INTRODUCTION
During the 1980’s Colorado experienced a bust in its economy. Like always, Colorado made a comeback in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. In this paper I will discuss what accounted for this bust, the resurgence of this bust, and how federal spending played a role in this point in history.
1980’S BUST
Many factors played into the bust of the 1980’s. One of these was layoffs. During this economic downturn nearly 48,000 workers were laid off. Frontier airlines went bankrupt in 1986 and shut down. 3,500 workers were laid off. Other companies that laid off workers and closed include Lowry Air Base, Fitzsimons Army Hospital, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, and the Rocky Flats nuclear weapon plant. Real estate prices were over speculated. Another factor was construction. With high immigration into the state, construction companies started over building. Instead of looking back, when the increase in prices was caused by speculation, people were looking forward to continued growth. Oil also played a part. The recession also hit western Colorado because of oil. Shale oil was promising ...
After the Civil War, Americans abandoned the sectional emphasis caused by slavery and developed a national focus. During the period from 1865-1890, Americans completed the settlement of the West. For the farmers and ranchers, the American West was a land of opportunity because land was cheap and the Homestead Act provided land to farmers, including immigrants and blacks, in order to grow crops, raise cattle and make a profit. The American West was also seen as a land of opportunity for miners due to the gold and silver rush in the far west which they believed would make them rich. However, both groups faced many challenges and few achieved great wealth.
From the 1940s to the 1980s, Colorado was experiencing a powerful growth. Jobs and investments that were created because of World War II were bringing in so much money to the American people. The military personnel as well as their families had so much money that nobody was real sure on what they should do with it. The money was just steadily increasing. The prices of farm goods were beginning to increase which was pure benefit for Colorado (From War to Prosperity: 1940 – 1980, 2008). Colorado was starting to boom with success thanks to many different key factors.
In American history the adjective used to describe the 1920s is known as the “Roaring” twenties. During the decade Florida had its own adjective used to describe the real estate market known as the “Land Boom”. The Florida land boom of the 20s was Florida’s first big real estate bubble. During the great land boom of the 20th century Florida saw tens of thousands of Americans flood to the state to move or purchase land. By looking at the how this development of real estate began, who was affected, and how the “Boom” became a soft clap by the end of the decade one can see the immediate impact this event had on the United States.
to be a place to avoid. Few considered it a place to traverse, to spread
Deep in the heart of the American West lie two of the largest, most rugged, beautiful states in the nation, both of which have long been engaged in a heated rivalry. North and South from one another, Wyoming and Colorado have been at a border war since before either even gained statehood. With 97,195 square miles, Wyoming is the 10th largest of all 50 states. While the state is vast in land, it is scarce in population. As of 2005, a mere 509,294 residents inhabit “The Cowboy State” making it the least populated state in the nation (Wyoming facts, demography). Colorado, however, has a population of 4,159,000 according to the 2000 Census. Colorado is the 8th largest state in the nation encompassing 103,598 square miles (Colorado, facts). These “neighbors” however, have had anything but friendly relations. From water rights to football games, the infamous “Border War” has raged for over a century and will not likely cease in the near future.
The working class has served as an integral part of our capitalist society; as the building blocks, and producers of the goods that supply and support our country, the working class and working poor have faced many struggles to gain working rights. The histories of labor movements in the United States are often silenced from the mainstream culture; while we take our current union laws for granted, long forgotten are the bloody battles that took place to secure these rights. The ideological issues facing our modern day working class have shown to stem from the same socially constructed ideals that existed during past labor wars, such as the Colorado Coal Strike. The Coal Strike of 1913-1914 culminated in the Ludlow Massacre; this event showed how media coverage played off of cultural stereotypes of the working class and resulted in the raised consciousness among the strikers. The way the strike was presented to the public was shrouded in cultural symbology of poverty, and through these very symbols the strikers formed an identity of solidarity.
Popper FJ, Popper DE. "Great Plains: Checkered Past, Hopeful Future" Forum for Applied Research and Public Policy. Winter 1994: 89-100.
The post-Civil War years between 1865 and 1900 were a time of immense social change and economic growth in the United States. This time period, commonly referred to as “The Gilded Age,” saw an end to Reconstruction, rapid industrialization, and new wealth. Despite these achievements, however, the era between Reconstruction and the beginning of the twentieth century was plagued by political stalemate, a decline of human values, increased materialism, and widespread corruption.
variety of reasons; primarily the railroad boom of the period. The railroad had a dramatic impact upon the citizens of the nation and left a legacy of positive impacts.
To really understand why the crash occurred, some important facts must be known about the time period before it happened. The Roaring 20's was a time of success and prosperity. Some key things that happened were woman's rights, Prohibition, and industrial expansion. There was also huge production from World War I. Ford, GM, and Chrysler (aka Big 3) produced 80% of the cars in the U.S. The average income was up 20 percent. What many people don't know it that th...
U.S Federal Deficit and Debts:Understanding the history and context. (2011, November 1). Utah Foundation. Retrieved January 25, 2014, from http://www.utahfoundation.org/img/pdfs/rr7
The Roaring Twenties approached and the citizens in Colorado were facing rough times. In 1920, many people such as farm owners, manufacturers, and even miners were having a hard time making a living due to an economic downfall. The farmers especially, where facing the toughest of times. The price of various farm-grown goods like wheat, sugar beets, and even cattle was dropping because their goods were no longer needed by the public. Wheat had dropped in price from $2.02 in 1918 to $0.76 by the time 1921 came around. Sadly, the land that they were using to grow wheat became dry and many farmers had to learn to grow through “dryland farming” which became very popular in the eastern plains from 1910 to 1930 (Hard Times: 1920 - 1940). Apple trees began to die due to the lack of desire for apples, poor land, and decreased prices. Over the course of World War I, the prices of farm goods began to increase slowly. Farmers were not the only one facing this economic hardship while others in big cities were enjoying the Roaring Twenties.
When states try to find ways to restrain from non-essential areas, unfunded federal mandates are at the top of the list. These mandates often force state and local governments to spend much more than necessary on everything from medical care to welfare to road building. A complex web of federal programs bind together the tree treasuries of the local, state, and federal government. As much as 25 percent of state budgets now comes from the federal government, and up to 60 percent of some state budgets is spent on joint federal-state programs.
Oklahoma's oil and natural gas industry is giving us unstoppable progress for energy solutions, but the other parts of the nation are still searching for theirs. While providing jobs for the thousands of people who live in Oklahoma, the oil and natural gas industry not only donates to America's petroleum production, but it also produces millions of dollars for our state’s economy, schools, and roads. Making new headways in our industry every day, artificial technology, scientific breakthroughs, adequate new exploration, and drilling methods took place. Without these upgrades, we would not be able to extract oil and natural gas from challenging fields more efficiently than we can now. As capability rises, environmental impact will continue to go down. In 1897, a tower of surging oil divided the Bartlesville sky. Oklahoma's preliminary drilling swaged badly, brought forth by the federal controls on wellhead prices of natural gas applied to interstate commerce in the 1950s. By 1982, oil prices hit an all time high of $37.60 per barrel. Furthermore, the number of progressive drilling rigs in Oklahoma also hit a record of 882. The total quantity produced from the soul and natural gas industry in Oklahoma reached about 40 billion dollars in 2007. Also, through the gross production tax, oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners gave more than 2 billion dollars to Oklahoma used for teacher retirement, public schools, wildlife management, bridges, roads, and state colleges. Petroleum remains an indispensable Sooner State industry. Natural gas continued to grow in the early 1990s despite of the entire staggering bust that was caused by the plummeting world crude oil p...