Utility (Invention) Patents Awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

• 1865: 6,099
• 1880: 12,926
• 1900: 24,656
• Patents held by Thomas Edison: 1,093

Montgomery Ward & Co.

• Startup capital used to found Montgomery Ward & Co. mail order retailer in 1872: $1,600
• Annual sales for Montgomery Ward & Co. in 1888: $1 million²

American Telephone Subscribers

• 1880: 48,000
• 1900: 800,000³

Global Ranking of U.S. Manufacturing Output

• 1870: 4th
• 1900: 1st

Percentage of Americans Living in Cities

• 1870: 25%
• 1900: 40%

U.S. Population

• Total U.S. population in 1890: 63 million
• Urban population: 22 million