Kyle Harrison
to-read
The Robber Barons
The Robber Barons: The Great American Capitalists, 1861–1901
- Author
- Matthew Josephson
- Published
- 1934
- Pages
- 474
- Recommended
- Once
Why it’s on the list: Matthew Josephson’s 1934 history of the Gilded Age industrialists and financiers — Gould, Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan — and how they consolidated railroads, oil and steel into monopolies.
Where I heard about it
- Recommended by The Icahnist (@TheIcahnist) on X, September 30, 2026, as Larry Ellison’s favorite book: “Study the Old Masters.” The post argues the AI buildout will produce a new generation of robber barons who own its bottlenecks. Captured on Larry Ellison’s favorite book… (tweet).
Connections
- Titan — Chernow’s biography of Rockefeller, one of the book’s central figures.
- Monopolies — the book’s subject.
- Larry Ellison’s favorite book… (tweet) — where it was recommended.