Andrew Carnegie and Union City

Andrew Carnegie was born in Dunfermline, Scotland, on November 25, 1835. He was the first son of William Carnegie, a linen weaver and local leader of the Chartists (who sought to improve the conditions of working-class life in Great Britain), and of Margaret Carnegie, daughter of Thomas Morrison, a shoemaker and political and social reformer.

An Émigré at Age 13 

William Carnegie's handloom business dwindled in the wake of industrialization, and in 1848 the family immigrated to the United States, settling in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. There, at the age of 13, Andrew began his career as a bobbin boy in a cotton factory. A voracious reader, he took advantage of the generosity of an Allegheny citizen who opened his library to local working boys. Books provided most of his education as he moved from being a Western Union messenger boy to telegraph operator and then to a series of positions leading to the superintendent of the Western Division of the Pennsylvania Railroad.

The Young Entrepreneur 

While still employed by the Railroad, Carnegie invested in a new company to manufacture railway sleeping cars. From there, he expanded his business ventures to encompass the building of bridges, locomotives and rails. In 1865, he organized the first of his many companies, the Keystone Bridge Company, and in 1873, the first of his steel works.

In Partnership with His Workers  

Carnegie's companies were founded not as stock corporations but as partnerships, in line with his philosophy that “it shall be the rule for the workman to be Partner with Capital, the man of affairs giving his business experience, the working man in the mill his mechanical skill, to the company, both owners of the shares and so far equally interested in the success of their joint efforts.” As associates, Carnegie attracted young men with exceptional talent for organization management. His steel company prospered, and when Carnegie sold the company to J.P. Morgan in 1901, the Carnegie Company was valued at more than $400 million.

The Birth of a Philanthropist 

Andrew Carnegie's philanthropic career began around 1870. He is best known for his gifts of free public library buildings. His first such gift was to his native Dunfermline in 1881, and it was followed by similar gifts to 2,509 communities in the English-speaking world.

The Rich as 'Trustees'

In 1889, he wrote “The Gospel of Wealth” in which he boldly articulated his view that the rich are merely “trustees” of their wealth and are under a moral obligation to distribute it in ways that promote the welfare and happiness of the common man. Carnegie was a prolific writer, but the quotation for which he is most famous comes from “The Gospel of Wealth”: “The man who dies thus rich dies disgraced.”

Full-Time Philanthropist  

When Carnegie retired from business in 1901, he set about in earnest to distribute his fortune. In addition to libraries, he provided hundreds of church organs to local communities.  Carnegie's wealth helped to establish numerous colleges, schools, nonprofit organizations and associations both in his adopted country, as well as in Scotland and throughout the globe. His most significant contribution, both in terms of money and in terms of enduring influence, was the establishment of several endowed trusts or institutions bearing his name.

By the time of his death in 1919, Andrew Carnegie had given away about $350 million, but the legacy of his generosity continues to unfold in the work of the trusts and institutions that he endowed.

The Union City 15^th Street Branch Free Public Library

The industrialist turned philanthropist Andrew Carnegie had little formal schooling, but he educated himself. He prized books as the means to his self-education. As part of his charitable efforts, Carnegie endowed many libraries in the United States. The West Hoboken Free Public Library was one of his beneficiaries. He gave $25,000 for the construction of a new library building and the enlargement of the collection. The new library was erected in 1903 on the north side of High Street - now 15^th Street - between Clinton Avenue and Spring Street - now New York and Bergenline Avenues.  A similar donation was given to the Town of Union Hill in 1905 for the creation of their Free Public Library, now the Main Branch of the Union City Free Public Library on 324- 43^rd Street, Union City.

Cultural Center

The historic building received a major renovation, and on Saturday, June 11, 2011 Mayor Brian P. Stack & the Union City Board of Commissioners, rededicated the historic building as the William V. Musto Cultural Center.  The building is now home to the Union City Museum of Art; Union City Art Gallery & Concert Hall; Union City Police Museum; Union City Museum of History; and Union City Senior Citizen Center.