Overview

America’s history has always been shaped by private enterprise. Here are the stories of the people who led those businesses to success.

Ever since the first colonists landed in “The New World,” Americans have forged ahead in their quest to make good on the promises of capitalism and independence. This book vividly illustrates the history of business in the United States from the point of view of the enterprising men and women who made it happen.

Weaving together vivid narrative with economic analysis, American Entrepreneur recounts fascinating successes and failures, including: how Eli Whitney changed the shape of the American business landscape...the impact of the Civil War on the economy and the subsequent dominance of Andrew Carnegie and J. P. Morgan...the rise of the consumer marketplace led by Asa Candler, W. K. Kellogg, Henry Ford, and J.C. Penny...and Warren Buffett’s, Michael Milken’s, and even Martha Stewart’s experience in the “New Economy” of the 1990s and into today.

It is an adventure to start a business, and the greatest risk takers in that adventure are entrepreneurs. This is the epic story of America’s entrepreneurs and the economy they created.

About the Authors

LARRY SCHWEIKART, PH.D. (Centerville, OH), a history professor at the University of Dayton, is the author or coauthor of many books, including A Patriot’s History of the United States and 48 Liberal Lies About American History. LYNNE PIERSON DOTI, PH.D. (Orange, CA) is a professor of economics at Chapman University and the editor of Essays in Economic and Business History.