Section A1 - American People & The Boom (complete) Flashcards
How much did the number of households with flush toilets rise by in the 1920s?
20% - 51%
How much did the number of households with vacuum cleaners rise by in the 1920s?
9% - 30%
How much did the number of households with washing machines rise by in the 1920s?
8% - 24%
What did the rise in the number of washing machines mean for middle class women in the 1920s?
They spent on average 3 hours a week less on housework - they could join country clubs with their friends
What impact did WW1 have on American women?
In 1917 it gave women jobs - and in 1920 they gained the vote due to their war contributions
What did the Model T Ford come in to attract women?
Different colours
How did younger urban women develop after WW1?
They wore more daring clothes, drank and smoked in public, wore makeup
How many female workers were there by 1929?
19 million - 24% more than in 1920
What happened to divorce rate between 1914-1929?
It doubled
What were the limitations of women in the workforce?
Still paid less and employment levels only rose because they were cheaper to employ
Give an example of a strike as a result of women’s treatment in the workforce?
- 1927 United Textile Workers Union strike for 56 hour weeks at 18 cents an hour
- 1928 North Carolina strike - male workers: $18 - female workers: $9 for 70 hour weeks
What didn’t improve for women in the 1920s?
- were not given access to power considered “unelectable” - very few female politicians
- Bible Belt did not adopt the new lifestyle - outraged and formed the Anti-Flirt Club
What was formed by outraged people at the new developments for women?
The Anti-Flirt Club;)
What did entertainment do for women in the 1920s?
- Films exposed them to new role models - daring heroines (e.g Theda Bara)
- Try could see thenselves in roles other than housewives (inspiration; Gloria Swanson)
- Clara Bow - played part as a flapper (young, urban girl) in a number of films
Which TV actresses were role models for women?
Gloria Swanson (an inspiration for them) Theda Bara (played daring heroines) Clara Bow (flapper in a number of films)
Give examples of more daring dances for women in the 1920s?
The Shimmy and the Bunny Hug
What changed in women’s fashion in the 1920s?
Corsets went out of fashion - 1929 skirts were knee length
What were the limitations of film on women in the 1920s?
Many women did not copy what they saw - many novels and films gave a fully inaccurate picture
Many were outraged by films e.g. Up In Mabel’s room and believed in traditional values (rural/religious)
What caused the economic boom in the USA 1920s?
- First world war
- Industries and methods
- Republican policies
- State of mind
- Three raw materials
How did the First World War cause a boom in the USA 1920s?
- Lost fewer resources - joined war late in 1917
- One way trade - lent the allies money and sold them goods
- Took over trade around world - UK, France and Germany etc. busy fighting
- Became leaders in certain industries e.g. Germany’s chemical industry
When did the USA join the war and what did this mean?
- Joined 1917 - lost fewer resources as joined later than other countries
What was one way trade?
US lent the allies money and sold them goods - would be payed back later
What industry did the US take over during the war?
Germany’s chemical industry
How did industries and methods cause a boom in the USA 1920s?
- First moving production line - set up in 1913 - goods became cheaper from this - cars had knock on effects (e.g. road building, holiday resorts etc)
- Sophisticated sales and marketing techniques - Travelling salesmen, posters, radio, billboard adverts - $3 billion a year on advertising
- Credit Schemes - encouraged poorer people to buy items on credit - 8/10 radios, 6/10 cars - buy now pay later
- Hire Purchase - people could buy from mail order catalogues (e.g. Sears Roebuck) and make weekly payments
Give an example of how car production increased in the USA
In 1919 there were 9 million cars, by 1929 there were 26 million
What was the name of the first mass produced car?
Model T Ford
What were the knock on effects of increased car production in the USA 1920s?
- Oil, Rubber, Glass and Steel
- House and Road Construction
- Holiday Resorts and Petrol Stations
- Suburbs grew
How much did industrial production increase by during the USA 1920s?
50%
How many radios were bought on credit?
8/10 - encouraged poorer people to buy goods
How much was spent on advertising during the US 1920s?
$3 billion
How many cars were bought on credit?
6/10 - encouraged poorer people to buy goods
Name a mail order catalogue used in Hire Purchase
Sears Roebuck
How did Republican Policies cause a boom in the USA 1920s?
