Economic Developments: Weaknesses in the 1920s Economy Flashcards
What year did the construction boom end?
1928
What was the situation for people buying cars by 1929?
Most people who could afford a car already had one
What percentage did Ford production decrease by in 1929?
30%
How many cars were there in 1929?
25 million
How much had iron and steel production decreased by in 1929?
60%
What percentage of Americans were making less than $2000 a year in the 1920s?
50%
Name a law which reduced American exports and the year it was passed
1922 Fordney McCumber Tariff
Name an individual who made “get rich quick” schemes
Charles Ponzi
Give one reason why Britain was unable to buy things from the USA
They were $3 billion in debt to the USA after WWI
What percentage profit did Ponzi say one of his schemes would generate for investors in 90 days?
50% profit
What happened to Ponzi’s first scheme?
It failed
What happened to Ponzi after his first scheme?
He was arrested
What event did Ponzi take advantage of to make another “get rich quick” scheme?
Florida land boom
What was the population of Florida in 1920 and 1925?
1920 - 1 million. 1925 - 1.2 million
What was the message in Ponzi’s second scheme?
He was selling land in Florida that was supposedly close to beaches
What was the reality of the land’s location in Florida that Ponzi was selling?
It was near swamps
When did the Florida Land Boom end and why?
1926, there was a large hurricane
How many people were killed in the 1926 Florida hurricane?
400 people
What was the damage cost of the Florida hurricane?
$100 million
Name a staple industry
Coal
What percentage of houses were powered by electricity in 1912?
15%
What percentage of houses were powered by electricity in 1927?
70%
Name a ‘new’ industry that emerged in the 1920s
Cars
How many cars were there in the USA in 1919?
10 million
How many cars were there in the USA in 1925?
20 million
How many cars were there in the USA in 1927?
26 million
How many people lost their jobs to mechanisation a year in the 1920s?
2 million people a year
Which trade union lost 1.7 million members due to mechanisation?
American Federation of Labor
How many members did the United Mine Workers union have in 1920 and in 1928?
5 million members in 1920. 75,000 members in 1928
What percentage wage increase did farmers experience during WWI?
30% wage increase
What was the price of a wheat bushel in 1920?
$2.20 per bushel
What was sthe price of a wheat bushel in 1929?
$1 per bushel
By what fraction did farm land value fall in the 1920s?
Fell by 1/3
How much money did the average farmer make a year in 1929?
$300 a year
Name an act made in the 1920s to help farmers and the year it was passed
Agricultural Credits Act, 1923
What did the 1923 Agricultural Credits Act do?
Made low-interest loans more available for farmers
How many of the wealthiest American families made the same amount as how many Americans on less than $1500 a year?
30,000 of the wealthiest American families made the same amount as 10 million Americans on less than $1500 a year.
What was the population of the USA throughout the 1920s?
100 million
What fraction of Americans had shares in the stock market in the 1920s?
1/5 of Americans
What were you able to do with all of your money in the 1920s?
Invest all of it in the stock market
How much money did all USA banks have in reserve by 1928?
$200 million
How much money had all USA banks given out in loans by 1928?
$8 billion
What did Mellon say would happen if there was a sudden crash in the stock market?
It would naturally recover
When was there a brief stock market crash in 1929? (To the month)
September 1929
How much did the USA GDP increase a year on average in the 1920s?
2% a year
What percentage did the stock market value go up from 1925 to 1929
300%
What was being fuelled with people investing in economic growth that was not actually happening?
Speculative bubble
How many shares were bought in 1929 in the stock market?
1.1 billion
How much of an increase in share buying was there every year in the 1920s?
100 million more shares bought every year
