The ENTIRE History of Standard Oil in 18 Minutes

In 1911, the U.S. Supreme Court broke up the most powerful company on Earth. Standard Oil had controlled around 90 percent of all the oil refined in America. But instead of losing everything, its owner became richer than ever, worth almost 900 million dollars, about two percent of the entire American economy. How did that happen? It starts with a boy whose father was a traveling con man. This documentary explores the complete history of Standard Oil and John D. Rockefeller, from his first job as a bookkeeper in Cleveland in 1855 and the small notebook he called Ledger A, to the Pennsylvania oil rush, the refinery auction that launched his career, and the famous 39 drops of solder. Discover the secret railroad rebates, the South Improvement Company, the Cleveland Massacre in which Rockefeller bought 22 of his 26 competitors in six weeks, the Standard Oil Trust, and how Thomas Edison’s light bulb almost killed the kerosene business before the automobile saved it. From Ida Tarbell’s investigation and the Sherman Antitrust Act to the 1911 breakup into 34 companies that became Exxon, Mobil, Chevron, Amoco and more, and Rockefeller’s second life as one of history’s biggest philanthropists, this is the full story of the greatest monopoly in American history. Based on historical records, biographies, court documents and historical sources. Illustrations are artistic recreations. #GiantsInMinutes #StandardOil #Rockefeller #OilHistory #Monopoly #BusinessHistory #Documentary #AmericanHistory #Exxon #GildedAge