Standard Oil

Standard Oil was an American petroleum trust founded by John D. Rockefeller and partners in 1870. The U.S. Supreme Court ordered its dissolution under antitrust law in 1911.

Horizontal integration: A business strategy that combines companies operating at the same stage of production. Standard Oil expanded by acquiring competing oil refiners.
Oil Creek, Pennsylvania: A stream in northwestern Pennsylvania near the site of the first commercially successful U.S. oil well. The region’s oil boom created the refining opportunity Rockefeller pursued.
Ida Tarbell: An American journalist whose investigation of Standard Oil appeared in McClure’s Magazine from 1902 to 1904. Her reporting detailed the company’s tactics and helped galvanize public criticism.
Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey v. United States: The 1911 U.S. Supreme Court case that ordered the dissolution of the Standard Oil combination. The decision concluded the federal government’s antitrust case against the trust.
Trust (business): A legal arrangement that places company shares under trustees’ control to coordinate separate businesses. The 1882 Standard Oil Trust coordinated companies that formally remained separate.
Drake Well: The 1859 well drilled by Edwin Drake near Titusville, Pennsylvania, that launched the first U.S. oil boom. Its success helped turn petroleum refining into a rapidly growing industry.
Archbold: An American oil executive who led Standard Oil’s operations and later became president of Standard Oil of New Jersey. He became a central executive as Rockefeller withdrew from daily management.
Sherman Antitrust Act: An 1890 U.S. federal law prohibiting contracts, combinations, and monopolization that restrain trade. The Supreme Court found Standard Oil’s conduct unlawful under this statute.
South Improvement Company: A short-lived 1872 alliance of railroads and oil refiners that arranged preferential rates and rebates. Its secret freight agreements helped provoke opposition to Rockefeller’s early expansion.
John D. Rockefeller: An American industrialist who built Standard Oil into a dominant petroleum company. He organized the company and directed its expansion.

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