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 enlarge | Author: Les Standiford
Publisher: Crown
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 399831
Format: Bargain Price
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 336
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.2
Dewey Decimal Number: 338.7669142092273
ASIN: B000S9HWO0
Publication Date: May 10, 2005
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Condition: Brand new! Beautiful! May have a small remainder mark (ink mark) along the edge. gift quality, crisp, clean, multiple copies available, prompt shipping, excellent service.
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 A poorly titled book, poorly researched and poorly written May 31, 2006
11 out of 22 found this review helpful
Les Standiford's Meet You in Hell is ostensibly a history of the "Parnership that Transformed America" between Henry Clay Frick and Andrew Carnegie. The problem with this book begins there. Its center is the Homestead Strike and labor unrest in an industrial giant and the beginning of organized labor in the face of very powerful and often ruthless business organizations. The author states upfront his goal was to "focus upoon the thread of a relationship (between Carnegie and Frick)and have restricted my attention for the most part to matters pertaining thereto". I was expecting a true look into the partnership between the two such as No Ordinary Time by Doris Kearns Goodwin (where she brilliantly wrote of Franklin and Elenor Roosevelt's relationship and the effects it had on public policy as well as their own lives). I was sadly disappointed.
This book is a short, if disjointed read. Just over 300 pages and it isn't until the last 50 that Standiford turns his attention to the relationship between these two very powerful and driven men. The bibliography should be read before one even reads page one. It is one and a half pages, most undergraduate college papers have done greater "research". The author at times seems to derail himself in the rare instances where he might capture the reader's attention. In discussing in detail the Homestead Strike he states, at the beginning of a chapter, "Had this been a modern-day standoff, with Frick in close touch . . . by cell phone and Carnegie observing the scene via CNN satellite feed . . . ". This incredibly obvious note was nonscensical. All history would be different if communications were instant rather than weeks and even months just a relatively short time ago. Either Standiford is not qualified to write history (certainly a possibility if you see his creditials) or he thinks his readers daft.
This book is only slightly interesting if you would like to learn more about the Homestead Strike and, even there, it adds no real insight. I finished it only as I was determined to learn more about Carnegie and Frick and, importantly, their parnership. I did not. I would caution that any serious readers of history not make the same mistake I did thinking that something could be learned by reading this pithy writing. It cannot.
Most succinctly put, books about history should be written by qualified historians. This one was not.
Readable Overview of an Important Part of American History May 1, 2006
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
Carnegie Hall. Carnegie Mellon University. The Carnegie Library - not just 1, but 3000 of them throughout the English speaking world. Much of the legacy of Andrew Carnegie is that of his philanthropic efforts. In 1901 Andrew Carnegie received nearly $230 million from the sale of Carnegie Steel. He spent the rest of his life giving away almost all of that fortune.
Henry Clay Frick, Carnegie's one-time partner at Carnegie Steel, directed that his mansion and personal art collection be converted into an art museum upon his death. His Pittsburgh mansion, Clayton, is a popular field trip site in Western Pennsylvania.
Andrew Carnegie was the founder of Carnegie Steel, and Henry Clay Frick founded HC Frick Coke, supplier to Carnegie Steel, who eventually became Carnegie's business partner. But over time their relationship soured, and they became estranged to the point that, when Carnegie sought a meeting of reconciliation in 1919, Frick's response was, "Yes, you can tell Carnegie I'll meet him. Tell him I'll see him in Hell, where we both are going."
The intertwining of the lives and business dealings of Carnegie and Frick are the subject of "Meet you in hell: Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and the bitter partnership that transformed America" by Les Standiford. The book is something of a highly abbreviated biography of both men, concentrating on the time period during which Frick was the Chairman of Carnegie Steel.
The book spends a significant amount of time discussing the events surrounding the Homestead strike of 1892, which found Carnegie, who portrayed himself as pro-labor, conveniently spending the summer in Scotland while Frick managed the events of the strike, bringing in non-union workers and a detail of 300 Pinkerton agents. The confrontation resulted in the deaths of 3 Pinkerton agents and 7 strikers, with many others on both sides of the confrontation being wounded. One result of the failed strike was that union organizing in the steel industry was dealt a serious blow from which it did not recover until the 1930s. The strike also set in motion the events leading to the falling out of Frick and Carnegie, which took place over several years until Frick was finally ousted in 1900.
Despite this book's title, it's not solely about the conflict(s) between Carnegie and Frick. Rather, it's a short and interesting history of two of the most prominent players in the rise of the steel industry in America. Brought together by the steel industry, they forged a successful business partnership, had some conflicts, and acrimoniously parted ways. Carnegie and Frick experienced the conflicts that are the norm among the giant egos of the business world, both past and present.
I found this to be an interesting book. I had heard of the Homestead Strike, but hadn't learned any of its history. And I certainly knew the names of Frick, Carnegie, Phipps, Mellon, and other prominent Pittsburghers, but I didn't know how they all fit into the Pittsburgh history picture. This book provides a good overview of these topics. Standiford does display a strong pro-union bias throughout the book, always referring to the replacement workers as "scabs," for example, when detailing the events of the Homestead Strike. This makes it more difficult for the reader to distill the objective history from the author's opinions.
I do recommend this book for readers who want to acquaint themselves with the names of Carnegie and Frick, as well as those looking for an overview of the birth of America's steel industry, including a popular summary of the events of the Homestead strike. The book may pique the reader's interest for further reading about these events. But even if this book is all that you ever read on these topics, you'll be more educated for having done so.
A good book? Yes. A Clash of Titans? Sort of. October 18, 2005
33 out of 34 found this review helpful
We live in a time where it's hard to comprehend the wealth, power, and influence wielded by men like Carnegie, Rockefeller, J.P. Morgan, and Vanderbilt. Folks like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett carry only a whisper of the Goliath stature that was attained by a select few in the 1800s.
