While Clara Kelley is a fictional character, Andrew Carnegie is not. The novel depicts him as a contradictory personality, combining the traits of avarice and altruism. In real life, Carnegie could be both benevolent and tyrannical. The contradictions in his temperament are portrayed accurately in Carnegie’s Maid and reflect the known facts of his life. Carnegie devoted the first half of his life to building a business empire by ruthlessly crushing anyone who got in his way. A few examples of this disturbing behavior are the Johnstown Flood of 1889, for which he was partially responsible, and the Homestead Strike of 1892. In contrast, Carnegie’s later years were devoted to founding charities and building libraries. He was also a pacifist during an age when American foreign policy favored imperialism.

Over the course of his life, Carnegie donated $350 million to various charitable causes. As the novel indicates in the Prologue, the tycoon drafted a statement of his future plans in 1868, outlining his intention to retire at the age of 35 and spend the rest of his life engaged in philanthropy. The novel emphasizes the role that private libraries played in helping Carnegie rise from poverty as a youth.