Andrew Carnegie

Born in Dunfermline, Scotland, in 1835, he moved to the United States with his family as a boy and began working at a young age. He built his career in the railroad business before creating a steel empire that made him one of the richest men of his era.

He is closely associated with the rapid growth of the American steel industry in the late nineteenth century. After selling Carnegie Steel in 1901, he turned increasingly toward philanthropy and gave away large sums to support public libraries, universities, scientific research, and peace efforts.

He died in 1919, but his name still lives on through institutions such as Carnegie libraries and Carnegie Mellon University. For readers today, he remains a striking figure: a self-made businessman whose success and generosity sit alongside debates about labor, power, and the costs of industrial growth.