The Hour of Fate: Theodore Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, and the Battle to Transform American Capitalism

by Susan Berfield

A riveting narrative of Wall Street buccaneering, political intrigue, and two of American history's most colossal characters, struggling for mastery in an era of social upheaval and rampant inequality.It seemed like no force in the world could slow J. P. Morgan's drive to power. In the summer of 1901, the financier was assembling his next Northern Securities, an enterprise that would affirm his dominance in America's most important industry-the railroads.Then, a bullet from an anarchist's gun put an end to the business-friendly presidency of William McKinley. A new chief executive bounded into Theodore Roosevelt. He was convinced that as big business got bigger, the government had to check the influence of the wealthiest or the country would inch ever closer to collapse. By March 1902, battle lines were the government sued Northern Securities for antitrust violations. But as the case ramped up, the coal miners' union went on strike and the anthracite pits that fueled Morgan's trains and heated the homes of Roosevelt's citizens went silent. With millions of dollars on the line, winter bearing down, and revolution in the air, it was a crisis that neither man alone could solve.Richly detailed and propulsively told, The Hour of Fate is the gripping story of a banker and a president thrown together in the crucible of national emergency even as they fought in court. The outcome of the strike and the case would change the course of our history. Today, as the country again asks whether saving democracy means taming capital, the lessons of Roosevelt and Morgan's time are more urgent than ever.Winner of the 2021 Theodore Roosevelt Association Book PrizeFinalist for the Presidential Leadership Book Award

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Politics, Business, Economics, American History

407 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 5, 2020

Reviews

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book fascinating particularly considering our current situation. The first part of the book is a brief biography of both men (J.P. Morgan 1837-1913 and Theodore Roosevelt-1858-1919) with particular emphasis on where they intercepted each other physically and ideologically.

The book is well written and meticulously researched. The author remained neutral through-out and was more like a reporter stating the known facts. I have read many biographies of both men but this book focused on these two men and their different ideology. The main question was who would control the economy of the United States? Would it be giant corporations or the federal government? I found a comment by President Cleveland during a deadly heat wave in 1896 most interesting. (I have read several biographies of Cleveland and don’t remember reading this quote). Roosevelt was police commissioner of NYC. He was personally handing out free ice to the poor. Cleveland said “While the people should patriotically and cheerfully support their government, its functions do not include the support of the people” I think we have changed since that time. At that time the only thing between government/big business and the people was Theodore Roosevelt with his “Square Deal for everyman big or small, rich or poor.” I highly recommend this book.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is eleven hours and fifty-nine minutes. Jennifer Woodward does a good job narrating the book. Woodward is an actress, voice artist and audiobook narrator.

[Tony]

I've been reading and reflecting on American Presidents this year, as we're about to have an election. And it's occurred to me that Theodore Roosevelt may have been our biggest oddball as President. Until, at least, the very, very latest incumbent. But there is good odd and there is bad odd. TR was the good sort: playful and indefatigable, insatiably curious, and, it is safe to say, no coward. (For those of you doing comparisons with the unnamed).

This book is the story about how Roosevelt, as President, took on the large trusts, most famously the railroad trusts controlled by J.P. Morgan. It may have been the oddest thing he did, at least as viewed by "The Big Interests." Some frustrated businessmen . . . hired psychologists to analyze Roosevelt's public statements and actions, looking for evidence that he was too unbalanced to be president.*

This book had moments. I liked this description of Edward H. Harriman: He was usually called furtive. And I liked when the curtain was pulled back, as when the leader of the coal owners offered this judgement: "These men don't suffer. Why, hell, half of them don't even speak English."**

The best parts of the book, for me, were the legal cases engendered by Roosevelt's actions. The author does a commendable job of excerpting the lawyers' arguments. And we get an insightful behind the scenes look at the operation of the Supreme Court. You should read this just to learn a little bit about Justice John Marshall Harlan, or the connection between Roosevelt and Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

Sometimes, it takes an oddball. A good one, please.


________________
*Imagine a group of psychiatrists, technically physicians, purporting to make a medical diagnosis just from someone's utterances. Oh, wait! This author doesn't say what the psychologists' conclusions were or what was done with them, I found this an annoying tendency. In another passage, the author states that the Secret Service asked the police, as a precaution, to arrest John Czolgosz, the brother of the man who assassinated William McKinley. She doesn't say whether the police obeyed.

