Abstract
The United States acquired many of its modern characteristics during the 19th century. Among these crucial changes was the shift from an agricultural economy to a position of industrial leader in only a few decades. This transformation is clearly illustrated by Jeremy Atack and Peter Passell in their book A New Economic View of American History: "until the 1880s, agriculture was the chief source of wealth in America. By 1890, the value of manufactures was three times that of agricultural products". The late 19th and early 20th century, witnessed the creation of real industrial giants, most of which still exist today: Coca Cola, Heinz, Ford Motor Company, and General Motors are only a few examples of such success stories which today provide a model for the rest of the world. What were the causes of such a sudden transformation in the economic structure? How did the US gain industrial leadership within the course of a century? To answer these questions, we will first focus on technological changes and innovations and discover that they played a major role in this transformation. We will then try to understand how the development of modern management techniques helped American companies become world leaders. Finally, we will show that the movement of concentration which started at that time probably helped many firms obtain a position of leader in their industry.
