USA: The Boom
1921: Wilson was replaced by Harding, the first republican president of the 1920’s 1929-1933: Herbert Hoover
1923-1929: Calvin Coolidge 1933-1945: Franklin D. Roosevelt
What was the Boom? Why did the USA boom?
• Refers to economic success of the USA in the 1920's • Industrial strength: raw materials, electricity, industries: Steel coal
• Businesses grew quickly, cheaper ways to manufacture goods textile, most efficient agriculture, huge market
• Access to services such as radios, refrigerators, motor cars • WWI: lent money & supplies to the allies, aircrafts improved, biggest
• Companies made big profits & people invested to get a share of those suppliers of chemical products, didn't drain resources
profits • Republican policies: Laissez-faire, protective tariffs, low taxation,
• The Skyscraper became the symbol of the boom powerful trusts
• New Industries & methods: exploited vast resources, mass production,
cheaper goods
• State of mind: right to prosperity, confidence to invest, mass
The roaring twenties: consumption
Boom: people have time, money, cars (social effect)
Sports leagues: Radio: Jazz age: Cinema:
- People have cars and can - 1922: 508 state - Jelly Roll Morton - Hollywood golden age
view basketball, boxing radio stations - Crossover to white society - 1927: first ‘talkie’
matches… - 100 million tickets sold
- Women attend clubs each week
- Change in moral culture: on screen kisses, women could go out alone, increase in divorce
(Back clash from traditional rural communities)
Which industries didn’t boom? The motor car industry:
• Farming: income from $22 billion to $13 billion 1919-28 - Henry Ford: car manufacturers
- decling exports - Model 'T' Ford: affordable for everyone (Price in 1928: $295)
- over production, Sold for 50% -> bankrupcy & unemployment - Slow, ugly, difficult to drive yet 10’000’000 ford cars sold
• Coal: overproduction as people are using other power sources - Mass produced, every part was standardised
- Wages as low as $2.50 / day - 1909: 950 employees payed $5 /day, Worked from 9-8
• Leather + shoe making: skilled people replaced by machinery -> unemployment - Created jobs, used raw materials: steel, glass, rubber, leather
• Iron & Steel: production fell by 59%, In 4 years car sales cut by 75%. - By the end of the 1920s, 7 billion gallons of petrol was used a
• Textiles: 75% firms losing money year. This made the oil state of Texas rich
- 1 in 12 workers were linked to motor car production
- 1929: 1 car for every 5 Americans
42% of Americans live below the poverty line
Imbalance of income distribution → 1925: 10% of income to the poorest
Exam style question:
Why did the USA boom in the 1920s?
The boom in the USA refers to the economic success of the USA in the 1920s. Many businesses and industries expanded and found cheaper ways of
manufacturing goods through mass production. As a result people had more time and money to spend. The USA boomed due to many factors such as their
state of mind, republican policies and their industrial strength.
Firstly, one of the most significant factors contributing to the economic boom of the 1920s . The USA’s republican presidents, Warren G. Harding, Calvin
Coolidge and Herbert Hoover along with the US government established multiple republican policies such as ‘Laissez-faire’. Republicans believed that the
government should interfere as little as possible in people’s everyday lives and leave businesses and people alone to do their jobs. The government also set up
protective tariffs, which made it expensive to import foreign goods. This not only protected businesses against foreign competition and allowed American
companies to grow even faster, but made sure the US economy was independent of other countries. Moveover, taxes were kept as low as possible because if
people had lots of money, they could spend it on American goods or reinvest it in industries.The Revenue Act of 1926 slashed the top marginal income tax rate
from 58% to 25%, allowing for businesses to expand. Finally, trusts were huge. Super-corporations which dominated industry were opposed by democrats as
they thought a single person shouldn’t have complete control of a vital sector of industry, but the republicans let the trusts do whatever they wanted. This
allowed greater freedom for businesses to operate. Many admired how Americans got on with solving their own problems.
Secondly, the USA’s industrial strength allowed the economy to boom. The USA was rich in many natural resources such as steel, coal and oil. As the
majority of its growing population lived in towns and cities, working in commerce and industry paid higher wages than farming. This meant that most US
companies didn’t need to export as the market was large enough and didn’t need to import as all of the resources they needed were available. Furthermore, due
to rapid industrialization, new electrical goods such as cars, radios and refrigerators became very popular. Industries learnt how to mass produce these goods,
making them more affordable. This led to more people buying them and industries getting rich fast. Besides, improvements in industrial strategies led to
American agriculture being the most efficient and productive in the world.
