Companies focused on inventing & producing consumer goods Examples: radios, automobiles, icebox, washing machine, vacuum cleaner People buying goods using “credit” mass production of goods = cheaper products
Car ownership grew 18 million from 1920 to 1930 New roads = more mobility, causing growth in the suburbs Charles Lindbergh’s 1927 transatlantic flight – could fly across the Atlantic Ocean
Republican President elected in 1920 Most famous for three scandals: - “Ohio Gang” - Teapot Dome Scandal - Mysterious death in S.F at the Palace Hotel in 1923 Harding’s Vice President Became President in 1923 (after Harding’s death) Elected in 1924 with slogan “Coolidge or Chaos”
Conservative pro-business Republican elected in 1928 Believed in the individual & a small federal government
Mitchell Palmer (U.S. Attorney General) started the “First Red Scare” He deported immigrants during the “Palmer Raids” In 1921 & 1924 limits were placed on immigrants from Italy, Russia, and Slavic nations. Fear and discrimination against immigrants & minority ethnic groups spread throughout the U.S. Ex: Sacco & Vanzetti Trial Question: Why would Americans dislike immigrants?
The 18 th Amendment “Volstead Act” prohibited the manufacturing or sale of alcohol (1919) It was hard to enforce – smuggled and bootleg liquor was common – led to a rise in organized crime (mob) The 21 st Amendment ended Prohibition in 1933
Gain right to vote in 1920 with the 19th Amendment Women expressed new freedoms and political rights - birth control, voting, and new fashions (though few in number, flappers represented the “new woman”) Black Americans moved north to cities for jobs, but still suffered from discrimination KKK membership grew to 4.5 million by 1924 Increase in Civil Rights groups fighting for change (ex: Marcus Garvey’s “Back to Africa” movement)
Era of Babe Ruth & Yankee Stadium Sports figures were heroes and big business (1927 Dempsey fight made $2.6 million) Negro National Baseball League started in the 1920s
Rise of movie stars (Rudolph Valentino & Charlie Chaplin) became popular in the 1920s Talking movies started October 6 th, 1927 with “The Jazz Singer” Harlem Renaissance – rebirth of black culture in New York City