1. Lesson 4 The Postwar Economy Booms
World War I and the 1920s ( )
Lesson 4 The Postwar Economy Booms
THE ROARING 20’s

2. Lesson 4 The Postwar Economy Booms
World War I and the 1920s ( )
Lesson 4 The Postwar Economy Booms
Learning Objectives
Describe the economic problems America faced after World War I.
Explain the economic growth and prosperity of the 1920s, including how Henry Ford and the automobile industry helped spark the boom.
Analyze the consumer revolution and the bull market of the 1920s.
Compare the different effects of the economic boom on urban, suburban, and rural America.

3. Postwar Issues
What evidence in the graphs supports the idea that the United States had become a world economic power after World War I?

4. Postwar Issues America Post WWI Election of Warren G. Harding 1919.
WWI Ended Nov (Armistice Day/ Veterans Day)
Changes in Society (Socially, Economically, Politically.)
Wanted to return to “normal life”
Adjustment Period
Election of Warren G. Harding 1919.
Campaign “Return to Normalcy”
Historic Election
Women Voted for the 1st time / events reported on the radio

5. The “roaring 20’s”
Time of social, cultural, economic, artistic change in America.
Celebration of Peace
End of WWI
Women played a crucial role in WWI
New style of living
Consumerism
Urbanization movement
Downtown living
Great Migration
New Inventions and Entertainment
Radio, Movies, Model-T, Telephones, Jazz, Baseball, Babe Ruth,
Charles Lindbergh – First Transcontinental Flight 1927

6. Postwar Issues African Americans Women Labor Unrest
WWI helped for Advancements
Less jobs available – Economic recession
Competitive Job market – Racial tension in Northern Cities
Women
WWI led to advancements (19th Amendment)
Work declined
Labor Unrest
Inflation rose
Farmers affected (crop prices fell)
No longer needed to produce excess crops
Factory Workers
Pay couldn’t buy as much as it once had
40% went on strike – higher wages, shorter hours

7. Postwar Issues
Analyze Charts How did the end of World War I affect inflation in the United States?

8. US as a World Power “Return to Normalcy” vs. World Affairs
USA did not totally withdrawal from the world
1920’s made America a Economic Power
Richest, Industrialized
Demand for US products
Europe and the world
Creditor Nation – other nations owed money to the USA
USA would forever become involved in World Economics.

9. The Impact of Henry Ford and the Automobile
Mass Production
Changing Economy – War time … now… Consumer Products
More Products + Increase in Wages = Economic BOOM
Assembly Line – Mass production technique, each worker has a specific job.
Henry Ford – Automobile maker
Revolutionized production, wages, working conditions
Studied other factories + their production techniques
Model T – reliable car people could afford ($850)
Detroit Plant
Mass Production – rapid production
Scientific Management – analyzed the manufacturing process to minimize time it took to produce products
Time Study Analysis
Motion-study analysis
Men Who Built America : Ford

10. Assembly Line Ford wanted to make a car that was cheap and reliable
Incorporated assembly line
Research from Fredrick Taylor
Price $350 in $
Workers
$2.35/day - $5/day
HRS – 8hrs
“Weekends”

11. The Impact of Henry Ford and the Automobile
CAR = FREEDOM
Ford’s techniques led to other companies using his ideas
Car manufacturing helps other industries
Steel, glass, rubber, insurance, road-construction
Gas stations, vacations, hotels, motels
Oil Companies boomed
Railroads + steel cars declined
Analyze Maps How did the creation of an affordable car affect the development of roads in the United States?

13. Economic Growth in the 1920s
Economic Boom
Consumer Revolution
New Affordable Products
Washing machines, vacuums, irons
Home Work became simpler + less time consuming
More Leisure time
Advertising + Installment Buying
Advertising – used research to “sell” products to people (Sales)
Convince people that they NEED a product
Installment Buying – buying on Credit
Making small payments over time
Leads to mass debt / over consumption

14. Economic Growth in the 1920s
Stock Market
Bull Market – stock market prices rise
Encourages investments
1929 – 4 million owned stocks
Strike it rich!
People thought stocks would always go up!
Invest on speculation
Buying on Margin – buying stock on credit
Paying a small % upfront
Very Risky!!!
Stock increases = $
Stock fails = mass debt

15. Economic Growth in the 1920s
Analyze Charts What happened to the average stockholder’s wealth during the 1920s?

16. Changing Ways Of Life: Change in Morals
During the 1920s, urbanization continued to accelerate
For the first time, more Americans lived in cities than in rural areas
New York City was home to over 5 million people in 1920!
Chicago had 3 Million
Change in Morals
Break away from old social patterns
Rebellious actions
Men and Women changed their behavior and styles
Women – Hair styles, clothing, behavior

17. Urban vs. Rural: Shift from rural America to Urban America
Urban life was considered a world of anonymous crowds, strangers, moneymakers, and pleasure seekers
Rural life was considered to be safe, with close personal ties, hard work and morals
Shift from rural America to Urban America
Big shift in values
Rural America:
Traditional spirit of America
Hard-working, independent, religious, self-reliant
Viewed City Life as immoral
Urban America
Parties, Consumer Spending, Alcohol
Mobs
Viewed Rural life as backward “Hicks”
The Urban values threatened the traditional values of America

18. The Great Migration African Americans look North
Hope, freedom, economic opportunities
Escape the south
WWI helped motivate blacks to migrate
Jobs in factories, warehouses and mills opened up
Northern Cities advertise opportunities
Chicago Defender
Newspaper spread the word about the economic opportunities

19. The Great Migration
By the thousands, southern African Americans streamed into northern cities such as Chicago and Detroit
Black populations of these communities rose sharply
This major relocation of African Americans is known as the Great Migration

20. The Great Migration Northern Cities
Chicago, New York, Cleveland, Akron, Pittsburg, St. Louis, Los Angeles.
Harlem in upper Manhattan was a favorite
Life in the south
Difficult
Sharecroppers
Grow crops for a owner and share profits
More equality in the north, but still not treated fully equal
For these people, racial violence was a constant threat

21. Chicago Race Riot 1919 July – August 1919
African American boy drowns in Lake Michigan
Police arrest an African American and not the white person who caused his death
Riots erupt throughout the city of Chicago
White gangs vs. African American gangs
Shootings, arson and beatings occurred
Over 1,000 African American families were homeless
500 Injured
23 Blacks killed
15 Whites killed

23. Urban, Suburban, and Rural Areas
Analyze Charts What happened to the earnings of farmers during the 1920s? Why?