A pejorative term for wealthy industrialists in the late 19th century United States. Robber barons are credited with leading American industrialization and creating a great deal of
wealth; however, they often did so through unethical means, many of which later became illegal.
Price manipulation,
union busting, and
anti-competitive practices were common among robber barons. Well known robber barons include
Andrew Carnegie,
John W. Rockefeller and Cornelius Vanderbilt.