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Primary sourceDocument2 July 1890

Sherman Anti-Trust Act

2 July 1890

The 1890 federal law outlawing monopolies, later used by the government to break up Rockefeller's Standard Oil.

This law was used by the government to dismantle Rockefeller's Standard Oil monopoly in 1911.

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Handwritten enrolled manuscript of the Act of July 2, 1890, headed 'Fifty-first Congress of the United States of America; At the First Session' with the title 'An Act to protect trade and commerce against unlawful restraints and monopolies,' and the opening sections written in long-hand script.
Act of July 2, 1890 (Sherman Anti-Trust Act). National Archives.

About this source

What it is

This handwritten enrolled manuscript is the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, passed by the 51st Congress and signed into law in 1890. It is held at the U.S. National Archives.

Why it matters

The act was the first federal law banning monopolistic business practices, passed partly in response to trusts like Rockefeller's Standard Oil, which had come to dominate the oil industry. Although weakly enforced at first, the act was later used successfully against Standard Oil, leading to the company's breakup in 1911.

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