**Presumably he was talking about my grandfathers.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Antitrust law and labor negotiations are not really sexy topics, but the author did a good job of describing the participants and what was at stake. Fortunately, Theodore Roosevelt and J.P. Morgan were interesting men and the author writes with momentum. Otherwise, this book world have been as dry as a law school class.

[Tony · Rating 2 out of 5]

As someone who reads regularly about Theodore Roosevelt and the Gilded Age, I enjoyed this book insofar as it refreshed my memory about certain events and taught me a several new things. However, in terms of the author's purported purpose for writing this work--to illustrate a pivotal moment in the US government's attempt to regulate big business--I was left with more questions than answers.

Hour of Fate centers on two men and two 1902 events--Theodore Roosevelt, JP Morgan, the anthracite coal miners' strike, and the antitrust case against Northern Securities. In the case of the striking mine workers, neither talks between the principal parties nor Roosevelt's efforts could end the dispute. The impasse was broken only when JP Morgan persuaded the mine owners to accept terms that they had previously refused. In the Northern Securities litigation, the Roosevelt administration succeeded in breaking up Morgan's railroad monopoly. Is there a trend to be gleaned from these events, one of which shows the superior influence of a private citizen over government and the other the opposite? I cannot see one.

An even more glaring question is why Berfield only tangentially references the third major happening that linked these men and the US economy. In 1907, while TR was still President, the US financial system faced a major panic. Here again, it was private citizen, Morgan--and not the government--that ultimately played the biggest part in averting a potentially total meltdown. How could the author omit full treatment of this incident? Was it simply because it did not fit with her narrative?

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written account of an important era in U.S. history, the early 20th Century and the end of the Gilded Age. Theodore Roosevelt, a "progressive Republican" takes on the unchecked power of corporations and the fat-cats who control them. Not because he wants to bring down the capitalist system, but because he wants it to work better, and believes government's role is to work on behalf of all the people, not just the plutocrats. Politicians, please take note.

Morgan, the most powerful man in the country, learns that he can remain super-rich, but must submit to some oversight by Washington, and cannot extend his power beyond certain limits.

The book covers a couple of important episodes in our history: the anthracite coal strike of 1902, which leads to the rise of a modern labor movement and labor laws, and the dismantling of the Northern Securities Company (controlled by Morgan) in 1904, which finally put some limits on unchecked corporate power and control.

Very relevant for our time.

[MM Suarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

America, Roosevelt said, must not be "the civilization of a mere plutocracy, a banking house, Wall-Street-syndicate civilization. " Material well-being, yes, and also "the sense of having so lived that others are better and not worse off."

[Betsy Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, thoughtful book. Not only will you feel smarter but you actually will be all the smarter having read it, as it is so thoroughly researched. What makes the book all the more interesting is its relevance to today's political and economic climate with questions about the roles of corporations and the laws which hold them accountable. It's definitely a worthwhile, good read.

[Nickole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a big fan of TR and also of regulating capitalism so this book was a no brainer. I think Berfield is a good researcher and I appreciated some of the details of honing in one particular aspect of TR's legacy. I found lots of fun rabbit holes to go go down in areas the book touched on but did not give in detail (though I imagine some people would prefer to be handed the deets versus having to do their own digging).

So why only four stars you ask...I think my disappointment with the book is it failed to engage around how this moment in history was so relevant to the following and current years. There is some mention in the epilogue but in comparison to one of my 5 star history books like the Metaphysical Club (which ironically is set in the same time)this book falls short. Perhaps my expectations where set too high in the title which ignited a spark in this little socialists heart.

That aside I learned new things, and about new historical figures namely Mother Jones and John Marshall Harlan...I consider this book time well spent!

[Will Botard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book over a long period of time. I think I may need to reread faster to pick up everything.

From what I remember, the beginning talked about the rise of Theodore Roosevelt and JP Morgan leading up to the assassination of William McKinley. Morgan was one of the richest men in the world and operated out of 23 Wall Street, NY. Roosevelt took over the presidency after McKinley’s death.

