Meet You in Hell: Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and the Bitter Partnership That Transformed America

By Les Standiford

Two founding fathers of American industry. One desire to dominate business at any price.

“Masterful . . . Standiford has a way of making the 1890s resonate with a twenty-first-century audience.”—USA Today

“The narrative is as absorbing as that of any good novel—and as difficult to put down.”—Miami Herald

The author of Last Train to Paradise tells the riveting story of Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and the bloody steelworkers’ strike that transformed their fabled partnership into a furious rivalry. Set against the backdrop of the Gilded Age, Meet You in Hell captures the majesty and danger of steel manufacturing, the rough-and-tumble of the business world, and the fraught relationship between “the world’s richest man” and the ruthless coke magnate to whom he entrusted his companies. The result is an extraordinary work of popular history.

Praise for Meet You in Hell

“To the list of the signal relationships of American history . . . we can add one more: Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick . . . The tale is deftly set out by Les Standiford.”—Wall Street Journal

“Standiford tells the story with the skills of a novelist . . . a colloquial style that is mindful of William Manchester’s great The Glory and the Dream.”—Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

“A muscular, enthralling read that takes you back to a time when two titans of industry clashed in a battle of wills and egos that had seismic ramifications not only for themselves but for anyone living in the United States, then and now.”—Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: May 10, 2005
• ISBN: 9780307238375

Les Standiford

Les Standiford is the bestselling author of twenty books and novels, including the John Deal mystery series, and the works of narrative history The Man Who Invented Christmas (a New York Times Editors’ Choice) and Last Train to Paradise. He is the director of the creative writing program at Florida International University in Miami, where he lives with his wife, Kimberly, a psychotherapist and artist. Visit his website at www.les-standiford.com.

Reviews for Meet You in Hell

[dsha67 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Finished Meet You in Hell: Andrew Carnegie, Henry Clay Frick, and the Bitter Partnership That Changed America by Les Standiford. A solid 4 start read that It was a book that focuses on the relationship and lack thereof between these two industrial leaders. The book discusses the similarities and the inherent differences and approaches of these two men.The focus of course it the breakdown of the relationship following the Homestead Strike and the means that Henry Frick took in settling the strike and in the differences in approach both these men believed in. Frick wanting to take on the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers and remove them from any association with Carnegie Steel and Andrew Carnegie who wanted the same results but by breaking the union, but rather than shutting down the plant until they gave in.While the book briefly covers the youth and development of both men, there is nothing new in the historiography here. The material covered is not new but in the focusing on their relationship provides a interesting and meaningful additional to the history of Carnegie Steel, Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick, and the creation and eventually destruction of what was largely a beneficial business relationship.I have read a few biographies on Andrew Carnegie but that is a nice short and enjoyable read on a focused subject which I have no problem recommending.

[akmargie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Andrew Carnegie, you complicated figure. Inspired to read because of History channel's Men Who Built America series. I appreciate that the author strove for a balanced account of the events of Homestead and Carnegie and Frick's partnership, more so than the TV show. A rather important time that gets overlooked being sandwiched between the Civil War and WWI. Well researched and a solid narrator.

[sigmundfraud · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Gives one a good feel for two men who personified the Gilded Age and made America the industrial giant it was to become. There is more detail on the Homestead strike than I needed to know but it was a gratifying read. For those who like economic/industrial history of the USA.