Ida Tarbell (November 5, 1857 – January 6, 1944) was an American writer, journalist, biographer and lecturer. One of the leading
muckrakers of the
Progressive Era of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, she pioneered
investigative journalism. Her best-known exposé was of the
Standard Oil Company, run at the time by oil tycoon
John D. Rockefeller. This inspired other journalists to investigate and write about
trusts, large businesses that (in the absence of strong antitrust laws in the 19th century) attempted to gain
monopolies in various industries. She also wrote biographies of businessmen
Elbert Henry Gary, chairman of
U.S. Steel, and
Owen D. Young, president of
General Electric.
Photograph credit: James E. Purdy; restored by Adam Cuerden