Roosevelt came from a wealthy background and dedicated his life to public service. Morgan learned business from his father and worked in his own right to manage some of the largest companies at the time.

Roosevelt and Morgan came to a head when Roosevelt’s justice department pursued antitrust litigation against the Northern Securities Company, which controlled the controlled the Northern Pacific Railway, the Great Northern Railway, and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.

The author does a great job of presenting an unbiased accounting of history along with direct quotes from the key actors from that time.

This was my first experience with history of JP Morgan and Roosevelt outside of basic academic classes. Morgan seems to be a capitalist who favors stability and understands that parties need to see their needs met in negotiations. Roosevelt had experience with the conditions of the poorest Americans as Police Commissioner in NYC and wanted to protect them from rich and powerful.

[Marc · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book recounts some of Theodore Roosevelt's efforts to reign in the power of big business during his first presidential term (1901-1904). It focuses on the United Mine Workers strike of 1902, in which Roosevelt mediated to help achieve a settlement, and the federal government's attempt in 1903-04 to use the Sherman Antitrust Act to break up the Northern Securities railroad trust; Roosevelt's Justice Department led the latter effort, and argued before the Supreme Court for the trust to be dissolved.

J.P.Morgan figures into the story because he was the most powerful businessman in the country at the time, he created and controlled the Northern Securities Trust, and he had significant influence with the anthracite mine owners. But the subtitle's suggestion of a "battle" between Morgan and Roosevelt overdramatizes the reality, which is that the two sometimes cooperated and sometimes did not. They were on opposite sides in the Northern Securities case, but in other matters they were allies, and Morgan even donated to Roosevelt's reelection campaign in 1904. In any case there seemed to be no dramatic showdowns between them. Morgan preferred to stay quiet in the background and let his proxies do battle; Roosevelt's role in the miners' strike was to help the two sides forge a compromise, and he mostly left things to his attorney general in the antitrust lawsuit. The two men frequently attended the same social events, but they left no records of their few private meetings, so -- sadly, for the writer of a book purporting to describe a "battle" between them -- we don't know what they said to each other.

The book is well-researched but it suffers from the absence of an author's voice. It reads mostly as a series of events -- this happened, then this happened, etc. -- but the author rarely attempts to highlight themes or make larger points. And although Roosevelt continued his efforts to curb the power and influence of big business combinations in his second term of office, the book inexplicably ends upon the completion of his first term.

[Ell, Ess Jaeva · Rating 4 out of 5]

telling history... ~"what was of the coal mining robber barons then, so is of the data mining industrialists today"

[Noah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Susan is great at gathering history and details into an intriguing story. However, her thoughts on policy and economic issues are made with a kindergartner’s intellect and ignorance. She incorrectly identifies the steel, oil, and railroad barons of the late 1800s and early 1900s as capitalists when in reality they were elitist opportunists fighting against the natural processes of capitalism in order to give themselves an unfair advantage. People like J. P. Morgan wanted to create monopolies and stop collective bartering of employees in order to eliminate the capitalist processes of price and wage bargaining that ultimately lead to a more fair and prosperous economy. Morgan and many of the rich elite incorrectly viewed these capitalistic processes as a danger to there wealth and status in life, because they were not entrepreneurs but opportunists who could only see the immediate impact rather than the longterm economic ramifications. This anti-capitalist behavior created distortions in the market that ultimately led to many of the economic strifes, collapses, and bank scares that plagued much of the late 1800s and early 1900s. Susan incorrectly concludes that Roosevelt wanted regulation to rein in capitalism and corporations and bring them to account. In reality Roosevelt pushed for regulation that created more competition and therefore more capitalism.

[Mary Bellamy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is narrative history, not economic history. The first forty percent is okay but sometimes awkward, Morgan and TR are from different generations and the author is not always sure what information is relevant for setting up the central conflicts of the book. The next fifty percent is a very good telling of two interesting stories, the Northern Securities case and the anthracite strike. The final ten percent should have been summarized in about four pages.

[Ale Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good concise history and introduction to antitrust law in the United States. The book spans a decade and introduces you to the conflict between Teddy Roosevelt and Pierpont Morgan, what led to the DOJ’s suit against Northern Securities, and the resulting political yield of such a consequential decision. Good stuff in there. A bibliography full of potential future reads.

