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History GCSE > 5.1: USA 1920s: the roaring twenties > Flashcards

5.1: USA 1920s: the roaring twenties Flashcards

Boom and bust, pride and prejudice

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1
Q

-causes and consequences

A

Resources and transport, republican policies WW1, cars, new industries and methods, mass consumption, wall street and stock market, state of mind

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2
Q

the boom causes: Resources

A

Rich in resources

Rockefeller: standard oil (replaced coal), raise in cars=raise in oil, separate companies into 1

Carnegie: steel, more cars & skyscrapers…

Mellon: banker, good eye for successful businesses like electricity and aluminium

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3
Q

the boom causes: Republican Policies

A

Laissez Faire: government should leave strong independent businessmen alone

Protective Tariffs: discouraged citizens to buy from foreign businesses

Low Taxation: helped poor and encourage wealthy to invest in industries

Powerful Trusts: Wilson and democrats fought against it-people like Andrew Carnegie (steel) had too much control

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4
Q

the boom causes: WW1

A

Supplied weapon, loaned money

Joined in 1917

162000 commercial flights operating a year by 1930

Took over production of chemicals from Germany

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5
Q

the boom causes: Cars

A

Production was revolutionised by Henry Ford who set up 1st production line in Detroit

Over 7 million vehicles registered in 1922

For convenience and leisure

Other industries: oil, plutonium, steel, glass, rubber, leather, jobs, roads, traffic lights…

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6
Q

the boom causes: New industries and methods

A

Efficiency Movement introduced by F. Taylor: cut wastes of time & money

More people used electricity: bought more telephones, radios, vacuums, washing machines

Things were cheaper. E.g: 1900: 12000 silk stockings sold, 1930: 300 million were sold!

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7
Q

the boom causes: Mass consumption

A

Mass producing required mass consumption

Mass national advertising: propaganda from war turned into posters and radio adverts

Mail order: people in remote areas bought from catalogues (convenient)

Credit: ‘buy now, pay later’, 8/10 radios

Chain stores: same shops selling same products all over USA

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8
Q

the boom causes: State of Mind

A

People trusted businessmen over politicians, Ford was very popular

Believed in their right to prosperity, followed trends, wanted to spend money

Confidence in everyone from businessman to consumer

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9
Q

the boom causes: Wall street and stock market

A

People invested in shares which helped people to set up businesses

Share owners rose to 20 million by 1929

Stock market supported business and business supported stock market

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10
Q

-Industries and social groups that experienced the boom

A

entertainment and leisure, old attitudes changed, cars, city life

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11
Q

the boom: Entertainment and leisure

A

Radio: NBC network made $150 million a year by 1929

Cinema: affordable (10-20 cents), Charlie Chaplin and ‘talkies’

Music: jazz, dancing, drinking, partying…

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12
Q

the boom: Old attitudes changed

A

Liberation for women: flappers, drinking, smoking, short dresses

Sex more widely talked about: newspapers, magazines, movies, radios…

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13
Q

the boom: City life

A

Skyscrapers

Epic feats like Charles Lindberg crossing the Atlantic by aeroplane

More people lived in towns and cities than ever before (over 50%)

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14
Q

-Industries and social groups that didn’t experience the boom

A

farming traditional industries, unemployed and the poor

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15
Q

the boom: farming

A

In 9 years, total income dropped from $22 billion to $13 billion

Declining exports, new competitors, overproduction, falling prices

Congress considered being tariffs but Republicans were unsympathetic so plan was dropped

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16
Q

the boom: traditional industries

A

Cotton, coal, leather replaced by electricity and oil

Skilled workers couldn’t compete with machines

Strikes happened for better pay and working conditions

Republicans protected these to an extent, but businessmen were hostile

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17
Q

the boom: unemployed and the poor

A

Same number were unemployed throughout the boom

Republicans stuck to Laissez Faire and did nothing

Included more African American and Hispanic people rather than white people

Chicago: only 3% semi-skilled workers had a car, in richer areas, 29% did

Workers in Chicago didn’t like to use credit

18
Q

-Women in the 1920s

A

women in 1900s, more money, more freedom, employment opportunities, suffrage, Sheppard-Towner Act, women in rural areas

19
Q

women in 1900s

A

no passport, going out unaccompanied, career, makeup, sport

20
Q

more money more freedom

A

More daring clothes, smoking, drinking, kissing in public

Began to earn money, became target for advertisers: they bought things for the household

21
Q

employment opportunities for women

A

WW1: women took over men’s jobs, served in Women’s Land Army and Red Cross

Urban area middle class women got jobs due to electrical machines making home life easier

10 million women in paid employment 1929

22
Q

suffrage of women

A

National American Women Suffrage Association (NAWSA): political opportunities in WW1

National Women’s Party (NWP): events outside White House to show injustices in WW1

1918: Wilson accepted women should vote

August 1920: Congress approved 19th Ammendment to the Constitution

NAWSA became League of Women voters, overing advice, increasing pressure

NWP: over 600 pieces of legislation promoting equality, 300 accepted approx

23
Q

Sheppard-Towner Act

A

1921

Morris Sheppard and Horace Towner were appalled at poor health care and infant deaths

Act provided up to $2.6 million to help states improve maternity and child health care

