The changing quality of life Flashcards
why did farms struggle in the post war depression
-many farmers were producing a lot more during the war and after the war they continued producing high yield which meant prices fell
-cotton farmers suffered with the boll weevil
why did industry struggle in the post war depression
-there were many strikes during 1919 and 1920 due to poor working conditions
-old industries declined like the coal industry in 1900 coal had produced 90% of energy supplies in the USA by 1930 it was 30%
what was the government reaction to the post war depression
-the government believed in laissez-faire and didn’t try to stop the depression
-isolationist tariffs put on foreign goods meant other countries introduced these do us exports fell
what were some reasons for the economic boom after the post war depression
-mass production
-new management techniques
-federal policies
-hire and purchase loans
-changing industry
why did mass production increase economic boom
mass production allowed workers to become skilled in a specific area which increased the efficiency of working
-in 1917 there 4 million registered passenger cars in the USA by 1929 there were 23 million
why did new management techniques increase economic boom
‘scientific management’ techniques grew where each worker was trained in a specific set of tasks this improved efficiency, scientific management techniques only worked if employees stayed at the same workplace therefore working conditions and paying good wages became the norm
how did federal policies increase economic boom
-kept some wartime subsidies for farmers
-cut taxes for businesses to encourage buying American
when was the post war depression
early 1920s
how did hire and purchase loans increase economic boom
-as a sense of prosperity rose more people bought homes on mortgages
-between 1920-1929 consumer debt rose for $3.3 billion to $7.6 billion
how did changing industry increase economic boom
-new industries were more efficient and used higher levels of mechanisation
-in 1930 there were 24 million homes wired to electricity
why did people historically buy shares
for the dividends they paid out
what decade did share prices start rising rapidly
1920s
why did ordinary people begin to buy and sell shares
they were egged on by the media
what is the boom cycle of the stock market called
bull market
what is it called when people borrowed money to buy shares
buying on the margin
when did the Wall Street crash happen
1929
why was unemployment rising in 1927
most people who could afford consumer goods had already bought them so demanding began to fall meaning employers cute wages and working hours
why did stock prices originally begin to fall
investors sold there shares as share prices were incredibly high
why did fall of stock prices not stabilise why was it catastrophic
the media began to talk about a crash and too many people had invested heavily on credit and were scared prices would fall more so sold
what us a bear market
when the price of shares fall and people expect the fall to continue
when did the stock exchange close
29th October 1929
how many banks were bankrupt by 1933
one third of all banks that were in operation before the crash were bankrupt
what were Roosevelts initial things he did in order to stimulate recovery
-closed all the banks and got federal officials to inspect them and only reopen the ‘healthy’ ones
-used federal agencies to reduce unemployment
what was the boom after the Second World War fuelled by
-huge demand for consumer goods which kept unemployment at a low
-business boom encouraged higher waged and larger workforces
-‘baby boom’
-government spending
how much did production increase between 1945 and 1950
form $213 billion worth of goods in 1945 to $284 billion in 1950
how did Truman take control of strikes
when both miners and railway workers went on strike Truman took over both railways and mines and when railway strikers walked out he asked congress to draft them into the army the strikers backed down and there were little to no strikes after this
how much had nappy sales increased between 1947 and 1957
1947 nappy sales were $32 million
in 1957 nappy sales were $50 million
what did the 1949 national housing act introduce
slum clearance and 810,000 low income housing units to replace slums
how many miles of interstate highways did the 1956 highways act allow
41,000
what did the building of interstate highways increase the production of
suburbs
what did the Levitt company specialise in
mass produced pre fabricated houses which led to the explosion of levittowns
how many homes were there in the development on Long Island
17,000
how expensive was a house that included a washing machine on Long Island
$7,000
when did the USA begin to lose its place as the country of technological innovation
1950s
why was the government increasing money supply in the 1960s
to try and curve inflation
what did the American economy move into a phase of during 1970s
stagflation
what is stagflation
when businesses stop expanding and stagnates whilst inflation continues
why did stagflation occur
-by the 1950s other countries had overtaken the USA in technological development
-costs of raw materials rose due to inflation
-businesses had less to invest in improving technology
what was the economic stabilisation act and when was it
1970
gave president Nixon the power to act on wages, prices, rent and interest rates to stabilise the economy
what did the 1972 social security act do
raises payments by 20% in line with inflation
what did the Arab-isralei war cause and when was it
a fuel crisis in 1973
how did the Arab Israeli war cause a fuel crisis
-the OEPC supported Palestine
-the OEPC embargoed exports to the USA and other countries that supported Israel
-after the war they continued to keep prices high
-by 1974 world oil prices were four times higher than before the crisis
what did the soaring fuel prices do to the economy
made inflation rise
what were unemployment levels in 1978 compared to 1979
5.8% of the workforce - 1978
7.1% of the workforce -1979
how many people owned homes in 1940 compared to 1920
15 million -1940
6 million - 1920
what percentage of homes in 1940 had running water
69.9%
what percentage of hones in 1940 had electric light
78.7%
what percentage of homes in 1940 had no way of cooking at all
0.4%
what percentage of homes in 1940 had central heating
42%
what percentage of homes in 1940 had and electric refrigerator
44.1%
what percentage of homes in 1940 had a radio
82.8%
in 1930 and 1940 what percentage of peoples food spending money were they spending on eating out
13.4 % in 1930
15.1% in 1940
what administration did Roosevelt set up in order to get electricity to homes and when did he set it up
1935 and the rural electrification administration
how much did the government spend on healthcare in 1917 compared to 1940
$3 million -1917
$32 million - 1940
what percentage of children aged 14-17 went to school in 1917 compared to 1940
27.1% - 1917
73% - 1940
what percentage of homes had a tv in 1950 compared to 1960
1950- 9%
1960-85%
what did TV’s create the development of
TV dinners
when were products for children often advertised
around children’s programmes
when was davy Crockett on television
1955
in five months how much money did the sale of davy Crockett costumes generate
$100 million
what items were aimed at women through advertisement
labour saving devices
which cake mix provider became popular and why did they become popular
Betty Crocker
because it sold the American dream of women baking for there family but it was easy and reliable
how much money did Coca Cola make before tax in 1959
$79 million
how many teenage car owners were there in 1959
1.5 million
hoe much money did teenage girls spend on lipstick in 1959
$20 million
h9ow many homes had running water during the 1960s
93%
what was the average income for a white family in 1960 compared to a black family
$5000 white family
$3000 black family
how many non white Americans were living below the poverty line in 1966
41%