[Bookreporter.com Biography & Memoir · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent topic. Excellent scope. Excellent writing. Susan Berfield’s THE HOUR OF FATE takes on an explosive time of transition in our nation by focusing on the two titans most central to the fight: Theodore Roosevelt and J.P. Morgan. When the final page is turned, we have accompanied the nation along its journey out of the Gilded Age and into the Progressive Era guided by Roosevelt’s slogan, “A square deal for every man, big or small, rich or poor.”

The storyline is simple enough: America is booming. Business is booming. Government’s role is slight at best. The rich are not only becoming richer, they are exerting more and more control over the US economy. The quintessential businessman of this era is John Pierpont Morgan, a force like no other. When the business-friendly President McKinley dies, Morgan runs afoul of Theodore Roosevelt and his progressive Square Deal.

The new president thinks that regulation is the way to control the growing trusts --- or monopolies. Like Morgan, he is a man of wealth and privilege, but as a politician and public servant, he has walked among the poorest and found it un-American. The two men are on a collision course that culminates in the government’s case against Morgan’s Northern Securities Trust.

While it might be easy to pass Morgan off as the bad guy to TR’s good guy, THE HOUR OF FATE is finely nuanced and takes up the argument from each man’s perspective. This begins with one of those wonderful stories often lost to history. As a young man, Morgan is eager to make his own way. When he strays from his father’s idea of honor, he is corrected: “Never under any circumstances do an act which could be called in question if known to the whole world.” It was the Morgan Code of Conduct, and as Berfield notes, “Integrity would give the Morgans a competitive edge in America.”

The focused scope of the book impresses immediately. In a period when names like Rockefeller, Carnegie, Hearst, Mellon and countless others roamed the landscape, Berfield assiduously concentrates on Roosevelt and Morgan. They are the drivers, the forces, the cause of action, and while others figure prominently in the story, they do so as context. She doesn’t diminish their roles, but recognizes Roosevelt and Morgan to be ultimate leaders.

The book magnificently portrays Morgan as a man who loved art and travel, despised the inefficiencies of 19th-century industry and is possessed of a will that few can match. The personification of the future Federal Reserve, he will twice rescue the US economy by dint of his reputation and determination.

Roosevelt’s story is equally compelling. He is not against big business as he knows it is essential. What he wants is public accountability. An ambitious and energetic man whose life is well chronicled, he strives to ensure that each American, poor or rich, gets the same treatment --- a square deal. That he was reviled by Democrats and disliked by his own party shows the complexity of his nature.

Perhaps the most striking line in the book comes from President Cleveland. During a deadly heatwave in 1896, Police and Health Commissioner Roosevelt personally handed out free ice to the poor. This benign act of compassion caused the Democrat president to remark, “While the people should patriotically and cheerfully support their Government, its functions do not include the support of the people.” One can hardly imagine any politician uttering those words today!

This portrait of America in 1900 also demands comparisons to the present-day world. The scale of change wrought by the internet is similar to the change brought about by the railroads. New technologies, either today or a hundred years ago, created great wealth for their owners. Morgan, Rockefeller, Carnegie, Gates, Buffett and Bezos had visions and plans that government couldn’t conceive. They pushed into unknown territories and created massive empires of good, but as they grew and consolidated, these forces of innovation were seen as unfairly dominating in a way that discouraged further innovation and competition.

With little to stand in the way of the trusts, much of America came to believe that a Square Deal was a thing of the past. Roosevelt’s challenge to the barons like Morgan sets the stage that THE HOUR OF FATE so nicely acts out, making it a strong recommendation.

Reviewed by John Vena

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every time I finish a book about President Teddy Roosevelt, I marvel at how much life he lived. Author, rancher, politician, patrician-turned-reformer, hunter-turned-conservationist, beloved family man yet emotionally scarred by tragedy . . . TR may be the most impossible yardstick to match when taking stock of your own accomplishments.

And there is no shortage of great books about TR - if you're looking for the truly comprehensive assessment, you have to read Edmund Morris's three-volume biography, but there are terrific one-volume biographies too . . . they just feel inadequate to do the great man justice.

