1890-1945

Question 1

Progressive Era Cont.

Answer 1

• Theodore Rosevelt elected in 1901, Square Deal distinguish good from evil cooperations, that made helpful products vs worked for profit
• Rosevelt used Sheran Anti Trust Act of 1890 against bad trusts, Rosevelt deeply involved in Latin America with Panama Canal and included Rosevelt Coronary extending Monroe doctrine
• Rosevelt encouraged the united fruit company
• Hepburn Act of 1906 gave US ability to regulate railroad rates and examine company books
• Rosevelt was conservationist - millions of acres set aside for conservation
• Taft broke up Standard oil in 1911, support 16th which allowed 18th amendment, income tax and prohibition
• Taft supported dollar diplomacy instead of Roosevelts big stick diplomacy using investment rather than troops
• Eugene Debbs - public ownership of railroads and banks
• Bull Moose Party - women’s suffrage, Federal regulation, labor and health legislation, 8 hours days and living wage, and social insurance
• Willson won and decreased import duties, also made a graduated tax on richest in America, Clayton act of 1914 made it so unions couldn’t be prosecuted with Sherman Act, cracking down on big business
• Woodrow Wilson was an isolationist, believed in selling goods, intrusions into Mexico,
• Rosevelt, Taft, and Wilson would increase power of president on world stage, also gov would need to be big to fight big business

Question 2

WWI

Answer 2

• 1914-1918 WWI, US remained neutral and isolationist, many Americans sided with British
• US joined because Lusitania, Zimmerman telegram, German Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
• Woodrow Wilson had 14 points
• US sent Arms and money
• 1917 Selective Service Act - men had to sign up for draft
• Many labor reforms like 8 hour day occurred and highest tax rates with 60% for richest Americans
• Espionage Act of 1917 - spying or interfering with draft
• Sedition Act of 1918 - crime to criticize war effort
• Mass nationalism and creation of American identity with righteousness and liberty
• 1919 Palmer riads
• War helped with 19th Amendment, and African Americans
• 14 Points ignored, Versai treaty set up league of nations that Us didn’t join because congress didn’t want to be in alliance
• US becomes isolationism

Question 3

Womens Suffrage

Answer 3

• 1848 - Senneca Falls Convention - NAWSA
• 1890 - 1920 Womens Era own property and control wages, National Womens Party
• Womens Christian Temperance Movement founded in 1874 and by 1890 had 150k members
• many innovations of late 1800s and early 1900s saved time giving them independence, new tertiary jobs with corporations created office work which began to employ women, telephone operators, women could function as independent people
• Jane Addams - Settlement House Movement, Hull House 1889 beginning of social work, voting was a state issue and out west many states gave right to vote
• 19th didn’t make immediate change

Question 4

Roaring 20s

Answer 4

• Lassiez Faire Capitalism under Coolidge, many republican business presidents in this time period which was good for economy in the time
• Warren Harding - Teapot Dome Scandal - many industries adopted Henry Fords Assembly line and aviation, chemicals, and electronics industries created new products and jobs, massive increase in use of cars
• Vacuum cleaners, toasters, and more made life easier and more leisure time, movie industry became popular, use of credit and debt became prevalent
• Harlem Rennaissance
• Women saw new freedom as flappers, yet society still expected house mom
• Corporate jobs grew much more, and rich got much richer, manufacturing working dropped, many couldn’t afford new products
• Farms shut down because gov quit buying surplus after war and due to innovation overproduction led to debt and closing of farms
• Resurgence of KKK - hated jews, immigrants, Catholics, because new western Europe immigrants
• 1924 set up quota system for immigrants, Mexicans not limited
• 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial

Question 5

Great Depression

Answer 5

• Began after stock market crash, much of 20s consumption based of debt and credit, farming prices dropping and farmers had debt, car production slowed
• 1930 saw bank failures because people tried taking money due to uncertainty
• Federal Reserve made in 1914, Hoover doubled federal public works expenditure
• Keynes didn’t publish until 1936
• lots of debts from WWI, once US loans dried up Europe fell into poverty, 1930 Holly Smoot Tariff
• 1932 Reconstruction Finance Program to bail out Banks
• Blacks suffered disproportionally, many cities and states increased aid to people

