The History of the Standard Oil Company

The classic of muckraking journalism that exposed the inner workings of a Gilded Age business empire—with a new introduction by Elizabeth Catte.

Cleveland oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller formed the Standard Oil Company of Ohio in 1870. Over the next four decades, he turned the business into a behemoth, systematically driving his competitors out of business or buying them outright. His vast fortune made him one of the nation’s most powerful men.

But his private empire was nearly undone by the tireless journalism of a single, determined woman, Ida Tarbell. Originally published in 1904, The History of the Standard Oil Company exposed Rockefeller’s monopolistic tactics, eventually resulting in the company’s dismantling in 1911. More than simply a monumental piece of reporting; it is a deft, engrossing portrait of business in America—both its virtues and excesses.