In conclusion, due to republican policies and industrial strength and strategies, the USA had huge economic success, its GNP increasing by 4.2% between
1920-1929.
, US society in the 1920s
Immigrants: Black American's:
- Statue of Liberty welcomed immigrants to Ellis island - 1863: Slavory was abolished
- Millions arrived from Europe: over 8 million 1901-1910, mostly from the - Discrimination: in 1900, 12 mil black Americans in the USA, 75%
UK & central eastern Europe lived in the South
- Before WWI the USA had an ‘open door’ policy that let almost anyone
move there → Segregation, Jim Grow Laws (up to 1960), no mixed marriages or
- The most powerful & wealthy people at the time were WASPs (white mixed business partnerships, no schools for different races, “seats
Anglo-Saxon protestants). They believed: reserved for white people”, made it difficult for African Americans to
- People such as anarchists and communists were coming into the vote
USA and undermining the American way of life • because of this many black Americans moved to the North
- They were also alarmed by the number of Asian, Catholic and Black neighborhoods = ghettos
Jewish people who were entering the USA
- 20s: led to negative altitudes, job concerns & concerns about crime
- From 1917 immigrants had to pass a literacy test to enter
- Life expectantly was 11 years behind whites, violence against black
- 1919: 400’000 workers went on strike because of economic hardship people
- There were radical immigrants who gave out anarchist leaflets and in may • Poorest education & housing facilities
1919 there were bomb attacks on politicians • 350’000 black people served in segregation units in WWI
- 1919-20: FBI had files on thousands of workers and 100’000 were
threatened with deportation
- Sacco’s & Vanzetti’s trial (1919) highlighted issues for immigrants UNIA: formed by Marcus Garvey in 1914
Represented prejudice against immigrants. They were convicted of murder - Encouraged black people to set up their own businesses, only black
and robbery
employees
- The prosecution did not focus on case facts but S’s and V’s
status as immigrants and anarchists (persuasive in the Red Scare) - 1 million members
- The judge was openly prejudice, saying even if they were not NAACP: by William du Bois
actually guilty, their beliefs made them a state enemy - Opposed racism & segregation through legal action & non-violent
- In 1927 they were executed to an international outcry strikes & marches
- 90’000 members
• 1924: government introduced.a quota system that reduced immigration
to 150’000
• 1929: only northen European's allowed
The Ku Klux Klan
- Racist group founded by believers of white
Supremacy
- WASP: White anglo-saxon protestants
- By 1921 it had over I mil members
- By 1925: KKK membership had grown to 4 million
- Targeted foreigners, divorces, coloured, catholics &
jews The Monkey trail:
- Activities: lynchings, whippings, branding &
castration 1920s: rise of fundamentalisms: people who believed exactly what was written in the
bible
They weren’t stopped because of their influence and - The southern states were called the ‘Bible Belt’. They were traditionally religious
fear: - They passed laws against wearing ‘indecent’ bathing suits, gambling on a
• Klan members often had friends in high places Sunday…
• People were intimidated by them and too scared to 1925: 6 states in the South passed law banning teaching of evolution / Darwinism as
try and stop them they thought it contradicted the Bible
• Many policemen, judges, officials were Klans men 1925: John Scopes was a science teacher. He taught darwinism -> went to court in July
• Government was scared of losing white votes if 1925
they supported blacks • First case to be on live radio
• White judge, white jury, white public sentiment, • Courtroom packed with newsmen
white officers of law… • Scopes was obviously guilty, so they argued on the theory of evolution
• Clarence Darrow defended Scopes without a fee
• Scopes was found guilty and fined $100
• Victory for Darrow, Bryan, leader of the prosecution was humiliated
Prohibition:
• The 18th amendment to the constitution
• A law called the Volstead act introduced in the USA
in January 1920 Why was it introduced?
