They Made America From the Steam Engine to the Seach Engine: Two Centuries of Innovators

by Buckland, Gail; Evans, Harold; Lefer, David

• ISBN13: 9780316277662
• ISBN10: 0316277665
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-10-12
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

Summary

An illustrated history of American innovators--some well known, some unknown, and all fascinating-- by the author of the bestselling The American Century.

Author Biography

Gail Buckland is a historian of photography and the author of numerous books. She is currently a Professor of the History of Photography at the Cooper Union in New York City. David Lefer has worked as an investigative reporter at numerous newspapers, including the New York Daily News and Newsday. Harold Evans is the author of the New York Times bestseller The American Century. He was the founding editor of Cond Nast Traveler, editorial director of U.S. News & World Report, and president and publisher of Random House, where he published a record number of bestsellers. He was editor of the London Sunday Times and ofThe Times, and his account of those years, Good Times, Bad Times, was a #1 bestseller in Britain. He lives in New York.

Table of Contents

America's Genius for Innovation	p. 10
Pathfinders to a New Civilization	p. 16
The Heroes Who Gotamerica going	p. 18
First steamboat	p. 20
Successful steamboat services	p. 26
High-pressure steam engine	p. 36
Freed the waterways	p. 42
Liberating business	p. 46
The cotton gin to the machine age	p. 48
Dressing America	p. 56
The Lowell girls	p. 57
A mass market	p. 58
The telegraph	p. 70
American big business	p. 78
First successful American multinational	p. 84
Vulcanized rubber	p. 92
Albert Augustus Pope: Democracy on Wheels
Drilling for oil	p. 102
Blue jeans	p. 108
The safety elevator	p. 114
Credit rating	p. 118
Transcontinental railway	p. 126
The Big Four: Collis Potter Huntington, Leland Stanford, Charles Crocker, Mark Hopkins
America Takes Off	p. 136
Adventurous Men Unite a Continent	p. 138
Inventors	p. 150
Science of innovation	p. 151
Plastic	p. 172
Wings	p. 180
Gas mask	p. 212
Modern radio	p. 216
Reginald Aubrey Fessenden, Lee de Forest, Michael Pupin
Democratizers	p. 234
The people's car	p. 235
George Selden's patent	p. 248
The Kodak	p. 250
Self-made American businesswoman	p. 254
The people's banker	p. 258
Retail franchise network	p. 276
Chance	p. 278
Jet age	p. 284
Donald Calvin Burr: The People Express Pioneer
Venture capital	p. 302
Empire Builders	p. 308
Maidenform Bra tycoon	p. 309
The Blow Against the Corset: Caresse Crosby
Cheap electricity for all	p. 318
Television	p. 334
Entertainment empire	p. 342
Weight Watchers clubs	p. 354
IBM	p. 356
Herman Hollerith, John Patterson
Mainframe computers	p. 366
Ken Olsen: Minicomputers
Cosmetics company	p. 378
Containers, luxury travel	p. 380
Jim Sherwood
Polaroid	p. 384
Barbie	p. 388
The Digital Age	p. 394
The Electronic Elves of Silicon Valley	p. 396
PC software	p. 402
Bill Gates, Steve Jobs
Biotech industry	p. 420
CNN, 24-hour electronic news	p. 432
Sesame Street	p. 440
MRI scanner	p. 442
Marketing maestro of hip-hop	p. 452
eBay	p. 456
Google	p. 458
Ten Lessons	p. 465
Innovators Gallery	p. 467
Selected Bibliography	p. 473
Index	p. 482
Illustration Credits	p. 494
Biographies	p. 496
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