American people and the Boom (1920s)

• 1911- Model T car costed $800

  1928- Model T car costed $295

  
  

  1920s- a Model T car was made every 10 seconds

  
  

  Ford employed half a million people; and payed the same wages to black and white people
• How did the car industry help other industries?

  Stimulated economic growth, and the introduction of assembly lines

  
  

  Examples included steel, rubber, oil, glass and leather. Construction industry was needed to build new roads

  Other consumer goods became more affordable, e.g radios, telephones, fridges, vacuum cleaners, washing machines and ovens. (this gave house-wives a lot more free time)

  
  

  Wages for industrial workers grew by 26% during the 1920s, unemployment dropped vastly
• What was government involvement?

  Due to the "laissez-faire" policy: not much (no control on industries)

  They put lowered taxes on incomes so products were even more affordable

  
  

  If a person was unable to afford a product, they were also able to pay on instalments
• Advertisements became even more relevant after their introduction during World War 1.

  There were poster and radio adverts, and travelling salesmen who encouraged people to buy the new goods available.
• A boosting economy encouraged lots of people to invest large amounts of their money in shares as at the time they would've mainly been making profits.
• What was the Fordney-McCumber Tariff, 1922?


  Taxes put on foreign goods into America: making those goods very expensive. This encouraged Americans to only buy American products.

  However, other countries did the same making it difficult to export American goods
• What were some key features of The Roaring Twenties?

  -dancing became increasingly popular: this lead to further development of music. Jazz music became increasingly popular, which had developed from early types of black music (Louis Armstrong, a black man, was a very famous jazz musician)

  -in 1926, 40% of households had a radio which could be used to advertise new goods

  -films became increasingly popular: in 1927 "The Jazz Singer" became the first full length talking film. 110 million Americans went to the cinema every week, and nearly ever town had a cinema.
• How did the role of women change during the 1920s?


  -Many young women were known as flappers: they wore make-up, smoked cigarettes and drove cars

  -an Anti-Flirt Association was set up to try to control the "wild" young people, as they thought flappers were acting immorally.

  -after WW1, women were given the vote as they'd done men's jobs during the war (proving they'd deserved it); however very few women entered politics.

  -Most women still had menial jobs (cleaners, maids, waitresses), and were paid much less. There was an increase in women nurses and teachers, but few lawyers and doctors.
• Introduction of birth control meant women could have fewer children: but women were still expected to clean the house and look after their husbands and children. However- they still had more free time due to the popularity of washing machines and vacuums.

  The divorce rate doubled too- exemplifying women's increasing rights.

  10 million women had jobs by 1929.
• What problems did farmers face?

  Drought, pests, low crop prices, debt.

  Half of Americans were involved in farming. Farmers were able to grow significantly more crops due to better technology: however they grew so much the prices of their goods fell.

  Reduced prices meant farmers made less money and by 1924 600,000 farmers had lost their farms.

  Diseases were common due to poor living conditions and most lived in shacks, with no electricity or running water.

  This meant many farmers moved to work on fruit farms instead
• Similarly, in coal industries too much coal was produced- significantly decreasing its value. The same thing happened in cotton and textile industries.

  In the 1920s 60% of people lived below the poverty line
• The Role of Black people:

  1 million black people had lost their jobs in the 1920s, and they had been the lowest paid people.

  Black people struggled to find jobs due to racism and they were uneducated and untrained. Many were farm labourers. However, white people were still convinced they would take their jobs- causing race riots.

  Jim Crow Laws were also still very relevant, especially in the southern states- and there was a lot of segregation
• When was prohibition first introduced?

  January 1920

  
  

  The Volstead Act said drinks with over 0.5% alcohol was illegal
• What were the key reasons for Prohibition?

  Alcohol abuse, breaking up marriages, crime and insanity

  During WW1 half the states banned alcohol saying that it was immoral to get drunk while young men were risking their lives in Europe.
• Why did Prohibition fail?

  -Moonshine was popular and it often lead to illness and death

  -alcohol was too popular and too profitable

  -Prohibition Bureau employed 4,000 agents to stop bootlegging and close speakeasies: however there was a dire shortage meaning they were incredibly unsuccessful (too much land to cover and they could be bribed: 10% of agents were sacked for accepting bribery)

  -in 1930 there were 30,000 speakeasies

  -The demand for alcohol created an influx in business for criminals (rival gangs often fought to supply alcohol)
• In the 1800s, there was lots of immigration to America as it was known as the "land of oppurtunity"

  By 1850-1914 over 40 million Europeans moved to America; however the policy of Containment limited immigrants.

  Americans were worried as immigrants would work for less money, so were more likely to get employed. They also believed immigrants would bring new political ideas with them- e.g socialism and communism.