• It banned the manufacture, sale and transport of • it already existed in many States due to moral reasons and fundamentalism
alcohol • Campaigners like the anti-saloon (bar) League of America
• The Federal government had the power to enforce this • The first world war
law
1921: Wilson was replaced by Harding, the first republican president of the 1920’s 1929-1933: Herbert Hoover
1923-1929: Calvin Coolidge 1933-1945: Franklin D. Roosevelt
What was the Boom? Why did the USA boom?
• Refers to economic success of the USA in the 1920's • Industrial strength: raw materials, electricity, industries: Steel coal
• Businesses grew quickly, cheaper ways to manufacture goods textile, most efficient agriculture, huge market
• Access to services such as radios, refrigerators, motor cars • WWI: lent money & supplies to the allies, aircrafts improved, biggest
• Companies made big profits & people invested to get a share of those suppliers of chemical products, didn't drain resources
profits • Republican policies: Laissez-faire, protective tariffs, low taxation,
• The Skyscraper became the symbol of the boom powerful trusts
• New Industries & methods: exploited vast resources, mass production,
cheaper goods
• State of mind: right to prosperity, confidence to invest, mass
The roaring twenties: consumption
Boom: people have time, money, cars (social effect)
Sports leagues: Radio: Jazz age: Cinema:
- People have cars and can - 1922: 508 state - Jelly Roll Morton - Hollywood golden age
view basketball, boxing radio stations - Crossover to white society - 1927: first ‘talkie’
matches… - 100 million tickets sold
- Women attend clubs each week
- Change in moral culture: on screen kisses, women could go out alone, increase in divorce
(Back clash from traditional rural communities)
Which industries didn’t boom? The motor car industry:
• Farming: income from $22 billion to $13 billion 1919-28 - Henry Ford: car manufacturers
- decling exports - Model 'T' Ford: affordable for everyone (Price in 1928: $295)
- over production, Sold for 50% -> bankrupcy & unemployment - Slow, ugly, difficult to drive yet 10’000’000 ford cars sold
• Coal: overproduction as people are using other power sources - Mass produced, every part was standardised
- Wages as low as $2.50 / day - 1909: 950 employees payed $5 /day, Worked from 9-8
• Leather + shoe making: skilled people replaced by machinery -> unemployment - Created jobs, used raw materials: steel, glass, rubber, leather
• Iron & Steel: production fell by 59%, In 4 years car sales cut by 75%. - By the end of the 1920s, 7 billion gallons of petrol was used a
• Textiles: 75% firms losing money year. This made the oil state of Texas rich
- 1 in 12 workers were linked to motor car production
- 1929: 1 car for every 5 Americans
42% of Americans live below the poverty line
Imbalance of income distribution → 1925: 10% of income to the poorest
Exam style question:
Why did the USA boom in the 1920s?
The boom in the USA refers to the economic success of the USA in the 1920s. Many businesses and industries expanded and found cheaper ways of
manufacturing goods through mass production. As a result people had more time and money to spend. The USA boomed due to many factors such as their
state of mind, republican policies and their industrial strength.
Firstly, one of the most significant factors contributing to the economic boom of the 1920s . The USA’s republican presidents, Warren G. Harding, Calvin
Coolidge and Herbert Hoover along with the US government established multiple republican policies such as ‘Laissez-faire’. Republicans believed that the
government should interfere as little as possible in people’s everyday lives and leave businesses and people alone to do their jobs. The government also set up
protective tariffs, which made it expensive to import foreign goods. This not only protected businesses against foreign competition and allowed American
companies to grow even faster, but made sure the US economy was independent of other countries. Moveover, taxes were kept as low as possible because if
people had lots of money, they could spend it on American goods or reinvest it in industries.The Revenue Act of 1926 slashed the top marginal income tax rate
from 58% to 25%, allowing for businesses to expand. Finally, trusts were huge. Super-corporations which dominated industry were opposed by democrats as
they thought a single person shouldn’t have complete control of a vital sector of industry, but the republicans let the trusts do whatever they wanted. This
allowed greater freedom for businesses to operate. Many admired how Americans got on with solving their own problems.
Secondly, the USA’s industrial strength allowed the economy to boom. The USA was rich in many natural resources such as steel, coal and oil. As the
majority of its growing population lived in towns and cities, working in commerce and industry paid higher wages than farming. This meant that most US
companies didn’t need to export as the market was large enough and didn’t need to import as all of the resources they needed were available. Furthermore, due
to rapid industrialization, new electrical goods such as cars, radios and refrigerators became very popular. Industries learnt how to mass produce these goods,
making them more affordable. This led to more people buying them and industries getting rich fast. Besides, improvements in industrial strategies led to
American agriculture being the most efficient and productive in the world.