3000 child and maternal health centres created

Getting through Congress was difficult but brought real benefits and was a step forward

24
Q

Women in rural areas

A

Less pay than men so more employment since they were cheaper

Allowed to vote but ‘unelectable’

Eleanor Roosevelt was one of the few women elected to congress by 1929

Religious, traditional and old values held them back: raise a family and keep a good home

Conservative sections of society strongly disapproved of these changes

Films showed exciting lives of women but wasn’t the case in reality and some reacted badly

25
Q

-Prohibition

A

causes, action and response, supply and demand, corruption, gangsters, Al Capone, failure

26
Q

prohibition: causes

A

Christian Beliefs (esp in the South)

Patriotism: most breweries were run by German immigrants, ‘the enemy’

Industrial Efficiency: turning up to work drunk or hung over

Threat of Communism: dries claimed communists thrived on drink and led to lawlessness

Family Welfare: beer doubled child death rates from to 45%

27
Q

prohibition: action and response

A

Isadore Einstein (Issy) and Moe Smith made almost 4400 arrests with low-key raids

Issy kept special flask hidden inside waistcoat with funnel attached to preserve evidence

Not enough money to fund raids, not enough agents: poorly paid, responsible for large area

Rural areas approved, urban states did not

Rich and powerful didn’t approve, it wasn’t difficult for them to go against it

George Cassidy: official bootlegger for congress, given light sentence of 18 months

28
Q

prohibition: supply and demand

A

Al Capone made around $60 million a year for speakeasies

New Orleans, you could find alcohol in 35 seconds!

29
Q

prohibition: corruption

A

George Remus also built network of corrupt officials, gave cars & diamond cufflinks to them

1 in 12 agents dismissed for corruption

30
Q

prohibition: gangsters

A

Generally came from poor immigrant backgrounds, poorly educated but clever and ruthless

Fought viciously with each other to control liquor trade

By 1929 Al Capone committed at least 300 murders

31
Q

Al Capone

A

Arrived in 1919, boss died in 1925, took over drink club, set up network of corrupt officials

By 1929 St Valentine’s Day Massacre: murdered 7 of rival gang using fake police and car

Gave generous tips, donated $30,000 to soup kitchen, very popular

32
Q

prohibition: failure + afterwards

A

St Valentine’s Day Massacre: revealed extent of violence associated with Prohibition

Huge rise in corruption: officials could turn a blind eye or pay off charges

Rise in willingness to break the law

Less taxes: government couldn’t collect tax on alcohol sales

April 1933: Cullen-Harrison Act legalised sale of beer and Prohibition ended

Volstead Act was over 13 years later

33
Q

-experience of immigrants

A

red scare, palmer raids, Sacco and Vanzetti

34
Q

red scare

A

Racist attitudes amplified due to fear of communism esp against immigrants from Russia

35
Q

Palmer raids

A

400,000 workers went on strike

April 1919, bomb planted in a church in Milwaukee, 10 killed

a bombing almost killed Mitchell Palmer, US attorney general

J. Hoover, appointed by Palmer to build up files of 60,000 suspects

10,000 individuals 1919-20 informed they had to leave the USA

36
Q

Sacco and Vanzetti

A

Arrested 1920 on suspicion of armed robbery and murder

They confirmed they were anarchists and trial became more about this than the charges

Judge said that even though he probably didn’t do it, he is to blame as he is the ‘enemy’

6 years of legal appeals, they were executed in 1927 and there was a storm of protests

To deflect criticism, governor of Massachusetts set up an enquiry: Lowell Commition

Lowell claimed it was justified but he was racist and an antisemite

They were eventually pardoned 50 years but they were already dead

37
Q

-Experience of African Americans

A

difficulties suffered, reasons for these problems, motives by those attacking, AA response, limitations

38
Q

difficulties suffered

A

Violent attacks by KKK including lynchings, 2.4 million members

Life expectancy of AA was 45-48 years and whites was 54-59

Many companies were all white

James Cameron, 16, suspected murder & rape, mob broke in jail to lynch him

39
Q

more problems of AAs

A

In Harlem, AAs lived in worst housing but paid more than whites with better housing

AAs tried to move out but other areas weren’t welcoming

In Harlem, presence of 50,000 West Indians was source of inter-racial tension

40
Q

motives by those attacking

A

The birth of a Nation in 1915 glorified Klan as defenders of traitorous AAs

KKK wanted to keep white people in control of America

President Wilson saw the movie and said it was all true and supported the KKK

41
Q

AA response

A

Many left South and moved to Chicago and New York: over200% population increase

Howard University was set up exclusively for AAs

The ‘Black Capitalist’ movement encouraged AAs to set up businesses

Harlem in New York became the hub for AA musicians, artists and singers

W.DuBois founded the NAACP which had 90,000 members

M. Garvey’s UNIA told AAs to set up businesses- had 1 million members by 1921

42
Q

limitations

A

Movements were a step forward but didn’t change attitudes

Life expectancy increase but still not as much as whites

Many AAs lived in great poverty, got paid less, poor education and health services…

AA communities in northern areas often became isolated ghettos

Middle-class AAs blamed newly arrived migrants from south for increasing racism

History GCSE (5 decks)

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