America Theme 4

What was the industrial effects of increased car ownership?

- Car factories expanded and employed more workers so
- They produce more spare parts so
- More raw materials are needed such as steel, rubber, glass and leather so
- This increased production in the raw materials industries so
- They employed more workers so
- Wages went up and car prices went down so
- More people could afford them so demand increased

What was the impact of increased car ownership on associated supplies?

- Cars needed petrol to run and mechanics to maintain them
- Mechanics' workshops and car dealerships sprang up along the roads often with filling stations attached

What was the impact of car ownership on roads?

- Roads were improved and expanded

How did the amount of roads change between 1917 and 1980?

1917- 2,925,000 miles of public road
1980- 3,860,000 miles of public road

How did the amount of people without a car change?

1960- 21.5%
1980- 12.1%

What was the impact of increased car ownership on mobility?

- People could travel more widely and there were more roads
- Diners and motels sprung up
- Cars helped people to travel the country faster and more cheaply than trains
- There was a rise in travelling salesmen who were able to travel over a wider area

What was the impact of increased car ownership on shopping?

- It allowed for the development of shopping malls with the first one opening worldwide in Minneapolis in 1956

How many motels were there in 1958?

56,000

How many malls were built between 1960 and 1980?

30,000

What was the impact of increased car ownership on entertainment?

- There were a growing number of national drive in restaurants chains as well as fast food chains
- Drive in theatres became popular particularly with teens though they only really worked in dry, warm climates

Why were fast food chains liked?

Because they were child friendly and you didn't have to dress up to attend

How many drive ins were there by 1954?

3800

What was the impact of increased car ownership on tourism?

- People could now make trips to major cities and go to attractions like Disneyland
- They could go to National Parks and camp over the weekend
- People began to look for their favourite fast food restaurants as they became nation wide chains

What problems did increased car ownership cause?

-Non car infrastructure began to shrink
- Rail travel was only convenient if you wanted to go to major cities and it was often expensive so not an option for the poor
- Buses carried millions of people but they were slow and often crowded
- Pollution became an issue as well as heavy traffic

What happened with air travel in 1915?

A seaplane flew from St Petersburg to Georgia carrying one passenger at a time for $5

What did the Kelly Act (1925) do for air travel?

It set out national routes for mail delivery
Many of the companies who were contracted to take the mail also put in seats for passengers

When was the first passenger airline guide?

1929 and it lists the schedules of 300 flights by 35 airlines

How long on average did it take for a travel agent to book a flight in 1940?

90 minutes because there were so many passengers trying to book seats on flights

When was the first pressurised compartment aeroplane?

1940

What did the start of the Cold War mean for air travel?

That the US were in competition with the USSR about who could make the fastest technological advancements

What did the end of WW2 mean for air travel?

It brought around lots of changes with first tanker design from the war being adapted to become the first US passenger jet (Boeing 707)

What happened in 1956?

2 passenger planes crashed over the Grand Canyon as a result of the increasing number of both aeroplanes and flights available

What was set up in 1958 and why?

The Federal Aviation Administration to run the air traffic control system and manage the needs of all the airlines

What happened with air travel in 1969?

The Boeing 747 had its first flight with 450 passengers

What did an increase in air travel lead to in the 70s?

Middle class people could now afford to fly so it was no longer restricted to the wealthy

How many Americans went abroad in 1970?

5,260,000

What happened with air travel in 1978?

The Airline Deregulation Act ended federal control over airlines which included ticket pricing, routes, buyouts and mergers
It meant that many airlines could lower their prices and cut services

What did the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 do?

It set the legal maximum of 40 hour work week
It also set a minimum wage and overtime rules

Why did some people not have access to leisure time in the 20s and 30s?

- The Depression meant that they wouldn't have the disposable income to spend on leisure activities
- Even in the times of prosperity, poor Americans wouldn't have had the time to spend on leisure activities
- Due to Jim Crow laws in the South, minorities might not have been able to access to facilities to enjoy these leisure activities

Why did leisure time increase in the 20s and 30s?

- Many workers settled into jobs with shorter hours and a higher hourly rate than pre war jobs
- Lower taxes meant that people had more take home pay
- The boom of automobiles meant that people could go further with their leisure time
- Prohibition led to speakeasies where people would gamble and drink illegally

How did the availability of the cinema change around the country in the 30s?

Big cities such as New York had hundreds of cinemas in a variety of sizes
However, in more rural areas there was a limited number by the 30s
In the South, the theatres were segregated either with separate cinemas or different seating areas

What did the expansion of the movie industry lead to in the 20s and 30s?

It created an employment boom for workers in the movie industry, the building industry and the service industries that fed and housed the workers

What did growing car ownership lead to in terms of leisure in 20s and 30s?

