Born November 5, 1857 in Erie County, PA, Ida Tarbell and her family had no clue at the time that she would become as influential and shape history as much as she did. Born to an oil tank family, Tarbell was raised in the United Methodist Church which played a major role in her life. Tarbell would go on in life to become a key player in exposing the gross abuses of the Standard Oil Company, and therefore shaping the future of watchdog journalism as we know it.
As Tarbell's father watched oil companies thrive and millionaires be made, he seized on an opportunity to provide storage for these companies through the oil tank industry. A carpenter, he utilized his skills to build the perfect wooden storage tank which was used by oil companies around the country, as told in A Notable Pennsylvanian.
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Library of Congress Tarbell works on a project at her desk |
As time went on, Tarbell decided she would never marry. As a focused woman who attended Allegheny College to study biology, Tarbell said, "It would interfere with my plan; it would fetter with my freedom," in reference to marriage.
After graduating from Allegheny College in 1880, Tarbell turned down a teaching job and took a job with The Chautauquan, a Methodist magazine, instead.
While there, Tarbell published her first an investigative piece, one which exposed the gross gender disparities in the United States Patent Office.
In this piece, Tarbell exposed that out of 22,000 patents issues in one year, only 90 went to women. This piece would set Tarbell up for a future of success and significance.
Shortly after this piece was published, Tarbell left the United States to study French history in Paris. When she made this decision, her boss was less than supportive, saying she would starve in Paris.
Upon moving back to the United States, Tarbell published pieces on Napoleon at the request of her editor, spending a large amount of time studying him at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.
After studying Napoleon, Tarbell would begin the piece that would shape her legacy: an investigative piece exposing the gross misconduct at the hands of the Standard Oil Company.
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Standard Oil Company Refinery in Cleveland, OhioWikipedia |
When oil fields dried up and companies were out out of business, the tanks Tarbell's father made were useless. However, when the Standard Oil Company bought out fields, the tanks also were useless due to the power of the Standard Oil Company.
At 14 years old, Tarbell saw the pain her father faced when he needed to choose to sell his life's work to John D. Rockefeller of the Standard Oil Company, or fight a loosing battle and attempt to go into business against him.
When Tarbell published her piece about the Standard Oil Company, she set off a wave of events that would shape the future. Due to her diligence, the United States Government and Supreme Court were forced to take a deeper look at the Standard Oil Company. As a result of her work, the Supreme Court ruled that the company was in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and consequently dismantled.
The vital work of Tarbell and other investigative journalists has shaped not only their legacies, but the future of the nation. From the Watergate Scandal, to the Pentagon Papers, to more recently the exposure of coverups relating to COVID-19 in New York State, investigative journalism is the lifeline of the American democracy.
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