less loyal to her, or less anxious to help
her in any way, than I have been since I could help anything. My
treasure is still with you, and how best to serve Pittsburgh is the
question which occurs to me almost every day of my life."
Colonel James Anderson, who Carnegie believes to be his childhood
benefactor, established a public library in his hometown of Allegheny
City. This library was the first opportunity for Carnegie to take
advantage of free information, and he developed a vast interest for
knowledge, checking out at least one book a week, and developing
himself as a young boy. With Colonel Anderson’s generous contribution
to his society molding Carnegie’s childhood, and his beliefs on how
large fortunes can be used for the betterment of society, it becomes
obvious that Carnegie would focus particularly on promoting education,
establishing 2,811 free libraries in all. Of these, 1,946 were located
in the United States with at least one in every state except Rhode
Island. Also, 660 were founded in Britain and Ireland, 156 in Canada,
and a handful of libraries were also scattered in New Zealand, the West
Indies, and even Fiji. Caregie’s contributions gave existence to his
dream of establishing chances of self-education in a time when public
libraries were scarce.
Not only did he give large amounts of money to libraries, but also
to other philanthropic organizations, establishing some of his own. The
Carnegie Corporation of New York was established for “the advancement
and diffusion of knowledge and understanding.” The $135 million donated
by Carnegie was used in grants to colleges, universities, and other
educational institutions. Money also went to organizations that conduct
basic research and experimental programs dealing with education and
public affairs. The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace was
founded to promote international peace and understanding, conducting
programs of research, discussion, publication, and education in the
international affairs and United States foreign policy. Currently the
program focuses on issues such as arms control, international law, and
relations between the United States and foreign countries. It publishes
the quarterly journal, Foreign Policy, and has offices in New York City
and Washington, D.C. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of
Teaching promotes the dignity in the teaching profession and the cause
of higher education. Chartered by Carnegie in 1905 with $15 million,
the foundation established the Teachers Insurance and Annuity
Association in 1918, and currently provides retirement pensions for
teachers of colleges, technical schools, and universities in the United
States and Canada. Their studies have had much influence on American
higher education. Also benefiting from Carnegie’s charity include
various Carnegie museums of history, science, and art, Carnegie Hall in
New York, and other public spirited organizations.
Before 1919, when Carnegie died, he had given away $350,695,653, and
at his death, the last $30 million was likewise given away to
foundations, charities, and pensioners. He left a mark on society not
only through his enormous monetary provisions, but also with his own
literature. Carnegie loved to promote his ideas and opinions in print,
and has written many works outlining these philosophies, including
Triumphant Democracy (1886), The Gospel of Wealth (1900), The Empire of
Business (1902), Problems of Today (1908), and an Autobiography (1920)
(Mitzen 182).
Although Carnegie only stood somewhere between 5’2” and 5’6”, he
“had to be a great, tough, disciplined giant of a man.” His commitment
to others is not only seen through his many munificent works, but in
the way he lived, including his tombstone in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery
of North Tarrytown, New York, where the epitaph reads, “Here lies a man
who was able to surround himself with men far cleverer than himself."
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