People could get to National Parks to camp and hike in a back to nature experience
People could also get to amusement parks for the day which were competing to have the best and scariest rollercoaster ride

How did spectator sports change in the 20s and 30s?

They increased rapidly and with the rise of radios more people wanted to be at the games rather than just listening to the radio

How did the Rose Bowl Stadium change from 1922 to 1928?

It was an American football stadium that originally had seats for 57000 in 1922 but it had to be enlarged in 1928 to 76,000

What sports could Americans watch in the 20s?

Professional Baseball
College football
Horse racing
Dog racing
Boxing
Basketball
Hockey

How did baseball change in the 20s and 30s?

It was the most popular spectator sport and radio broadcasts led to more people wanting to watch it
Baseball was organised into minor and major leagues

Who was the most popular baseball team in the 20s?

The New York Yankees due to their star player Babe Ruth
Attendance at games increased by almost a million for the year from 1917 to 1920

How did the WW2 change sports in the US?

National teams were told by Roosevelt to carry on playing for morale but many of the players went off to fight
Women took over their roles and formed their own sporting teams eg. the All American Girls Professional Baseball League played from 1943 to 1954

Who were white collar workers?

Office workers who were usually paid better and had shorter working hours than blue collar workers

Why did Americans have more money to spend on leisure in the 50s and 60s?

- There were paid holidays
- The 40 hour working week
- Wage regulation
- Labour saving devices
- Changes in manufacturing
- There were more white collar workers
- 40% of married women worked

What did the poor working families have access to in terms of leisure in the 50s and 60s?

- They could listen to sport on the radio or even buy cheap tickets to sports events or the movies
- The growth in relatively cheap fast food meant that people could afford to eat out occasionally

What leisure activities became popular in the 50s?

- Theme parks and waterparks
- Bowling alleys
- Golf courses
- Tennis courts
- Shopping malls

When did Disneyland open?

1955 in Anaheim Southern California

How did spectator sports change by the 80s?

The vast amount of spectator sports were televised so the attendance at games became reduced
All but the very poor had access to a television so they could watch the games for free rather than paying for a ticket

How much did the richest 1 percent control the country's wealth in 1949 compared to 1956?

1949- 20.8%
1956- 26%

What happened with the gap between the rich and poor in the 60s?

It became more marked

How did wages differ in 1968 vs 1978?

An average worker: $6370 a year to $ 12,962 a year
A CEO : $157,000 a year to $373,000

How did racial divisions impact the average family income in 1960?

White : $5835 a year
Black: $3230

How did government policy help with non white Americans struggling to get work?

It was limited but when it was passed it often led to black workers being hired for racial reasons rather than for their ability

What did the progression of black Americans in certain careers lead to?

A black middle class
27% of all black workers in 1970

How many Americans were living below the poverty line?

12% of white Americans
41% of non white Americans

What happened during the period of white migration to the suburbs in the 50s?

Non whites tended to migrate to the cities where they lived in run down conditions

What was Housing Commissioner Roger Starr's policy?

'Planned shrinkage'
He closed subway stations, police stations, fire stations and schools in the rundown areas in the hope of reducing their population

What was the impact of Starr's policy?

It actually worsened the problem he was trying to fix

What did Johnson's Great Society policies establish?

It established an independent agency with staff of over 120 and a budget of over $960 million

What was the impact of the Great Society policies?

It caused Congress to extend social welfare to cover more people and pay out more benefits
It caused people to complain at the end of the 60s that it was encouraging people to stay on welfare rather than helping them out of poverty

What were CAPs?

Community Action Projects
They collected data on the biggest local problems and presented projects to fix them

What was the impact of CAPs?

One successful project was against high infant mortality in Memphis and it was extended across the country

What were the criticisms of CAPs?

The projects often worked to help one community which could lead to heightened racial tensions and violence
People criticised it for being solely set up to benefit the non whites

How did Nixon shift his approach to welfare in 1969?

He focused federal aid onto the working poor, the old, children and people with disabilities

What did Nixon dismantle?

Office of Economic Opportunity
This process lasted several years due to the wait for projects to run out of funding

What did Nixon do in terms of anti poverty policy?

He enlarged the food stamp programme
Linked social security payments to inflation
He set up family planning and resources for the poor

What did Nixon encourage the poor to do?

Find work emphasising workfare not welfare

What was the Earned Income Tax Credit?

Nixon
It gave the working poor with children up to $400 a year linked to their earning

What was Nixon's Family Assistance Plan (1970)?

It cut welfare payments and was designed to rationalise welfare payments by combining them
However it often led to a reduction in the payment recieved

What was the National Consumer Co-operative bank?

