The Hour of Fate: Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, and the Battle to Transform American Capitalism
, subject: Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, Northern Securities, the 1902 coal strike, and the transformation of American capitalism, 2020
Roosevelt and Morgan fought over the Northern Securities antitrust case even as the 1902 coal strike forced them to cooperate.
About the book
Berfield, an investigative reporter at Bloomberg Businessweek, centers the book on the Northern Securities railroad trust that Morgan formed in 1901 and Roosevelt's administration challenged under the Sherman Antitrust Act. Around that case she sets the era's immigration, labor unrest, corporate ambition and demands for public accountability.
Why read it
Best if you want to see how Roosevelt and Morgan fought over Northern Securities while cooperating on the coal strike, or why Hill's railroad avoided the reorganizations that caught its rivals.
Key themes
- Fighting and cooperating at once
- Strength as protection from Morgan
Evidence and original sources
Sources: official Founders episodes — #142, #156, #169, #175, #213, #307, #371, #429
This record is supported by 13 public evidence rows linked to original Founders episodes.
- Teddy Roosevelt and J.P. Morgan — David introduces The Hour of Fate as this episode's central book and walks through its account of Roosevelt, Morgan, the Northern Securities antitrust case, and the 1902 coal strike.
- Theodore Roosevelt — David says he covered The Hour of Fate on Founders #142.
- David Ogilvy (The King of Madison Avenue) — David references his prior Founders episode on The Hour of Fate covering the J.P. Morgan/Teddy Roosevelt conflict.
- Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey — David identifies The Hour of Fate, Founders #142, as his prior full-length coverage of Roosevelt and J.P. Morgan.
- Michael Jordan: Driven From Within — David references a prior Founders episode covering The Hour of Fate, though he does not recall the exact episode number.
- The World's Great Family Dynasties: Rockefeller, Rothschild, Morgan, & Toyada — David says he covered The Hour of Fate previously on Founders episode 142.