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Stock Market Crash
The stock market crash marked the end of the Roaring 20s and the start of the Great Depression. Investors had been overvaluing stocks and eventually the bubble burst. A rush to sell stocks followed which caused the stock market to crash. There were also bank runs which only made the situation worse. The crash was accompanied by failing businesses and massive layoffs which quickly spiralled out of control into the most devastating depression in history. (Oatsvall)
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Period: to
Great Depression
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The Worst Year of the Depression
1932 was the pinnacle of the Depression. Hoover's policies of helping the businesses get back on their feet were not working, and conditions were becoming increasingly worse for Americans. (Oatsvall)
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FDR Inaugurated and the Start of the New Deal
As a result of Hoover's failing policies, the nation was ready for someone new who promised change. FDR was just the man they were looking for, and he won in a landslide. Immediately after his inauguration, FDR went to work on programs designed to stimulate the economy. Unlike his predecessor, FDR decided to help the people up, and his programs were largely successful. Although they did not end the Great Depression, they did boost the economy. (Oatsvall)
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Worst Year of the Dust Bowl
For years before hand, the Dust Bowl had been ravaging the Western plains of America. Higher temperatures and faster winds combined with a record drought had displaced over 350 million tons of dirt that wreaked havoc to the area. Another potential cause of the Dust Bowl was capitalism and the farmers' attempts to get as much money out of the land as possible. It ended when rain fall and the temperature levels returned to normal. (Oatsvall)
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Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor was the infamous event that pulled the US into the World War that has been raging on for years beforehand. The start of US involvement marked a massive mobilization of the economy to produce staggering amounts of war goods. This sharp increase in production led to a reinvigoration of the economy and the end of the Depression. (Oatsvall)
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Period: to
World War Two
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Day Shift by Francis Criss
During the War, many men enlisted to fight which left traditional male jobs, like factory work, in drastic need of labor. In order to fix this, factories started hiring women and minorities as workers. (Oatsvall)
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GI Bill
To help many of the returning veterans, Congress passed the GI bill which gave them low interest mortages and loans to go to college or to start a business. It helped to offset the decreased defense spending, and it also helped start the rise of suburbia. (Oatsvall)
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End of World War Two
After the second atomic bomb was dropped on Japan, the imperial government capitulated, and the last front of the war was won. The victory was accompanied by a massive demobilization of the armed forces. Over the next year, 9 of the 12 million soldiers retired. In addition, $30,000,000,000 of governemnt contracts were cancelled. Some people feared that this decrease in government spending would send the economy back into a depression, but that did not happen. (Oatsvall)
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Period: to
Post-War Boom
During World War Two, few Americans spent much money since most factories were geared toward military instead of civilian goods. Very few non-essential goods like automobiles or appliances were produced. In addition, rationing was promoted so that more resources could be conserved for the war effort. This led to most Americans saving the new money that they earned to a total of around 140 billion, but after the war, civilian spending and consumerism skyrocketted. (Oatsvall) -
Levittown and Suburbs
Levittown was a planned community that consisted of assembally line style houses. It represents the growth of suburbs during that time. In 1944, there were 120,000 new homes built in the US, but in 1946, there were 1,700,000 new homes built with the vast majority of them being in the suburbs. Between 1940 and 1960, the percent of people living in the suburbs jumped from 19.5% to 30.7% of the nation. (Oatsvall)
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Increase in Consumer Goods
Between 1946 and 1950, 21 million cars and 20 million refrigerators were bought in America. (Oatsvall)
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National Interstate and Defense Highways Act
In 1956, Eisenhower started to build highways that connected every city with over 50,000 people. While the main purpose of the highways were for defense in times of war and atomic attack, the expanded infrastructure helped the economy. (Oatsvall)
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GDP
Between 1950 and 1960, the GDP rose from $300,000 million to $500,000 million. (US Department of State) -
