Andrew Carnegie Paperback – October 30, 2007

801 pages of biography. This is what David Nasaw has produced--a massive biography of Andrew Carnegie. Well known as a philanthropist, he gave away much of his fortune. For instance, one accounting notes the following (page 801): ". . .at the time of his death, Carnegie had given away more than $350 million (in the tens of billions today). There remained but $20 million of stocks and bonds. . . . In the seventh paragraph of his last will and testament, Carnegie directed that it be bequeathed, in its entirety, to the Carnegie Corporation. And with this he accomplished the final, and to his mind, the most important goal he had set himself." In essence, he had given his entire fortune away.

This book provides cradle to grave coverage of Carnegie, beginning with his origins in Scotland. Early on, the family moved to the United States, settling in the Pittsburgh area. Carnegie's first job was in a cotton mill when he was thirteen. He was close to his mother then and throughout his life. He quickly moved to a position as a messenger with a telegraph company and then, in a stroke of fortune, become a telegraph operator in a company. Here, he began an association at a young age with Thomas Scott and J. Edgar Thomson of the Pennsylvania Railroad. By 17, he was working for the Pennsylvania Railroad and on his way.

The volume notes his small stature (barely five feet tall), but by 24, he was superintendent of the Pittsburgh Division of the rail company. Early on, he began to develop "rules for business" (e.g., see page 76). He was in a position to get involved over time with an oil company, with bridge building, with rail, coal, a bank, a grain elevator. And, of course, with iron and then steel. As he became successful, he and his mother enjoyed visiting the old family home in Scotland, Dunfermline.

He married quite late in life (after 50), but appears to have had a happy marriage; he also became a father later in life and appears to have done well in that role. By that time, he had withdrawn some from day to day running of his endeavors and spent much more time in New York and abroad than in Pittsburgh.

The book illustrates the ambitions of Carnegie to be more than an industrial baron. He wrote books, he hobnobbed with political leaders, authors, and scientists. He strove to be recognized as more than a wealthy individual. Nonetheless, he was a hard businessman. At one point, he took pride in developing "win-win" tactics with his employees; by the time of the Homestead strike, he had obviously moved in a different direction, as he supported a touch, hard-nosed attack on unions and employees.

Among his goals developed in the latter part of the 19th Century--to give away his rapidly developing fortune. He donated for development of libraries, he created an organization devoted to peace, he funded an organization aimed at advancing the sciences, he provided support for faculty and students at colleges, he endowed the Carnegie Corporation, he supported music, and so on.

In the end, this book, although very long, is well written, so that the pages fly by. Nasaw does a fair job portraying Carnegie, warts and all. He notes his tough stance against his own workers (after earlier having been praised as a friend of labor), his sometimes ostentatious efforts to become known as a man of letters, his desire to give world leaders a piece of his mind (irritating people like Teddy Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson in the process). In the end, despite his diminutive stature, he was a giant in American history.

This biography of Andrew Carnegie by David Nasaw I found as intriguing as any biography I have read about the Robber Barons of the Gilded Age. The question that, I think, you must first ask yourself is "Who was Andrew Carnegie?". That is not easy to do - you encounter a very complex man whose life experiences molded a person that at times defies definition. It is hard for me to comprehend the massive wealth that he was able to accumulate. Wealth that continued to grow after he retired and then even more when Carnegie Steel was sold to the House of Morgan as it became US Steel. For me there was a dichotomy in A.C. as he was often called viewing him as business man then transformed into a philanthropist. His veracity can be questioned between what he did and then what he said about his business operations including his partners, employees and especially his competitors. He could be ruthless as well as being a kind friend. A.C. said that his success did not come from God or a Protestant Work Effort but simply being in the right place at the right time. He was also a man who made the decision to give away every penny he made before he died. A.C. did not believe in the concept of family wealth and inherited wealth. He saw a responsibility to give back providing for the general welfare of society. Yet, what he wanted to leave was not endowed social welfare programs but the means for individuals to improve their own lives. Andrew Carnegie is probably most famous for the number of public libraries he built across the country. He gave money to promote education and teaching - knowledge was the pathway to a better life. The diversification of his generosity can still be seen today. In the latter part of his life he became an advocate for world peace and the arbitration of differences to avoid violence and the useless loss of life. He invested large sums of money in foundations and organizations that failed to have the success he hoped to achieve. He lived through the destruction of World War I and the human cost of that war. He was not a perfect man though. He fell victim to his own bias and prejudice but I think he needs to be viewed in the context of his own time. He was not just a unique man for his time but a great man. It probably is not an overstatement to say for any time. I thought it was a great book.

It was very interesting to learn about Andrew Carnegie. He did a lot of good with the fortune that was made during his lifetime. There is still good that is being done because of it. I did not like the fact that he worked the labors so hard and did not let them have a good life while he was playing so much. But as the book says that was how business owner thought and treated labors at that time in history.
I felt the book could have been a little more condensed.

This is a monumental book. It is extremely well-written and about as complete a biography as could be written. David Nasaw had incredible access to Carngie's papers. However, at 800+ pages I thought it a bit repetitious. One of the reasons I wanted to read this book is that I once worked for a man whose father was, at one time, Carnegie's secretary and was responsible for the building of Lake Carnegie at Princeton University. I was curious to hear the story of how that came about, but there was no mention of the lake or the secretary. A bit disappointing, but I did learn a great deal of history and found the rags to riches story quite fascinating.