J.P. Morgan, Robber Baron or Captain of Industry?

The industrialist, J.P. Morgan, of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century is best characterized as a captain of industry. He would be best characterized as this because he helped save to government from financial collapse and he made money in the process. President Cleveland needed gold to back the U.S. currency and so Morgan gave him gold in exchange for bonds that he later cashed in for a big profit. He had a great education and in1871 he became a partner in a New York City firm that later took his name. This company soon became one of the most powerful banking houses in the country. He could make failing companies into very profitable companies, so he was very hard working in business. In 1893 Morgan helped financial panic and helped the railroad industry recover. He merged railroad companies and became a stockholder in everyone of them, he did the same thing with steel companies and made a fortune in both. He helped the government again in 1907 because his bank took government deposits. Morgan was a philanthropist. He collected fine art and donated many valuable works to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Therefore, i believe that J.P. Morgan would best be described as a captain of industry.