pages 8, 9 & 10 of USA booklet (who did and disn't benefit from the boom)

Question 1

Who felt the benefits of the boom?

Answer 1

• owners of consumer goods factories
• assembly line workers
• white people in the cities
• speculators on the stock market
• early immigrants
• middle class women
• builders

Question 2

Why did assembly line workers benefit from the boom?

Answer 2

The assembly lines meant that women and unskilled workers could work, as they only needed to know how to do one stage of production - meaning unemployment hugely decreased.

Question 3

Which jobs jobs were women generally suited to?

Answer 3

Electrical companies due to their nimble fingers.

Question 4

How much did female employment increase by during the boom?

Answer 4

Female employment increased by 24% during the boom.

Question 5

What was the single biggest contributor to the boom?

Answer 5

Cars because they also provided huge knock on effects.

Question 6

How much of all the glass produced went to car manufactory?

Answer 6

75% of all glass

Question 7

Why did owners of consumer goods factories benefit from the boom?

Answer 7

The government believed in Laissez Faire which left it to businessmen to control their industry

Question 8

By 1929, how many people were speculating and how much money was spent on shares?

Answer 8

20 million and 9 billion dollars spent

Question 9

How many of the workers at the River Rouge Factory were immigrants?

Answer 9

70%

Question 10

How much did the number of household flush toilets increase by?

Answer 10

From 20% to 51%

Question 11

How much did the number of vacuum cleaners increase by?

Answer 11

From 9% to 30%

Question 12

How much did the number of washing machines increase by?

Answer 12

From 8% to 24%

Question 13

How much did the number of fridges increase by?

Answer 13

From 1% to 8%

Question 14

With these new consumer items being brought into houses, how much time could be saved on average for women every week doing housework?

Answer 14

On average 3 hours less on housework every week.

Question 15

What is evidence that builders benefitted from the boom?

Answer 15

Road lengths doubled.

Question 16

When was the busiest building period in US history, why?

Answer 16

In the 1920’s because of the road lengths doubling and the growth of skyscrapers.

Question 17

Which groups did not benefit from the boom?

Answer 17

• Farmers
• Blacks/ immigrants
• Coal and steel workers
• Textile workers
• Union members
• Workers

Question 18

How much did farm income drop by from 1919 to 1928?

Answer 18

From $22 to $13 billion

Question 19

How much did a bushel of wheat cost in 1920 and what did it drop to in 1931?

Answer 19

In 1920 a bushel of wheat was worth $233but by 1931 it was just $32.

Question 20

How many farms had access to electricity or mains water?

Answer 20

Less than 10%.

Question 21

What percentage of poeple lived in rural areas and how many were forced off their land to try and find work in rural areas?

Answer 21

50% of all people lived in rural areas. 6 million were forced off their land to try and find work in rural areas.

Question 22

Which country did farmers compete with?

Answer 22

Competition meant that US farmers couldn’t compete with the highly efficient wheat producers of Canada.

Question 23

Due to the boom what machinery had farmers invested in and what did this lead to?

Answer 23

Invested in new machinery such as combines, this led to overproduction of goods between 1900 and 1920. This created surpluses that nobody wanted.

Question 24

why were blacks and immigrants hit so hardly by the boom?

Answer 24

They did the least skilled jobs

Question 25

What % of semi skilled workers owned a car?

Answer 25

3% of semi skilled workers owned a car

Question 26

How many black farm labourers lost work during the 1920’s?

Answer 26

1 million black farm labourers lost their jobs during the 1920’s.

Question 27

Who were black and immigrants persecuted by?

Answer 27

KKK (Ku Klux Klan)

Question 28

How much were coal workers wages?

Answer 28

1/3 of the national average.

Question 29

What did Warren Harding discover when he set up an inquiry into miners working conditions?

Answer 29

Found that the government had not tryed to improve their working conditions.

Question 30

In 1928 where did coal and steel workers strike, why?

Answer 30

In 1928 they went on strike in North Carolina because male workers were paid $18 dollars and women were paid only $9 for a 70 hour week when $48 was seen as the minimum required for the basic standard of living.

Question 31

Why was the cotton industry depressed?

Answer 31

Cotton was being replaced by artificial fibres.

Question 32

IN 1927, why did United Textile Workers Union go on strike and where?

Answer 32

They went on strike in Elizabeth Town, Tennessee as the girls had to work 56 hour weeks at only 18 cents an hour.

Question 33

How much did trade union membership fall between 1920 and 1929?

Answer 33

Fell from 5.1 million to 3.6 million.

Question 34

What % of wealth went to the bottom 42% of the population?

Answer 34

Only 10% of wealth went to the bottom 42% of the population.

Question 35

What % of American people lived below the poverty line?

Answer 35

42% of American people lived below the poverty line.

Question 36

How much did workers wages rise between 1919 to 1927?

Answer 36

Rose from $1158 in 1919 to $1304 in 1927.

Question 37

Between 1914 and 1928 how much did the number of millionaires rise by?

Answer 37

Rose from 7000 in 1914 to 35 000 in 1928.

Question 38

During the boom what was the level of unemployment, why

Answer 38

Despite the boom unemployment stayed at around 4% due to electrification.