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Attack on Pearl Harbor
Suprise attack that damaged all 8 US battleships and killed 2403 Americans. Caused America to declare war on Japan. -
Creation of the Jeep
The Jeep was a very efficient vehicle, with many features perfect for war territory. It was light enough to be put in gliders behind enemy lines, there are Jerry cans of gas to get you home, and it could fit 7 men. Jeep showed the power of American manufacturing. Effects they way people see vehicles today because you want one that can go anywhere and do anything and this idea started with the Jeep. -
Women in war
Logistically won the war. They were the ones working in the factories, putting the tanks together and building the ships. Women made money now and a consumer boom was caused. This idea of women in the workforce energized the feminist movement a decade or two later. -
B-17 bombers
High altitude precision bombing during the day. The B-17 bombers are unheated and unpressurized. The planes fly to Rouen, the German’s biggest railway marshaling yard in northern France, to wipe it from the map. By destroying this base, it will weaken the Nazi’s military might. The mission was a success and proved daylight bombing is possible. -
Segregation in WWII
Old prejudices remained in war and platoons were segregated. But the army was the first place blacks and whites stood together and represented the same idea even though they were in segregated barracks. WWII transformed the black American psyche and lead to the Civil rights movement of the 50s and 60s. -
D-Day
Part of operation Overlord. 70,000 American troops invade Germany and over 1,000 die on the first day, D-Day (June 6th, 1944). Key to hitlers defeat. 877,000 troops since that day have been unloaded onto German soil. -
Manhattan Project
Robert Oppenheimer lead this top secret scientific test where an atomic bomb is dropped on Alamogordo. Many people were skeptical that this bomb would work, but it was successful. This bomb made the scientists and Oppenheimer realize that men had reached a training point, and the power available to us was limitless. -
Bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Atomic bomb is dropped on August 6th and Augusta 9th and 120,000 people die instantly. The days, months, and years that follow, 80,000 more people die slowly due to the bombs radiation. It is the only use of nuclear weapons in armed conflict to this day because of its outcome. -
Japanese surrender
A day after the second atomic bomb is dropped the Japanese surrender. Due to America’s te gun al innovation, they win the bloodiest war in history. -
War is Over, America thrives
America’s distance from battles allows the economy to prosper. It produces twice as much oil than the rest of the world combined. Half the worlds manufacturing capacity and 2/3rds of its gold stocks. World War 2 transformed the USA for the better in just years.