Question 6

New Deal

Answer 6

• Election of 1932 - FDR Democrat Won
• New Deal sought to fix and prevent the Depression, through Relief, Recovery, and Reform
• First New Deal 1932-35 many in first hundred days, CCC, Agriculture Adjustment Act (less surplus higher prices), Glass Stegal Act (banks can’t trade stocks), National Industrial Recovery Act (regulate, and organize industry), Federal Emergency Relief Act but didn’t like giving out money so Public Works Administration, Tennesse Valley Authority built dams and gave cheap electricity but used eminent domain and competed against energy companies
• Dustbowl in middle south of US made farming hard, and poor sharecroppers didn’t get helped by AAA which paid land owners not to produce
• 1936 US v Butler Courts struck down AAA, and in the Sick Chicken Case supreme court shot down IRA, because it regulated business that didn’t do interstate trade
• Second New Deal shifted from recovery to economic security National Labor Relations Act and Social Security , which guaranteed right to unionize - Congress of Industrial Organizations which united many in auto and manufacturing - unemployment aid and retirement
• gov became much more involved, from unemployment checks to people given jobs by CCC and Public Works Administration

Question 7

How did the New Deal Affect American Politics

Answer 7

• Brought together urban progressives, unionized workers who were often immigrants, left wing, catholic or Jewish, also gained support of middle class home owners and African Americans all into democratic party
• Many white democrat southerners in congress were very racist, and wanted local control and in south prevented blacks from getting support
• Changing idea of liberalism from free market economics to gov providing greater security
• Led to idea that presidents where most powerful person in politics

Question 8

Pre WWII

Answer 8

• After WWI Americans didn’t want to be involved in foreign affairs after so many died and Treaty of Versaci let down WW American Idealism - Good Neighbor Policy - US be less involved in Latin America still supported dictators - US much less involved in world trade after WWI - Japan invading China, rise of Fascist Italy - Hitler - US passed Neutrality Laws saying we wouldn’t trade arms with them
• France taken and Britain was main ally, so in 1940 Cash and Carry Program started (we sold arms only in cash) -then lend lease program which could be done on loan
• Congress passed draft
• December 1941 Pearl Harbor

Question 9

WWII oversease

Answer 9

• Pacific - 1942 Battle of Coral Sea near Australia, Midway between Hawaii and Japan were big wins, used Island hopping
• European - 1942 Operation Torch in North Africa, then in 43 Italy. 1944 Normandy
• Ended in 1945 and later Atomic bombs dropped and Japan Surrender
• Atomic bombs were most powerful thing the world had seen and killed many civilians
• creation of total war and many civilians died in Dresden and Tokyo

Question 10

WWII Homefront

Answer 10

• Government became much more powerful, War Production Board, War Manpower Commision took large control over economy, regulated prices, and creation of things like cars
• Unemployment dropped from 14% to 2% by 1943, plane and ship production was massive, GDP tripled, Gov expenditures doubled, so the amount paying taxes increased 10 fold by the end of war, Cost Plus Contracts guaranteed big businesses profited and most assets controlled by top businesses, West Coast became manufacturing hub spurring development, most industrial boom happened in cities so South took the L, Union membership nearly doubled from 1940 - 1945, companies forced to give into unions so wartime production continued, Gi Bill passed
• Many women joined the workforce, but seen as temporary and expected to return to low paying woman jobs after war,
• FDR Four Freedoms - Speech, Worship, Want, Fear - he wanted to extend his freedom which meant security and good jobs which was limited by southern democrats who wanted to continue to oppress black

Question 11

US Consumer Identity

Answer 11

• Big business promoted free enterprise, and mass spending and consumerism, this led to American idea about sharing US products with the world,

Question 12

US Races

Answer 12

• Hitler was racist so US saw itself as diverse, and equal
• Race riots in Detroit, many Mexican immigrants under Bracero program, Japanese Americans Interned, African Americans were segregated and Great Migration of 1920s saw racial tension, WWII began Civil Rights movement with discrimination in defense employment - Philip Randolph threatened march on DC so Executive Order 8802 promised equal hiring in defense and helped Africans get many more jobs, Blacks fighting the war and racism as segregation leading liberalism including end to segregation and equality

Question 13

Post War

Answer 13

• 1944 Conferences with Allies saw USD become international currency over the pound, creating the world bank for Europe and developing countries, and IMF to stabilize currencies - US became leader of World Capitalism, creation of United Nations which the US would help keep peace and USSR was also only other country with the power to back peace