It was set up in 1978 by the Carter administration
It was set up to give low interest loan to co-operative organisations
- It lent money to small local groups who would otherwise have trouble raising the money to start businesses or buy homes

What was the impact of the National Consumer Co-operative bank?

It helped the working poor to improve their position but didn't help the very poorest

What was the Rural Development Loan Fund?

It was set up by Carter just before his 1980 election defeat
It extended various forms of help available to farmers by giving low interest loans to rural communities to provide electrification, clinics, farm equipment etc.

What was the impact of the Rural Development Loan Fund?

It only helped the working poor but many communities benefited from both projects

What are the 2 standards of living?

Material
Non material

How did the life expectancy of a white man change compared to a black man from 1915 to 1980?

White: 48 to 74.4
Black: 33 to 69.5

How did the average wage of a white man change compared to a black man from 1939 to 1979?

White : $1,200 to $28,000
Black : $500 to $19,000

How many people owned their houses in 1920 compared with 1940?

1920 - 6,700,000 people
1940- 15,200,000

How many people rented their houses in 1920 compared with 1940?

1920 - 12,900,000
1940- 19,600,000

What were the hygiene facilities of houses by 1940?

2.6 % had no toilet
59.7% had an indoor, flushing toilet
69.9% had running water in the house
56.2% had a bath or shower
Non white renters in the cities were the most likely to be sharing facilities or to have facilities in need of repair

How many houses had lighting by 1940?

78.7 percent had electric light
20.2% relied on oil lamps
1.1% used has, candles or nothing at all

How did people cook in 1940?

48.8 percent of homes cooked by gas
5.4 percent cooked by electricity
0.4% with no way of cooking at all

How did people heat their homes in 1940?

42 percent of homes had central heating
For those without, the most common way was using a stove
11.3 percent had no way of heating their homes at all

How many houses had refrigeration in 1940?

44.1 had an electric fridge
27.4 didn't even have an ice box

How many people owned a radio in 1940?

82.8 percent

How many goods were chain stores selling in the 20s?

21.9 percent of all goods sold in the US

What were the traditional local shops known as ?

Mom and pop stores

What was an example of a chain store?

J.C. Penney who sold furnishing, clothing and household goods

What were 2 positives of chain stores?

- It created an American culture because people could buy the same items wherever they were in the country
- It could be cheaper than local stores

What were 2 negatives of chain stores?

- It often caused local businesses to bankruptcy because they couldn't afford to offer the same prices as the chains
- If people didn't own a car, they often couldn't reach these new stores

How did people's spending on food change from 1930 to 1940?

1930: 28.9% was spent on food and 13.4 of that money was on eating out
1940: 21.2 percent on food and 15.1 of that money was spent on eating out

Why did the household appliance market boom between 1917-41?

Newly electrified homes were buying almost as many appliances as the more established homes were

How did Roosevelt help the household appliance market?

He set up the Rural Electrification Administration in 1935 to get electricity to rural areas.
In 1939, the REA ran over 100,000 miles of new power lines

What diseases were becoming treatable by 1930?

Diphtheria
Smallpox
Tuberculosis
Whooping cough
Polio

Why was there a dip in health in the early 1930s?

People couldn't afford to pay medical bills due to the Depression

How did government spending on healthcare change from 1917 to 1940?

1917- $3,100,000
1930- $11 million
1940- $32,700,000

How did the number of children attending school change?

It went from 21.7% of 14-17 in 1917 to 51.5% in 1929

How did the government help education in the 30s?

Labour legislation passed in 1938 which stopped children under 14 from working in most non agricultural jobs

Who was the exception to labour legislation in the 30s?

Farming as most children in farming families worked while being registered in schools

How much did farmers earn in 1939 in comparison to average white men?

$298.32 which was about a quarter of average white men's wages for the year

How were women consumer targets in the 50s?

- They were the targets for labour saving devices
- They were also the targets for everyday domestic shopping
- They bought more food, drink and domestic supplies than ever before
- Women decided what grocery store to visit regularly
- Preprepared meals were also a timesaver targeted at women as well as cake mixes
- Ready made cakes like Betty Crocker sold the American Dream with a reliable result

How were children the consumer targets in the 50s?

- The plastic toy industry grew thanks to development in the plastic industry
- Products were advertised around children's programmes on television and radio to promote 'pester power'
- In 1955, Day Crockett was a television hero and replica outfits made $100 million from the caps alone

What was the impact of television?

- In 1950, 9 percent of homes had a television which jumped to 65% by 1955 and 85% by 1960
- The tv dinners were developed after people stopped going out to dinner to be able to watch their favourite shows
- In 1948, there were 16 broadcasting stations and by 1954, there were 354 which gave people more choice and appealed to a wider audience

What did critics of tv say?

That it promoted conformity and the need to keep the audience happy led to predictability in adverts and shows