  Immigrants were only allowed to do the worst paid jobs: so they lived in poor conditions.
• What were the immigration laws?

  1917 Literacy Test: The poor who couldn't speak english well weren't allowed in

  1921 Immigration Quota Act:

  -no more than 357,000 immigrants allowed each year

  1929: no more than 150,000 immigrants allowed annually
• Who, and what was the relevance of, Sacco and Vanzetti?

  Sacco and Vanzetti were Italian immigrants who were convicted and executed for a robbery and murder in the United States, in 1921.

  Their case became a symbol of injustice and prejudice against immigrants as the judge had been biased.

  Both were anarchists and hated the American government; but they didn't know if they were guilty or innocent (proof for both)
• The First Red Scare, 1917


  Communism had taken over Russia, following the Russian Civil War, in 1917. It's brutality scared people and made them think communism would do the same thing to America.

  
  

  10,000 people were arrested and held without trial
• The Klu Klux Klan:

  -Believed the WASPS were superior, as they were the only "true" Americans

  1920: 100,000 members

  1925: 5 million members

  -the KKK were usually not punished for their actions because policemen and judges were often members
• The Republican Party:

  -more likely to preserve traditions: conservative

  -followed "laissez-faire" policy

  -didn't support high taxes (in favour for rich and business people)
• The Democratic Party:

  -interferes in everyday life if necessary

  -favours helping the more vulnerable (poor and elderly)

  -more liberal (prepared to change things)
• What was the Bill of Rights?

  -early 1790s: guarantees Americans a series of freedoms and rights (e.g. right to vote, freedom of belief)

  However in 1919 many states refused to recognise the vote of women, African Americans and American Indians
• The Role of the Republican government:

  -Fordney-McCumber Tarrif, 1922

  -had cut taxes paid by rich people (and their companies). Therefore, rich people invested more money to start more businesses, creating new jobs

  -taxes were low in general, so people had more money to spend

  -"laissez-faire" policy meant the businesses were left alone to get on with creating wealth
• The consumer society: 


  -the number of US homes with electricity grew rapidly in the 1920s, from 15% in 1916 to nearly 70% in 1927

  -this meant more bought "gadgets"

  -huge demands for these goods created jobs in the factories that made them
• The Car industry:


  -boosted US economy

  -used large quantities of US steel, leather, rubber and glass --> so these industries were benefited too (more jobs)

  -many American businesses used the mass production methods developed in the motor industry: so companies got quicker at manufacturing, and their jobs became cheaper
• New ways to buy and sell:

  -colourful billboards, newspapers, magazines --> higher appeal

  -people wanting to keep up (with neighbors)

  -catalogues made buying easy --> goods delivered to doors

  -"hire purchase plans" means buyers could pay for goods in small installments over a fixed period: making them more affordable.

  60% of cars were bought this way
• For every refrigerator in 1921, there were 167 by 1929
• 1919: 10 million telephones

  1929: 20 million telephones
• 1926: there were nearly 20 million cars, half of which was a Ford
• The inequalities of wealth in the 1920s:

  -the richest 5% of the country earned 33% of all the money

  -in the countryside: 600,000 farmers lost their jobs in 1924 alone

  -traditional companies: coal mines closed as oil, gas and electricity were used

  -african americans: many worked on farms as labourers or were sharecroppers (rented small areas of farmland from a landowner) --> were very poor

  -american indians: much of their land had been seized by mining companies. Were forced to live in reservations, however soil was so poor it was hard to grow crops. Lived in poverty, were uneducated
• 1920: women received the right to vote

  1929: 10.5 million with jobs
• 1920s flappers: their liberal attitude shocked more traditional members of society, who saw flappers as an example of the evils of modern life

  Felt that family life, religion and traditional values were under threat
• The impact of prohibition on society:

  -by 1933, it was clear that Prohibition wasn't working

  -the AAPA (Association Against the Prohibition Amendment) attracted thousands of members, who argued Prohibition was a threat to a person's right to choose to drink, and that it was making people loose respect for the law

  -was argued if alcohol was legalised, there would may many jobs created in the brewing industry

  -the government could also tax alcohol, so the government would make money rather than the gangsters
• 1933: Roosevelt repealed Prohibition

  Roosevelt had gained many votes in 1932 because he opposed Prohibition
• The decline of the Klu Klux Klan:

  1925, a popular local Klan leader was convicted of the brutal kidnapping, rape and murder of a young woman. At his trial, he exposed many of secrets of the KKK. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, and within a year KKK members dropped from 5 million to 300,000
• Importance of Sacco and Vanzetti trials:

  -had been a symbol of injustice and prejudice against immigrants as the judge had been biased.

  -the trial was reported all over the world and there were huge demonstrations against the verdict

  -despite years of protests and appeals, the two men were executed in 1927