The History of the Standard Oil Company the power of the press. As such, "The History of Standard Oil Company" harbors great significance as a standard-bearer of modern investigative journalism. In his 2008 book "Taking on the trust : the epic battle of Ida Tarbell and John D. Rockefeller", Steve Weinberg described "The History of the Standard Oil Company" as "arguably the greatest work of investigative journalism ever written". The History of the Standard Oil Company The History of the Standard Oil Company is a 1904 book by journalist Ida Tarbell. It is an exposé about the Standard Oil Company, run at the time by oil tycoon
Standard Oil an innovator in the development of the business trust. The Standard Oil trust streamlined production and logistics, lowered costs, and undercut competitors. "Trust-busting" critics accused Standard Oil of using aggressive pricing to destroy competitors and form a monopoly that threatened other businesses. Rockefeller ran the company as its chairman, until his retirement in 1897. He remained the major shareholder, and in 1911, with the dissolution of the Standard Oil trust into 34 smaller companies, Rockefeller became the richest man in the world, as the initial income of these individual enterprises proved to be much bigger than that of a single