It's easier for an author to pick a single aspect of TR's life and focus on that - Candice Millard wrote a classic with "River of Doubt," that tells the amazing story of TR's post-Presidency trip into uncharted South America. Susan Berfield has adopted this approach with "The Hour of Fate," by focusing on the epic clash of President TR and the business titan JP Morgan over the "Northern Securities" affair. This excellent editorial choice allows Berfield to tell the relevant stories of two American giants and also put their dispute into proper context.

Using alternating chapters to tell the tales of each man, Berfield writes mini-biographies of TR and Morgan, two giants of the Gilded Age. Berfield provides enough detail from TR's life to explain why the pro-business Republican party shunted him into the dead-end job of being beloved President McKinley's VP . . . a choice that completely backfired after McKinley's assassination. Berfield also tells the fascinating story of JP Morgan, groomed from his early days to lead the House of Morgan and who saw himself as a more important financial steward of Western civilization than any government bureaucrat.

Morgan and his fellow business titans saw themselves as the wise manipulators of the American economy, and they all believed the U.S. government had no role in overseeing their affairs. And generally the U.S. government agreed - the Supreme Court routinely struck down government laws to regulate the economy - child labor laws, wage controls, a 40-hour work week - as unconstitutional interference with the "freedom of contract" - the fiction that an employee and an employer were parties of equal power negotiating their mutual rights and obligations.

In the Gilded Age, nothing could be further from the truth. JP Morgan used his financial clout to dictate the success or failure of companies every single day (when he wasn't buying European art or building another yacht). Company owners could use violence to break strikes without consequence. And a farmer could see the value of his annual crop yield decimated by the capricious decisions of railroad barons who set the price of shipping.

JP Morgan hated nothing so much as waste, and he saw a tremendous amount of waste in the age's dominant industry, the railroad. The 'roads competed with each other in a chaotic, wasteful manner, and even brought the nation to the brink of economic ruin . . . saved in large part through Morgan's vast fortune. So Morgan decided to bring order out of chaos and formed the Northern Securities trust - a vast railroad conglomerate that was controlled the lion's share of America's railroads (and promised to gobble up the rest).

With Northern Securities, JP Morgan and his partners could effectively control the entire American economy. TR said, "well, wait a minute." His young administration decided to take the new Sherman Anti-Trust Act out for a spin and kill Northern Securities in the courts.

The fight over Northern Securities riveted the nation's business and political communities, and TR's eventual (narrow) win set a major milestone in the progressive movement in America.

Highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of American business or politics . . . or who wonders what we should do today as Amazon, Google, and other business conglomerates are running the Gilded Age 2.0.

[Jim Gallen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The topic of “The House of Fate” is the struggles between Theodore Roosevelt and J. Pierpont Morgan to implement their competing visions of the development of American capitalism. Its focus is on the Northern Securities anti-trust case and anthracite coal miners’ strike of 1902.

Northern Securities was a trust formed by J. P. Morgan, E. H. Harriman and James J. Hill to unite the Northern Pacific Railway, Great Northern Railway, and Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad under common ownership and control, hence eliminating competition and encouraging ‘efficiency” in northwestern railroads. The conglomeration drew one of the first anti-trust cases under the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The government’s success in the suit ushered in a new era of government oversight of business.

The Anthracite coal strike was a titanic struggle between mine workers in the largely Pennsylvania coal fields and the intransigent owners. Its impact spread far as autumn approached, homes and business could not be heated, blast furnaces cooled and trains slowed to a halt. The significance of this strike is that it was the first major labor dispute in which government intervened to try to mediate a settlement between the parties rather than to merely protect the owners’ property rights.

The two main characters in the book are as the title would indicate, Morgan and Roosevelt. TR is portrayed as the active defender of the public weal who promised and fought to deliver a square deal to all. Morgan is the self-made promoter, in this case player with railroads, who thought that those who owned property could best run it without interference, but also exercised a civic responsibility in the management of public affairs.

