american people and the boom xx Flashcards
(43 cards)
- what were the reasons for an economic boom?
•new ways to buy and sell
•the first world war
•the role of the republic government
•the consumer society
•growing industries and mass production
- how was the first world war a reason for an economic boom?
• American banks loaned money to Britain and its allies to buy food, weapons and equipment, mainly from the USA. This created many jobs for Americans.
• By the end of the war the USA led the world in the production of medicines, dyes and other materials
- how was the the role of the republic government a reason for an economic boom?
To help American businesses,
the Republican government
introduced several new policies:
• Tariff put high taxes on imports, making foreign goods more expensive. As a result, Americans bought more US-made goods, creating more jobs for Americans.
• The Republican government cut taxes paid by rich people As a result, the rich invested more money to start more businesses, creating more jobs.
• Taxes were low in general, so people had more money to spend
• The Republicans “laissez-faire’ approach meant that businesses were left alone to get on with creating wealth.
- how was the the consumer society a reason for an economic boom?
• The number of US homes with electricity grew rapidly in the 1920s, from 15 per cent in 1916 to nearly 70 per cent in 1927.
• This meant that people could buy ultra-modern electric-powered ‘gadgets’ such as vacuum cleaners, , radios, telephones and refrigerators
• Huge demand for these goods created jobs in the factories that made them.
- how was the the growing industries and mass production a reason for an economic boom?
• The growth of the motor industry boosted the US economy. Car-making used large quantities of US steel, leather, rubber and glass. More jobs were created in these industries as more cars were made.
• Many American businesses used the mass production methods developed in the motor industry. As companies got quicker at manufacturing, their goods became cheaper.
- how was the new ways to buy and sell a reason for an economic boom?
• Colourful billboards, newspapers and magazines urged people to buy the latest gadgets
• Catalogues made buying easy, and the goods could be delivered to your door.
• ‘Buy now, pay later’ schemes ‘hire purchase plan’ meant buyers could pay for goods in small instalments over a fixed period. Six out of ten cars were bought this way.
- how much did sales of consumers good grown for cars and radios from 1919-1929
cars:
1929: 9 million
19:29 26 million
radios:
1919: 60,000
1929: 10 million
- what did ford intoduce in 1913?
the assembly line
- what did ford assembly line use to carry the partly assembled car past workers who did one or two small jobs?
an electric conveyor
- what car was mass produced on the assembly line?
model T car
- how many people bought the model T car between 1911-1929?
15 million people
- as car production got quicker what happens to the price?
decreases
- what the impact of the boom in the motor industry?
• For every worker in a car factory, there were ten more making the parts that the cars needed.
• There were also jobs building roads, highways and oil refineries to supply the fuel as well as in petrol stations, roadside hotels, garages and restaurants.
- what were the impact of the boom on the motor industry on social changes?
• Positive - car owners felt a new sense of freedom. People no longer had to live near offices and factories. They could buy a house out of town and drive into work.
> Negative - traffic jams, accidents and pollution.
- what was one of the most popular ways to make money?
was the buying and selling of shares in companies. This was often called
“playing the stock market’.
- how does someone become a shareholder?
Most companies get money from investors.
In return, investors own a share of the
company - they become shareholders.
- how does a shareholder make money?
• receiving a share of the company profits
• selling their share for a higher price than they paid for it
- in 1920 how many people owned shares?
4 million people
- how many people owned shares in 1929?
20 million people
- how did people afford shares?
money borrowed from bank, they would then pay the remaining amount with the profits they made when the shares were sold.
- was the 1920s good for everyone?
Millions of people remained poor, particularly those in rural areas or who worked in older, more traditional
industries.
- what was poverty like in 1920’s in countryside?
• After the First World War, there was less demand in Europe for American imports
• Some countries taxed US products, making them expensive and difficult to sell to customers overseas.
• The use of high-tech farming machinery produced more food to sell. Prices fell, and farmers became
poorer as a result.
• Some farmers had borrowed money from the banks to buy the latest machinery and now they could not repay the loans. As a result, many farmers were forced to sell their farms to raise money or were evicted from their land.
• Around 600,000 farmers lost their farms in 1924 alone. The farm workers also lost their jobs.
- what were the problems in traditional industries?
Some industries that were once prosperous were overtaken by
new rival industries:
• Coal miners suffered because coal mines closed. Other forms of fuel (oil, gas and electricity] were increasingly used to heat homes and cook food.
• Cotton and wool factory workers suffered - there was less
demand for their products because of the popularity of new man-made fibres, and fashions for shorter dresses, which required less material. The price of cotton and woollen cloth fell and many factories shut down.
- how were african americans effected by the 1920’s?
Most African- Americans worked
on farms as labourers or were sharecroppers who rented small areas of farmland from a landowner.
• As the farming industry suffered in general, African-American farmworkers and sharecroppers were hit particularly hard because they were already desperately poor.
• Many moved to cities to work but could often only find low-paid jobs.
