The 1920's and the Automobile Industry
In the 1920s, the USA's economy was booming. People felt that they had
a right to prosperity and many had aims of owning a nice house and
car. Most people in the USA had this state of mind.
I believe that the automobile industry was extremely important in the
economic boom! In the 1890s cars were only made by skilled
blacksmiths, and were very expensive. Only about 4000 were produced
each year/ However Henry Ford changed all this. He set up the first
real 'production line', where workers only had one or two jobs to do
on a car as it passed them. A skeleton of a car went in and after each
worker had done their bit a ready car came out. This was extremely
efficient and significantly lowered the price of cars. Not only this,
but it created a vast amount of employment! In 1929 4.8 million cars
were produced. The automobile industry not only created much
employment in its own industry but it created large employment in
other industries too. For example the cars needed steel and rubber and
due to the vast amounts of cars being produced much steel and rubber
was being produced hence more employment.
The 'T-model' car was coming off the production line at one every 10
seconds at one stage! As many people were buying cars, more roads had
to be made, and this created large employment (at one point making
roads was the USA's largest employer), boosting the economy. Many
people bought cars on credit, again stimulating the economy. The
automobile industry did indeed have a major role to play in the
prosperity of the 1920s.
However there were many other new industries that were also important.
The USA had the latest technology and many new consumer goods were
being produced. Every American household was full of the latest
consumer gadgets. Hoover became a household name! These goods
skyrocketed and also stimulated other industry (i.e. of raw
materials). The USA produced coal. Agriculture became much more
Republicans dominated the 1920's political scene. During this time period, many changes occurred in the United States. Both culturally and economically. This period is known as the roaring twenties.
Technology played an important role in the daily lives of Americans in the 1920s. Many inventions and new developments occurred during this time. A large number of items that are used today were invented by individuals and teams in research laboratories. This technology brought many conveniences such as electrical power and indoor plumbing into the home. Radios gave people access to the news and provided entertainment. Mass culture was also born and the automobile became the largest consumer product of the decade. By 1929, one in five Americans had an automobile on the road. America experienced a decade of economic growth due to the impact of technology in the 1920s.
In Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1939: Decades of Promise and Pain, author David E. Kyvig, creates historical account of the Great Depression, and the events leading up to it. Kyvig’s goal in writing this book was to show how Americans had to change their daily life in order to cope with the changing times. Kyvig utilizes historical evidence and inferences from these events and developments to strengthen his point. The book is organized chronologically, recounting events and their effects on American culture. Each chapter of the book tackles a various point in American history between 1920 and1939 and events are used to comment on American life at the time. While Kyvig does not exactly have a “thesis” per se, his main point is to examine American life under a microscope, seeing how people either reacted, or were forced to react due to a wide range of specific events or developments in history, be it Prohibition, the KKK, or women’s suffrage.
The 1920’s was a period of extremely economic growth and personal wealth. America was a striving nation and the American people had the potential to access products never manufactured before. Automobile were being made on an assembly line and were priced so that not just the rich had access to these vehicles, as well as, payment plans were made which gave the American people to purchase over time if they couldn't pay it all up front. Women during the First World War went to work in place of the men who went off to fight. When the men return the women did not give up their positions in the work force. Women being giving the responsibility outside the home gave them a more independent mindset, including the change of women's wardrobe, mainly in the shortening of their skirts.
The Boom of US Economy in the 1920's In the 1920s, most countries involved in World War one were poverty-stricken and working hard to try and pay off debts from the war. However, America had only joined in the war near the end, and hadn't had to pay as much money towards the war as other countries had. Also, America had lent money to other countries, which they were beginning to get back. They were making profits from the now poor countries because they had provided Europe with guns and weapons in the war.
The Roaring Twenties was a time of transformation, transition, and change in all aspect of life from the previous era. Everyday life for many people was changed. Products became cheaper and buying on credit became available. Although these transitions were made, not everybody was able to benefit from them.
The wall street crash was bad for every one in America at the time and
Describe the decade known as the “Roaring Twenties”. I chose this question because of the many changes that came about during the 1920’s. One of the changes was how it greatly affected the woman’s position in society and the right to vote. It was also a decade of Prohibition, led by the Volstead Act in 1919. Four presidents were to serve office during this decade. Woodrow Wilson left office in March of 1921, followed by Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge and ending with Herbert Hoover. When we think of the 1920’s what comes to mind is prohibition, bootleg, flappers, speakeasy, organized crime and at the end of the 1920’s the Great Depression.
Henry Ford, the man who revolutionized the car industry forever, founded his company under the beliefs that a car wasn’t a high-speed toy for the rich but instead a sturdy vehicle for everyday family needs, like driving to work, getting groceries or driving to church. However, Henry ford did much more than just this feat. He also tried to make peace in WWI before America had joined the war. In addition, Ford made the radical new five dollars a day payment. However, Ford also had his lows. At an early age, his mother died. His first two companies had also been failures. Against many of his closest friends protests, he published an anti-semitic (Jewish) newspaper. Ford had a very interesting and unique life and he changed the automotive industry forever.
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Out of some of the most turbulent times in history have come the greatest ages of success and prosperity. The 1920’s and 1950’s are two eras that exemplify the spirit of triumph and wealth. In both decades, a nation thrilled by the victorious conclusion of war and the return of their loved ones from war entered into an age of capitalism and materialism, bolstering the economy and with it national pride. Some of features most common to the 20’s and 50’s were consumerism and the accompanying optimistic mindset, the extent to which new ideas entered society, and discrimination in terms of both sexism and racism.
Benner. Tar Heel Junior Historian Association, NC Museum of History, ""A New Woman Emerges"." Last modified 2004. Accessed April 5, 2014.
The 1920s were a time of change for the people of America, and they began with a boom. This boom was initially caused by the combination of America’s inherent rich natural resources and the First World War, and was further propelled by the lack of regulation on business as promoted by the Republican government and by new, different, improved methods of operation in business and industry. Though the boom would never have occurred without the initial causes, the boom would never have had such a profound impact on all aspects of economics and society as it did if it had not been for the revolution in industry and its effect on the state of mind of the American population. The main reason for the boom in the 1920s was the confidence and new attitudes of the population, which both caused and were caused by the boom, and which thereby sustained the boom.
of a vehicle that was parked in the middle of a traffic lane of the parking lot.
in their small car. The car was red with a dent on the side that could