Supporting roles are filled by James J. Hill of the Great Northern, E. H. Harriman of the Union Pacific, Attorney General Philander Knox, sometime Cabinet member, sometime railroad lawyer Elihu Root, labor leader John Mitchell, Justices John Marshall Harlan and Oliver Wendell Holmes and kingmaker, Senator and middle man, Mark Hanna and others.

The story line includes, not only accounts of the strike negotiations and anti-trust trial and appeal, but also a continuum of Federal policy on anti-trust and labor matters from Grover Cleveland through Theodore Roosevelt. It also follows TR’s political steps to ensure his election in 1904.

Author Susan Berfield has crafted a very readable, attention holding history consisting of battling lawyers, a president and a tycoon playing tug-of-war over the framework under which business will operate and be regulated, all wrapped into a four-year slice of biography of one of the most iconic lives in the American pageant. She has displayed a talent to intertwine Gilded Age grasping with its effect on ordinary lives and its role in shaping the politics of its era. The bibliography provides a benchmark against which to measure our reading of the past and a guide to that of the future. Berfield has done an excellent job in showcasing a contest between private and public interests. She rightfully cites Theodore Roosevelt as the champion of a square deal for all. The author concludes with the assertion that power and privilege are again concentrated and that “the battle to make American capitalism more fair rages just as furiously.” She has written a fine narrative of the transition from the Gilded Age to the Twentieth Century but her posited comparison to the Twenty-first Century relies on the reader’s world view to bridge that hundred-year chasm.

I did receive a free copy of this book through the Amazon Vine Program.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Hour of Fate tells the story of JP Morgan and Theodore Roosevelt at the start of the 20th Century as progressivism replaced laissez-faire big business within the Republican party and the era of trust busting was ushered in. This book focuses on the Northern Securities case which was the secret deal set up by JP Morgan to consolidate several railroads in the Pacific Northwest. It created one of the largest entities at the time and coupled with Morgan’s shipping interests was poised to be a behemoth in the world economy. It also raised concerns across the spectrum that a monopoly would be instituted. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act which to date had only been used against unions was now employed by TR and his AG Knox to break up Northern Securities. The case was sent against the back drop of the 1904 Coal Strike that led to the government siding with Unions for the first time (or more accurately not siding with Big Business and letting arbitration run its course).
This book focuses on the ways in which capital and business reconciled with labor at a time when the wealth gap was a run away train. While not the same wealth gap today we are seeing similar sentiments expressed towards Billionaires and unrestrained big business today. The moniker of too big to fail was tested during this time as it is being revisited today. This book is a reminder of the unrest that can result when unchecked greed bleeds into unfair economic competition and the role of government in enforcing a level playing field for business. Overall well written, keeps the story moving and delves into the history of the time in a topic not written about in detail often. If you are a fan of the Gilded Age or TR then this will be a welcome addition.

[Matt Conger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another book where I realized "this was covered for like 10 minutes during AP History". This book does a wonderful job telling the story of Teddy Roosevelt and JP Morgan and how the concept of trustbusting developed.

I wanted more detail about Roosevelt and less about his advisors. His rise to the Presidency is told in a very quick fashion. And yet there is a lot of detail about various advisors whose names I'll most likely forget next week. Nonetheless, as an author writing about a specific thesis and with no shortage of general biographies about Roosevelt, I can understand the author's decision here.

I'm settling on 4 stars because it taught me a lot about an interesting part in American history. But the innately dry subject matter of corporate structure and shareholders' rights makes it hard for me to aggressively recommend it. Robert Caro faced a similar challenge with explaining how transit authorities and municipal bond markets work in The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York. Perhaps because that period of time is closer to today than the Roosevelt/JPM era, I found it easier to relate to. Nonetheless, I hope the author is happy to be compared to Robert Caro.

Now I need some good recommendations for a Teddy Roosevelt biography!

[Blaze Currie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technological advancements, industry disruption, and corporate consolidation are happing too fast for
the government to keep up. An American public distrustful and disgusted with wealthy elite want the “one percent” held to account. And the role of business and government - especially as it relates to campaign contributions - are a tense subject.

Sound familiar?

This book is timely. A remarkable moment in history accompanied by colorful characters that convened to navigate these new waters gives clarity to the same issues that have evolved but really haven’t changed.

