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HISTORY: America 1920-73 > Post War America > Flashcards

Post War America Flashcards

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1
Q

What happened after the war?

A

A boom

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2
Q

What was America known as by the 1950s?

A

Richest country in world

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3
Q

By when was America the richest country in the world?

A

1950s

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4
Q

In the 1950s, how much of the world’s manufactured goods was America supplying?

A

1952 - 65%

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5
Q

Why did the economic boom arise after the war for USA while other countries struggled?

A

USA suffered no mainland bomb damage in WW2 unlike all its other industrial competitors

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6
Q

What were living standards like in the 1960s?

A

By 1960s, living standards of avg American was 3 times that of avg Brit

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7
Q

American Consumerism (5)

A

Goods only expected to last a few years + then replaced
People could afford new luxury goods (fridges, vacuum cleaners, cars, TVs) so bought them
Credit schemes encouraged spending
Malls built - convenience
Common to spend + not save

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8
Q

When was Truman’s Fair Deal?

A

1945-1952

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9
Q

What was Truman’s Fair Deal? (2)

A

Main issues = poverty + rights for A.Americans

Wanted to bring about fairer society

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10
Q

What was part of Truman’s Fair Deal? (5)

A

Raised min wage from 40 cents to 70 cents
Cleared large slums to make way for affordable housing
GI bill passed to help veterans
- established hospitals, cheap home loans, grants to pay ex soldiers to attend college/trade school
— from 1944-49 nearly 9mil veterans received $4bn from gov

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11
Q

When did Eisenhower become president?

A

1952

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12
Q

Eisenhower (3) (when, encouraged what, Republican/Democrat)

A

President 1952
Encouraged economic growth
Republican

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13
Q

Percentage living in suburbs in 1960

A

25%

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14
Q

How many people had cars in 1945 and 1960?

A

1945 - 25 million

1960 - 62 million

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15
Q

Percentage still living in poverty in 1950s

A

25%

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16
Q

Teenagers before the war (3)

A

Expected to work to support families upon leaving school
Graduating high school / college = less common
- before 1950s, fewer than 2/3 students completed compulsory education

17
Q

Teenagers after WW2 (3)

A

no longer had to get a job - booming economy - parents could support
Parents began to insist on teens finishing education + going to college
Teenagers had more leisure time + spending power

18
Q

Teenager’s spending power after WW2 (2)

A

1957 - average teenager spent between $10-$15 a week compared to $1-$2 in early 1940s
Annual spending power climbed from $10bn in 1950 to $25 billion in 1959

19
Q

Rock and Roll 1950s (4)

A

New style of music spread across US
Appealed to teenagers
Lyrics often contained sexual references - unpopular with older people so even more popular with teens
Elvis Presley performed on TV in 1956 + 82% of Americans watched

20
Q

Television 1950s (4)

A

One of most popular products in 1950s
Start of decade = 3 mil tv owners, end = 55 mil
Average price of TV dropped from about $500 in 1949 to $200 in 1953
Vast audiences

21
Q

Movies 1950s (3)

A

Colour films
Bigger screens
Young people wanted new + exciting symbols of rebellion in films + Hollywood responded

22
Q

What does HUAC stand for?

A

House of Representatives of Un-American Activities Committee

23
Q

What is HUAC? (3)

A

Est 1938
Investigated allegations of communist activity in the USA during the early years of Cold War
Contributed to fear, distrust + repression of Red Scare

24
Q

Loyalty Programme

A

Programme gave loyalty review boards power to fire gov employees when “reasonable grounds” existed for belief they were disloyal e.g treasonous activities

25
Q

McCarthyism

A

1950s
Joseph McCarthy (Republican Senator)
He contributed to a fear of communism and people reporting on their neighbours + others they knew
Communist witch hunt - over 2000 people summoned to appear before Senate’s HUAC
Ruined many people’s lives

26
Q

Women after WW2

A

Millions returned back to traditional roles
1950 - avg age of a woman to marry was lowest since 1890 at 20
Many women frustrated

HISTORY: America 1920-73 (6 decks)

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