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George Bissell and Edwin L. Drake succeed in drilling an oil rig in Oil Creek near Titusville, Pennsylvania.
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The presidents of Union Pacific and Central Pacific meet in Promontory, Utah.
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Standard Oil is founded by John D. Rockefeller and Henry Falger in Cleveland OH. It produced, transported, refined, and sold oil.
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Alexander Graham Bell is granted the patent for the telephone, and completes it three days later.
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President Rutherford B. Hayes has the White House's first telephone installed in the mansion's telegraph room. President Hayes embraced the new technology, though he rarely received phone calls.
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Thomas Edison perfects carbonized cotton filament light bulb
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Plans needed to determine universal departures for trains. Four standard time zones for the United States are introduced.
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Electric power is supplied through overhead trolley wires. Cars weigh 6,900 pounds, provided 40 seats, carried up to 100 passengers, and run at 7.5 miles per hour.
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The Sherman Anti-Trust Act is the first Federal act to outlaw monopolies and prohibit trusts.
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Carnegie Steel Company is founded in Pittsburgh, PA by Andrew Carnegie and several other close associates.
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Those involved in the creation of US Steel were Andrew Carnegie, Elbert H. Gary, Charles M. Schwab, and, most importantly, J.P. Morgan. The company was based out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