While I feel the book did a great job helping us understand Teddy Roosevelt, I believe Berfield fell a little short on explaining JP Morgan. That does not detract from her larger purpose for the book. The heroes are flawed, the antagonists aren’t evil, and their views of morality were certainly dated by today’s standard.

One of my favorite “gems” from the book was the short story of a heavy gold ring containing a strand of President Lincoln’s hair that was given to President Roosevelt on the day of his inauguration. Roosevelt said the ring would remind him to “put human rights above property rights.”

As the author suggests, Roosevelt’s “square deal” may sound “quaint” today, but the struggle between labor and capital, and a government that works for all, remains a relevant cry from the American public. The impending 4th Industrial Revolution will make this all more relevant.

[Johan van Haersolte · Rating 4 out of 5]

The hour of fate
I was drawn to read this book for 3 reasons:
- the period, 1900: think ‘The Alienist’
- Teddy Roosevelt: a left-leaning Republican, a fearless soldier, an avid reader and an environmentalist
- John Pierpont Morgan: born into wealth to become more wealthier, leaving behind a fascinating museum/library in NY full of stuff he collected
‘The Hour Of Fate’ is very informative. More about Roosevelt, a politician and therefore a very public man, than about Morgan, a secretive workaholic and deal maker. But also about the ties between POTUS and SCOTUS, about the endless strikes by miners to achieve pays and working conditions that nowadays seem very justified, about crashes on Wall Street nobody remembers anymore but had big consequences at time, about the big societal and economic that took place in the US at the end of the 19th century, about the consequences of the Civil War, about the Reconstruction, the political use (for the greater good we must assume) of legislation especially the Sherman Act to break up monopolies like the one in railways like the one Morgan participated in etc.
A drawback is that not all parts are well written, often it is very difficult to distinguish the persons mentioned, their role and relevance. Too much information is confusing for the reader.

[Vince · Rating 4 out of 5]

In any study of early 20th century American history several things become abundantly clear; slavery never ended, it just changed; the genocide of indigenous Americans continued, albeit less overtly; and capitalism's march to plutocracy has rarely been interrupted. This is Berman's first book although she's been a successful journalist for many years. As you would expect, her research into Roosevelt's trust busting fight with Morgan's railroad monopoly is impeccable. The details provide a rare glimpse into the relationships between some of the wealthiest industrialists of the era and those in government who come to see the need to protect workers and consumers from powerful interests that firmly believe that they know what's best for the country and that government's role is to just stay out of the way. This book gives the reader a lens in which to see the dark side of capitalism that is resurgent in our lives today. The railroad and oil monopolies of yesterday simply give way to the communications and data monopolies of today. Meanwhile workers remain wage slaves and the 1% seek to be the < 1% while striving for domination of all institutions that might try to rein in their greed.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed Berfield's book – throughly researched, deftly narrated – and the way in which it subtly drew allusions between the early 20th century conflicts among capital, labor, and government and the contemporary tensions and divisions between these same groups today. Some of the accounts of conversations among J.P. Morgan and his associates, or between politicians and their allies, seemed easily imaginable among corresponding present-day figures. Berfield also ably presented the evolution of Theodore Roosevelt's political and personal approach to the country's economic landscape, and the evolution of his thought patterns and negotiation styles as he faced various challenges in his presidency. At another time in the country's history when so much political and economic power has again been concentrated among a small minority with great financial wealth, the book's examination of Roosevelt's administration and its efforts to reform capital, making its benefits more egalitarian and just, offers an important perspective on contemporary debates about the state of capitalism in particular and the national and global economy in general.

[Daction · Rating 4 out of 5]

