Extremes in America

George Washington Vanderbilt II

Just like today, the U.S. population experienced extremes of wealth and living standards in the late 1800s. The 175,000 square foot Biltmore Estate, still the largest privately-owned home in America, was built between 1888 and 1895. George Vanderbilt equipped his new home with modern innovations like running water in the bathrooms, electricity (it was wired for both A/C and D/C because standards hadn’t been decided on), and refrigeration for the kitchen. The home had 250 rooms, of which 35 were bedrooms and 43 bathrooms. In its heyday, there were 30-35 servants to wait on the family and guests.

Built toward the end of the Gilded Age (late 1860s until nearly 1900), Biltmore represented the kind of lifestyle available to wealthy families during an era without income taxes or much industrial regulation. (A permanent income tax became law in 1913.) Men like Andrew Carnegie J. P. Morgan, and John D. Rockefeller amassed dazzling fortunes in often ruthless ways; Rockefeller was the first American to amass $1 billion in personal wealth. In contrast, most families in America earned less than $1,200 annually, and many well below $500. The president of the United States earned $50,000 per year.