A Man Who Knew Balance Of all the rags to riches tales in history, there is none that can compare with those of Andrew Carnegie. Although Carnegie was a man whose character was somewhere between callous and benevolent, his abundant contributions to America are nothing short of remarkable. His journey is an exemplary demonstration of the true opportunity you are given in America, no matter what card you are dealt. While his wealth was considerable, his philanthropic influences also did not go unnoticed. Andrew Carnegie was one of the first businessmen to promote public-spirited philosophies that simultaneously achieved individual profit and benefited America as a whole. Andrew Carnegie was born on November 25, 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland. He and his family moved in 1848 to Allegheny, Pennsylvania, a very poor town at the time, in search of job opportunities. Carnegie's family was working class and often found themselves borrowing money and accumulating debt to survive. For this reason, Carnegie began working early at the age of thirteen as a journeyman, earning only a salary of $1.20 a week for 60 hours of work. Later, he joined the Ohio Telegraph Company working as a secretary. When the impressionable and precocious Andrew Carnegie was eighteen, he worked in the Pennsylvania Railroad Company for a man named Thomas Scott. Under Scott, Carnegie quickly learned the concepts of management, cost control, and investment (Nasaw 1). Although most success stories are seen through qualities of diligence and perseverance, luck will always continue to play its part, and Andrew Carnegie had just that. . The railroad industry was ripe for an economic revival in America... middle of paper... l purposes. Conant, J. B. "Andrew Carnegie, Patron Of Learning." Science 82.2139 (1935): 599-603. Print.This is an article that provides a lot of information regarding the Carnegie Library, with a minor emphasis on his other works as well.NICKLISS, ALEXANDRA M. "Phoebe Apperson Hearst's “Gospel of Wealth,” 1883 –1901.” Pacific Historical Review 4th ser. Volume 71 (2002): 575-605. Network. March 8, 2014. This article was mostly about Carnegie's “Gospel of Wealth” philosophy; the rich were obliged to give to the poor. Patterson, David S. "Andrew Carnegie's Quest for World Peace." Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 114.5 (1970): 371-83. JSTOR. Network. March 11, 2014. This article provided a lot of information about what Carnegie contributed to learning and how he did it. This included the Carnegie Library, Carnegie Mellon, etc.