In The Hour of Fate Susan Berfield paints a picture of these two titans of early 20th century America and the industrial disputes that they became entwined in. The reader is given a strong sense of the characters of both men and comes away with a predictable sense of respect for Roosevelt and a certain amount of animosity towards Morgan, although both remain very human characters and neither are subjected to being made simplistic caricature. In addition to the two title characters, the reader is introduced to other less well known figures of the time, John Mitchell and the miners, Oliver Wendall Holmes and the other Supreme Court Justices. Sometimes the book loses itself in the detail and it, if, like me, you're less familiar with US History, it requires a bit of wikipedia supplementation. However, overall, it's brought together very nicely at the end with Berfield's epilogue an effective blend of her skill at depicting historical scenes with a nice contrast to modern day America's public/private imbalance.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book about a period that mirrors the present one in terms of economic history. The author captures the spirit of the time and very ably describes Theodore Roosevelt's usage of the bully pulpit to influence the economic debate. As the author pointed out the US is now living in a second Gilded Age with trusts being replaced by similar modern (digital...) monopolies. But the country's leadership is now in the hands of a man with very different qualities and views in comparison with T.R.: intellectual capacity, integrity, creativity, respect for others and for nature...Theodore Roosevelt sought to strike a balance between engines of economic growth and the conservation of resources, including human resources. Under similar circumstances, the current approach under 47, the impact on society promises to be quite different. The historic test of the 1900's was met, resulting in limits to the rights and power of corporations; the present economic history iteration promises to produce very different results.

[Charles A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book, although not as engaging, smooth flowing, as a Doris Kearns Goodwin book is, still covers a interesting time in our country’s history; a time where the battle of what kind of capitalist system we would have. The book presents two men of privileged background who’s views of the world are, somewhat, in conflict. Should we live in a society where the rich and powerful have the divine right to decide what is best for the country and its citizens (Morgan), or should we live in a society where their is more power sharing and equity (Roosevelt). The book presents a focused look at the fight between these two giants and the outcome of the engagement.

I was disappointed in that the author didn’t draw the parallels to todays environment until the epilogue, which really addressed the comparison of then and today somewhat superficially. I would actually rate the book a 3 ½ stars if I could.

[Ronald Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Theodore Roosevelt has always been one of my heroes. And the story of the great American capitalist of the late 19th and early 20th centuries like J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie has always fascinated me. This book tells the story of two great forces in the forms of Roosevelt and Morgan and how they conflicted and worked together to transform American Capitalism and even perhaps to save it and the country. The book kind of starts with a slow build up but picks up in the second half, leaving you anticipating the conclusion of the case of Northern Securities Vs. The United States. Finally, the author ties this up into an analogy of present day. This book really does a good job of making you see both sides of the issue of the rights of private property and the rights of people to run their businesses as the chose, vs. the larger issue of the common good.
A good and educational read for anyone who is interested in this subject matter.

[Christine Gill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently read The Personal Librarian and wanted to find out more about J. P. Morgan and the times during which her story took place. I finished this book and came away feeling that people who rant about current times being so terrible really need to read some history. I felt that particularly during descriptions of the miners' strikes and the deplorable conditions for those workers, not only in the mines but the entire social structure of their communities and their dependence on the terribly stingy owners. There were no safety nets for those people, no health insurance, no recourse after losing a breadwinning family member to death or job-related disability other than moving out of the company-owned housing. Now those were terrible times and we've come SO FAR from that with all the social services available today for needy people. I also came away liking Teddy. He was so genuine and so sympathetic.

[Brett Van Gaasbeek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exhaustively researched, this book goes into great detail over the advent of "trustbusting" during the administration of Theodore Roosevelt. It does a solid job of placing both TR and Morgan in their times, their circumstances, and their decision-making while framing the trial in the context of the turn of the century American political landscape. It can drag at times due to the overload of details, but the story also includes vignettes of other important people from the Progressive Era, such as Mark Hanna and John Marshall Harlan, that I found both intriguing and added to the overall case. This is a solid look into the beginnings of the political war to save the American economy from total domination by an aristocracy of a few. Well worth the read, especially those who are interested in Roosevelt.

[William T · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is an awful lot of material that most readers will already be familiar with. I don't regret reading it, but I am not sure that I couldn't have focused my energies better elsewhere. Thank you to the author for the effort.

As an amusing aside, my great uncle, John Markle, was the leader of the independent (PA) anthracite miners and was at the meeting, with Roosevelt, that preceded the Corsair agreement (page 175.) The meeting, as it was described in the book, was different than it was described by my great uncle. The tone and the results were correctly described but who said what does not agree with the book's version, at least as told by John Markle. It is not important, but it is amusing because I had no idea I was going to "run into' this meeting that I knew of independently.

Again, thank you to the author for an important story told again.