In conclusion, due to republican policies and industrial strength and strategies, the USA had huge economic success, its GNP increasing by 4.2% between
1920-1929.
, US society in the 1920s
Immigrants: Black American's:
- Statue of Liberty welcomed immigrants to Ellis island - 1863: Slavory was abolished
- Millions arrived from Europe: over 8 million 1901-1910, mostly from the - Discrimination: in 1900, 12 mil black Americans in the USA, 75%
UK & central eastern Europe lived in the South
- Before WWI the USA had an ‘open door’ policy that let almost anyone
move there → Segregation, Jim Grow Laws (up to 1960), no mixed marriages or
- The most powerful & wealthy people at the time were WASPs (white mixed business partnerships, no schools for different races, “seats
Anglo-Saxon protestants). They believed: reserved for white people”, made it difficult for African Americans to
- People such as anarchists and communists were coming into the vote
USA and undermining the American way of life • because of this many black Americans moved to the North
- They were also alarmed by the number of Asian, Catholic and Black neighborhoods = ghettos
Jewish people who were entering the USA
- 20s: led to negative altitudes, job concerns & concerns about crime
- From 1917 immigrants had to pass a literacy test to enter
- Life expectantly was 11 years behind whites, violence against black
- 1919: 400’000 workers went on strike because of economic hardship people
- There were radical immigrants who gave out anarchist leaflets and in may • Poorest education & housing facilities
1919 there were bomb attacks on politicians • 350’000 black people served in segregation units in WWI
- 1919-20: FBI had files on thousands of workers and 100’000 were
threatened with deportation
- Sacco’s & Vanzetti’s trial (1919) highlighted issues for immigrants UNIA: formed by Marcus Garvey in 1914
Represented prejudice against immigrants. They were convicted of murder - Encouraged black people to set up their own businesses, only black
and robbery
employees
- The prosecution did not focus on case facts but S’s and V’s
status as immigrants and anarchists (persuasive in the Red Scare) - 1 million members
- The judge was openly prejudice, saying even if they were not NAACP: by William du Bois
actually guilty, their beliefs made them a state enemy - Opposed racism & segregation through legal action & non-violent
- In 1927 they were executed to an international outcry strikes & marches
- 90’000 members
• 1924: government introduced.a quota system that reduced immigration
to 150’000
• 1929: only northen European's allowed
The Ku Klux Klan
- Racist group founded by believers of white
Supremacy
- WASP: White anglo-saxon protestants
- By 1921 it had over I mil members
- By 1925: KKK membership had grown to 4 million
- Targeted foreigners, divorces, coloured, catholics &
jews The Monkey trail:
- Activities: lynchings, whippings, branding &
castration 1920s: rise of fundamentalisms: people who believed exactly what was written in the
bible
They weren’t stopped because of their influence and - The southern states were called the ‘Bible Belt’. They were traditionally religious
fear: - They passed laws against wearing ‘indecent’ bathing suits, gambling on a
• Klan members often had friends in high places Sunday…
• People were intimidated by them and too scared to 1925: 6 states in the South passed law banning teaching of evolution / Darwinism as
try and stop them they thought it contradicted the Bible
• Many policemen, judges, officials were Klans men 1925: John Scopes was a science teacher. He taught darwinism -> went to court in July
• Government was scared of losing white votes if 1925
they supported blacks • First case to be on live radio
• White judge, white jury, white public sentiment, • Courtroom packed with newsmen
white officers of law… • Scopes was obviously guilty, so they argued on the theory of evolution
• Clarence Darrow defended Scopes without a fee
• Scopes was found guilty and fined $100
• Victory for Darrow, Bryan, leader of the prosecution was humiliated
Prohibition:
• The 18th amendment to the constitution
• A law called the Volstead act introduced in the USA
in January 1920 Why was it introduced?
• It banned the manufacture, sale and transport of • it already existed in many States due to moral reasons and fundamentalism
alcohol • Campaigners like the anti-saloon (bar) League of America
• The Federal government had the power to enforce this • The first world war
law
