Unit 5 Vocabulary: WWI through World War II

Vocabulary terms and definitions from Unit 5 covering Standards 15 through 19: World War I, the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, the New Deal, and World War II.

Isolationism

A policy of avoiding political or military involvement with other countries.

Treaty of Versailles

The treaty that ended World War I; it blamed Germany for the war and handed down harsh punishment.

League of Nations

An international organization formed in 1920 to promote cooperation and peace among nations, championed by Woodrow Wilson.

Fourteen Points

A series of proposals in which U.S. President Woodrow Wilson outlined a plan for achieving a lasting peace after World War I.

Zimmerman Telegram

A coded message sent by Germany attempting to get Mexico to attack the United States.

The Sinking of The Lusitania

An event where a German submarine sank a civilian cruise liner carrying American citizens on board; one of the reasons the U.S. became involved in World War I.

Red Scare

A series of events that led to the suspicion of communist activities in America.

18th Amendment

The constitutional amendment prohibiting the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol, established due to alcohol abuse, domestic violence, and poverty.

19th Amendment

The constitutional amendment granting women the right to vote.

Henry Ford

Industrialist who created the Model T using the assembly line, helping increase consumerism through mass-producing cheap and efficient cars.

Harlem Renaissance

A period in the 1920s when African American achievements in art, music, and literature flourished.

The Great Migration

The migration of African Americans from the South to Northern cities in search of jobs.

Jazz Age

A name for the 1920s reflecting the popularity of jazz, a new genre of American music combining African rhythms, blues, and ragtime.

Louis Armstrong

Influential musician who helped spread jazz music, which originated in New Orleans, to the North.

Black Tuesday

October 29, 1929; the date of the Wall Street Stock Market Crash.

The Dust Bowl

A prolonged period of severe drought that devastated the Great Plains.

Causes of the Great Depression

A combination of problems in industry, problems in agriculture, an increase in consumer debt, uneven income distribution, poor investment, and a lack of government help.

Hoovervilles

Shantytowns built by unemployed citizens in cities during the early years of the Depression; named to directly blame President Herbert Hoover for the economic crisis.

Huey Long

Elected Governor of Louisiana in 1928, known as a polarizing political figure whom people either loved or hated.

Espionage Act

A law passed during World War I aimed at punishing spies and imprisoning people who spoke out against the war.

Chicago, New York, Philadelphia

Common northern destination cities for African Americans during the Great Migration.

Eugene Debs

American Socialist arrested under the Espionage and Sedition Acts for speaking out publicly against American involvement in World War I.

Selective Service Act

A law passed by Congress in 1917 requiring all men between the ages of 21 and 30 to register for the military draft.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Elected President of the United States in 1932; architect of the New Deal.

The New Deal

A legislative program launched by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during his first 100 days to provide economic relief, recovery, and reforms following the Great Depression.

Court Packing Bill

FDR's proposal to appoint additional, younger judges to the U.S. Supreme Court after the court repeatedly struck down his anti-Depression measures.

Pearl Harbor

U.S. naval base in Hawaii bombed by Japan on December 7, 1941, provoking American entry into World War II.

Lend-Lease Act

Legislation granting the U.S. government authority to loan military arms and supplies to Great Britain during World War II.

Japanese Internment Camps

Detention facilities established within the United States during World War II to guard against the perceived threat of Japanese espionage.

Manhattan Project

The secret government research project dedicated to designing and building the first atomic bomb during World War II.

War Bonds

Short-term loans made by individual citizens to the federal government, funding two-thirds of the total cost of World War II.

Victory Gardens

Home vegetable gardens planted by citizens during the war to conserve commercial food supplies and free up food shipments for the troops.

Rationing

A system used to allocate scarce goods and services based on non-price criteria.

Rosie the Riveter

A propaganda character created to encourage women to work in defense factories; served as an enduring symbol of women doing their civic duty.

A. Philip Randolph

Leader of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters who planned a 1,000-person March on Washington for equal wartime employment access, later canceled following the issuance of Executive Order 8802.

The Fall of Berlin

The conclusive military engagement in the European Theater that ended World War II in Europe.

D-Day

June 6, 1944; Allied military operation led by General Dwight D. Eisenhower landing over one million troops on the beaches of Normandy, France, serving as the turning point of the war in Europe.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

A New Deal initiative providing jobs and land to 2.5 million citizens while delivering low-cost housing, cheap nitrates, soil conservation, and inexpensive hydroelectric power.

Social Security Act

A 1935 act providing guaranteed retirement income to covered workers starting at age 65, while setting up unemployment insurance, public health programs, and aid for dependent mothers, children, and people with disabilities.

Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)

New Deal legislation that regulated agricultural output to raise overall farm income.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

A relief program employing young men ages 18 to 25 in soil conservation, flood control, tree planting, and other public works projects.

Battle of Midway

The critical turning point in the Pacific Theater during World War II, resulting in the destruction of 4 Japanese aircraft carriers and 322 destroyers.

Island Hopping

The Pacific military strategy of capturing key enemy-occupied islands while bypassing heavily fortified ones to advance toward Japan.