- Low Taxation (people had more money to spend)
- Import tariffs (tax on foreign goods so people bought cheaper US goods)
- Laissez Faire (government stayed out of business affairs allowing industry to grow without interference)
- Trusts (corporation dominated by businessmen who made decisions to help their industry grow)
- Normalcy (America kept out of world politics and problems)
What law put import tariffs on food?
Fordney McCumber Tariff Act 1922
Who were the 3 Republican presidents of the US 1920s?
Harding
Coolidge
Hoover
How did American state of mind cause a boom in the USA 1920s?
- Most Americans believed it was good to spend and bad to save - latest consumer goods and plenty to eat - keep up with the neighbours
- “A chicken in every port and a car in every garage” - Herbert Hoover
What was the American state of mind during the 1920s?
Good to spend bad to save
What did Herbert Hoover once say which represents American state of mind?
“a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage”
How did raw materials cause a boom in the USA 1920s?
- America had an abundance of raw materials e.g. coal, oil and iron
- Could make money exporting it
- Could save money not importing it
- Could use materials to make consumer goods
What raw materials did America have which helped the economic boom of the 1920s?
Coal, oil, iron
What did Frederick Taylor do?
Started the Industrial Efficiency Movement - 50% increase in industrial production
Who led the Industrial Efficiency Movement?
Frederick Taylor
How long did it take to make one car on the assembly line?
1 1/2 hours
How much were Ford’s workers paid in the Motorcar industry?
$5 a day
How much did Detroit grow by because of the car industry?
4 times
How many people did the River Rouge plant employ?
80,000 - 70% immigrants
How many phones were produced in the 1920s?
1915 - 10 million phones
1929 - 20 million phones
What was the name of Ford’s plant in Detroit and how many Model T Fords were made?
River Rouge - 2500 Model T Fords a day
How much did Queens (suburb of New York) grow by?
Doubled in size during the 20s
How much did Grosse Point Park (suburb of Detroit) grow by?
700%
Which suburb grew by 700% during the 20s?
Grosse Point Park
How much did USA road lengths increase during the 20s?
Doubled
What were the Republican Policies of the 1920s?
Laissez Faire, Trusts, Normalcy, Import Tariffs and Low Taxation
What did the Fordney McCumber tariff of 1922 do?
Put import tariffs on food
How many millionaires were there during the 20s?
1914 - 7000
1928 - 35,000
How much did GNP rise by during the 20s?
40%
How much did average income per person grow by during the 20s?
27%
How much did households with fridges rise by during the 20s?
1-8%
In what ways did hire purchase help the US economy to boom?
- more demand for goods meant more jobs and wages
- more people could afford to buy products including poorer elements of society - increasing demand
- increase in demand meant faster production techniques were needed so companies mass produced leading to the wider use of assembly lines
- businesses made bigger and constant profits from guaranteed payments - could reinvesting their business and expand further
Who benefitted from the boom?
- Factory owners
- Assembly line worker
- White people in the cities
- Speculators
- Early immigrants
- Middle class women
- Builders
How did factory owners benefit from the boom?
- Republican Government believed in Laissez Faire which allowed businessmen to control industry
- Owners like Ford made a fortune and reinvested money in plants e.g. River Rouge 80,000 workers - expand business further
How did assembly line workers benefit from the boom?
- assembly line gave unskilled workers work
- female employment increased 24% during the boom - suited in electrical employment due to nimble fingers
- people want more and could buy more
How much did female employment increase by during the boom?
24%
How did white people in the cities benefit from the boom?
- assembly lines made everything cheaper
- middle class could move to suburbs e.g. grosse point park
- entertainment e.g. jazz clubs and sports events - cars to work everyday
How did speculators on the stock market benefit from the boom?
- as companies grew they offered investors shares on the stock market
- 1929 - 20 million people speculating - 9 billion dollars
- offered normal people the chance to make money and spend more
How did builders benefit from the boom?
- Road length doubled and suburbs grew rapidly and skyscrapers grew
- 1920s busiest period of building in US history
- millions of people given jobs to build - money to buy consumer goods
- building materials gave a huge knock on to workers in other industries and the cycle of prosperity grew
How did early immigrants benefit from the boom?
- although faced persecution from WASPs, many found work in new factories
- 70% of river rouge workers were immigrants
- improve standard of living
How many people were speculating on the stock market by 1929?
20 million