The 'Roaring Twenties'

What were the 3 industries that boomed during the 1920s?

1) Radio - NBC was making $150 million by annually by 1929

2) Music - 'Jazz Age'

3) Cinema - Talking movies arrived in 1927, making Hollywood even more popular

What were 2 things that the 'Roaring Twenties' changed?

1) Views on sex and morality

2) Car ownership - manufacturers were turning out around 1.5 million annually and >7 million vehicles were registered in 1922

What were the factors of the economic boom? (8)

1) Republican policies

2) World War 1

3) Resources and transportation networks

4) New industries + new methods

5) The car

6) Mass consumption

7) A state of mind

8) Wall Street

What were the 4 Republican Policies shaped by Warren Harding?

1) Laissez-faire: policy that left bussinessmen free to do their jobs without government inteference. This is where prosperity came from

2) Protective tariffs: imposed import tariffs which made it expensive to sell foreign goods. E.g., in 1922, the Fordneu-McCumber tariff made imported food expensive in the US

3) Low taxation: doing this led Republicans to believe that citizens would spend their money on US goods and the rich would invest in industries

4) Powerful trusts: these were huge coorporations that dominated industry as they were thought to have known better for US businesses e.g., Andrew Carnegie (steel) and John D. Rockefeller (oil)

Who succeeded Warren Harding?

Calvin Coolidge, who shared a lot of Hoover's policies

Name 3 ways that World War 1 boosted America's economy

1) Supplying weapons and equipment to the allies

2) Loaning money to the allies

3) They overtook industries dominated by countries that had their trade, industry and exports damaged by the war

How did Rockefeller make money by exploiting resources?

He was the boss of Standard Oil; oil was taking over from coal as the main fuel and car ownership increased. Rockefeller gradually bought multiple smaller oil companies to make one big oil company

How did Carnegie make money by exploiting resources?

He made his money from steel which was needed for cars and skyscrapers

How did Mellon make his money?

His had an eye for successful businesses and his financial backing helped the growth of aluminium (light and strong so useul for cars) and electricity (aircraft, cars, appliances)

What were the principles that many companies adopted in the 1920s?

The principles of the Efficiency Movement which was based on the theory that companies would be more effective if they eliminated factors that eliminated time/resources and a lot of money was invested to identify these factors

What did these principles lead to?

Many companies exploited resources like steel and glass. This meant they could mass produce meaning that more people could buy more goods for cheaper. Luxury items like stockings (12,000 bought in in 1900) became more common (300 million in 1930)

How did the production of cars evolve?

They used to take a long time to make (only 4,000 made in 1900) but Henry Ford set up a moving production line in 1913 where one or two workers would have small jobs to work on each part of a skeleton car. In 1929, 4.8 million Ford cars were made. By the end of the 1920s, cars became the USA's biggest industry

How did other vehicles and companies boost the vehicle industry? (2)

1) Between Ford, Chrysler and General Motors, 29 million cars were sold between them by 1929

2) Small manufacturers making other vehicles e.g., trucks (1 million in 1919 -> 3.5 million in 1929)

How else did the production of cars boost the economy in ways unrelated to cars itself? (3)

1) Cars accounted for 75% of the glass industry in the 1920s, as well as other industries like steel and leather also improving.

2) People getting hired to make the cars as well as working in the industries that cars need

3) There was 1 car to every 5 people encouraging people to buy houses in the suburbs, improving the house-building business

How did companies use marketing to encourage mass consumption across the country? (4)

1) Mass nationwide advertising e.g., radio, magazines, travelling salesmen

2) Mail Order e.g., iin 1928 almost one third of Americans bought goods from Sears, Roebuck and Company catologues

3) Credit e.g., 6 out of 10 cars were bought on credit

4) Chain stores

How did the state of mind of Americans affect consumerism?

Americans felt they were entitled to having a nice house with the latest consumer products and they had faith in businesses and felt they could buy things on credit

How did investing boost the economy?

Unlike before, ordinary people could invest and buy shares in companies. They could sometimes make more money investing than working an ordinary job. The stock market supported businesses and businesses supported the stock market

What did it mean to 'buy on the margin'?

Buying stocks using borrowed money then returning it once you'd made a profit

How did the figures of investment change?

4 million in 1920 -> 20 million/150 million in 1929

What groups didn't share in the economic boom? (3)

1) Farmers

2) Workers in traditional industries

3) The unemployed and the poor

How much did the total US farm income fall by and why? (4)

$22 billion in 1919 to $13 billion in 1928 because:

1) Declining exports: Europe was poor +W tarrifs

2) New competitors: e..g., Canadian wheat farmers + the decline in the US population

3) Overproduction: more efficient farming led to a surplus in food

4) Falling prices: in a rush to sell their food, most farm prices dropped ny 50% in 1921 alone

Which of the farmers weren't negatively affected and which were?

Rich people wanted fresh food so plenty of vegetables and fruit was shipped up north. However, 6 million farmers were forced off their land in the 1920s, with African Americans were badly hit with 750,000 becoming unemployed as they didn't get a chance to obtain a high skill set.

What did the government do to help farmers?

Tried to implement protective tariffs but other industries demanded similar protection so it couldn't work.

How were workers in traditional industries affected?

Industries like coal and cotton collapsed as they were swiftly being replaced. Skilled workers could not compete with machines or cheap labour in the south.

What did the government do to help these workers?

They placed tariffs on foreign imports but these were not growth markets. As a result, the workers were inclined to unionize which didn't bode well with the big industries and newspapers

How were the unemployed and the poor affected?

The growth in industry did not create new jobs as many of the companies were mechanising/electrifying production. The percentage of unemployment remained the same in 1929 as it was in 1920. This meant they could not participate in the consumerism of the 1920s which was a main reason for the boom in the first place

What did the government do to help the unemployed and poor?

They did not do anything due to their policy of not wanting to intefere.

What were the changes made in the 1920s? (4)

1) Women's movements and the vote

2) Politicial empowerment

3) Employment opportunities

4) Freedom

How did women strive to improve their lives in the 1920s?

1) The National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) took part in military and civilian organisations during the war

2) The National Woman's Party (NWP) organised demonstrations outside the White House

When were women allowed the vote?

1920, the 19th Amendment was passed under Woodrow Wilson

How did women continue to strive for change after being given the vote?

NAWSA offered women training on how to use their vote wisely. It put forward 600 legislations for women's health, working conditions, legal rights etc, of which 300 were accepted

What was the Sheppard-Towner Act 1921?

Morris Sheppard and Horace Towner worked to improve womens healthcare as well as maternity and children's healthcare. Around 3,000 child and maternal health centres were created and once the act was through Congress it was a significant achievement - especially during the laissez-faire era - but it was still seriously underfunded and not introduced in all states

How did political empowerment change?

Many women gained polticial education e.g., Eleanor Roosevelt. They supported moves like improved education, health care, and prohibition

How did the war affect employment opportunities for women?

More women took up traditional 'men's roles' and taking up jobs like nursing and stenography. Also there was more time to work due to the rise in electric goods. There were 10 million women in paid employment in 1929 which was 24% more than in 1920

How did more money liberate the women of the 1920s?

More of their own money meant they were free to buy whatever they liked as well being the targets of advertising. Also traditional behavioural rules were eased and women were less likely to stay in unhappy marriages

What were the continuing limitations for women in the 1920s? (3)

1) Work: unequal pay + lack of opportunities compared to men

2) Politics: Women were not wanted as political candidates

3) At home: movies of passionate and adventurous lives were misleading