"Meet You in Hell" is Les Standiford's telling of the story of the rise and fall of a relationship between two such men, Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick. Frick, the lesser known of the two, created an empire of his own in coke production (the steel-making input, not the soda or the drug) before being swallowed up by Carnegie Steel and agreeing to run that entire operation for Carnegie.
Carnegie was a man accustomed to getting his own way, but his new employee Frick possessed his own ideas on how a company should be run. The differences between the two surfaced occassionally early in their relationship, and were tested further by the Homestead Mill strike in 1890s which ended in the deaths of many strikers and Pinkerton detectives.
This conflict is the true focus of this book, but interestingly doesn't come across as the watershed in the relationship between Carnegie and Frick that Standiford really wants it to be for the sake of his book. That honor comes later, when Frick tries to trick Carnegie into selling his company to a secret group of speculators with a terrible reputation on Wall Street.
This book is still quite an interesting story about the Homestead strike, labor relations in the industrial age, and the realtionship between two titans of industry, but the stories don't mesh the way Standiford sets you up to believe they will. That doesn't hurt this book much - it's still well worth reading - but it's interesting that Standiford stuck with this central premise long after his research and even his own writing showed that it had fallen apart.
Flawed, but certainly not fatally so. Still recommended for its history of labor relations, the relationship between Carnegie and Frick, and the US steel industry. An engaging and informative read.
Should be required reading for high school students all across America September 30, 2005
17 out of 21 found this review helpful
They say that those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. It has been my observation that the overwhelming majority of students who have graduated from our high schools in the past quarter century are pretty clueless about American history in general and about the history of the labor movement in this country in particular. Most are blissfully unaware of the sacrifices and hardships our ancestors endured in the struggle for better working conditions. I would strongly recommend Les Standiford's great new book "Meet You In Hell" to history and civics teachers everywhere. It would be a great book for your class to read and offers a tremendous opportunity to discuss with your students the pros and cons of our capitalist system.
"Meet You In Hell" chronicles the lives of two American industrial giants. Henry Clay Frick and Andrew Carnegie represent the consummate "rags to riches" story that we so romanticize in this country. These two men helped to forge America's steel industry and would play a major role in the transormation of the United States from an agrarian society into the most powerful nation on earth. Yes, America is indeed the land of opportunity and our young people should realize that capitalism offers them opportunities that other economic systems simply do not afford. At the same time "Meet You In Hell" will make young people acutely aware of what can happen when capitalism goes awry. For this was clearly the case in the town of Homestead, Pa. in the summer of 1892 when Henry Clay Frick with the tacit approval of Andrew Carnegie commissioned Pinkerton guards and brought in boatloads of "scabs" in response to a labor dispute at the Carnegie Steel mill. The violence and carnage that resulted from that grim confrontation is still considered to be one of the low points in management-labor relations in this country.
"Meet You In Hell" also offers the reader a glimpse into the rather complicated and often turbulent relationship between Carnegie and Frick. In retrospect, it is really quite amazing that their business relationship lasted as long as it did. For these were two headstrong men with huge egos. The relationship would eventually crash and burn and Carnegie and Frick would go their seperate ways to pursue their own individual interests. Curiously, both Carnegie and Frick would spend the final years of their lives giving away the great fortunes they had amassed to worthwhile projects and institutions that would ultimately benefit us all.
"Meet You In Hell" is an very readable and highly enjoyable offering. Whether or not author Les Standiford intended it, this book presents a very balanced view of the pros and cons of capitalism. Students need to understand that many of the issues presented in "Meet You In Hell" are still very relevant today. If you have done any reading at all about Wal-Mart for example you are most likely aware that this company has been accused of employing many of the same tactics against labor that were used by Frick,Carnegie and others more than a century ago. As I said earlier those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. Highly Recommended.
 The Dispute of Two Stubborn Icons of Industry. September 21, 2005
8 out of 11 found this review helpful
Set in the days when Horatio Alger preached the gospel of expansion and mobility hand in hand, this book shows the best and worst of American capitalism. John Calvin once said, "If I have not been able to avoid the reputation of being rich during my life, death will at last free me from this stain." Carneigie was considered "the world's richest man" back in the gilded age, the father of American industry.
On his death bed in 1919, possibly to have a clear conscience about that fateful steel strike of 1892, he wanted to make things right with Henry Clay Frick. It had been more than twenty years since their business relationship soured, but Frick would not give in, saying "tell him ... I'll see him in hell" -- so fierce was their dispute. He died the same year.
The bloody steelworkers' strike had changed their partnership into a furious rivalry. Both were propotents of Darwin's treaching about survival of the fittest. Carnegie was head of the United States Steel Corporation and Frick was a coke magnate who he had entrusted his companies. The steel industry comprised late 19th century rough-and-tumble "big business" and, with their cost control and applied efficiences, they became dominate in the world steel market.
Because of the disastrous way they handled the 1892 strike, their names stand for the worst possible business management to union members everywhere. Frick, acting on Carnegie's orders, set 300 Pinkerton detectives against the uprising workers, and it was the bloodiest management/labor conflict in the United States of America history. The blame went to Frick as he was present at the horrific scene.
Success consecrates the most offensive crimes. (Seneca) This reminds me of Howard Hughes' end; there was just no way Frick could forgive. Les Standiford has also written LAST TRAIN TO PARADISE, DONE DEAL, BLACK MOUNTAIN and OPENING DAY: OR, THE RETURN OF SATCHEL PAIGE. Many archival materials pertaining to the business dealing of the characters above can be found at the University of Pittsburgh's Hillman Library.
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