Give a list of the Progressive era reforms and explain which one was the most significant.

If you don’t know them, look them up! You MUST know this list of reforms!

Chapter 22

Harding won the presidency in 1920 due to his call to “return to normalcy”The postwar economy underwent drastic

changes Increase in efficiency of production Climb in real wages Decline in the average worker’s hourly week Boom in consumer goods industry

This economic boom changed how Americans organized business, earned their living, and enjoyed their leisure time

It also led to the worst economic depression America has ever seen

America underwent a second industrial revolution Electricity replaced steam as the main source

of power (30% of factories in 1914 vs. 70% in 1929)

The new machines could be operated by unskilled or semiskilled workers

The average worker produced 3/4ths by 1929 than they had in 1919

New consumer goods of the time included: Radios, washers, telephones, automobiles Canning, chemicals, synthetics, plastics also

became a part of everyday life

The construction industry also saw a boom Residential housing in the suburban areas

became desirable due to the auto Credit expanded to allow for such development

National mortgage debt jumped from $8B in 1919 to $27B in 1929

Corporations underwent change in the 1920s Prior to the 20s people like Rockefeller and

Carnegie maintained both corporate control (ownership) and business leadership (management) of their businesses

The new business model would be demonstrated by Alfred P. Sloan (GM) and Owen D. Young (Radio Corporation of America)

The new business model had salaried executives, plant managers, and engineers who made decisions but did not have a controlling interest in the company they worked for (didn’t own 51%+ of the stock) They stressed scientific management and

behavioral psychology to make the workplace more productive, stable, and profitable

Companies such as Du Pont had specialized in things like gunpowder before 1920 but moved into consumer goods such as fabrics, paints, and dyes GE and Westinghouse moved into radios,

washers, and refridgerators

By 1929 200 companies controlled half of the corporate wealth

The top 100 companies controlled 50% of the revenues made per yearOligopolies were commonFour companies packed 3/4ths of the

countries meatNational grocery chain stores, clothing

shops, and pharmacies began squeezing out local business The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (the

A&P) had 15,000 stores across the country

To combat government favoritism toward labor unions, corporations created a system known as welfare capitalism Incentives offered under welfare capitalism

included insurance policies, stock purchase programs, improved work conditions, and sports and recreation programs This system did not solve seasonal unemployment,

low wages, long hours, and unhealthy factory conditions

The corporations used the “American Plan,” which involved creating open shops Open shop meant that non-union employees

received the same benefits as union members

In company union systems, corporations created company unionsThese unions were used as substitutes for

collective bargaining, and were largely symbolic and created for appearance’s sake

These strategies led to a sharp decline in union membership

Other things that caused a decline in union power were the timid leadership of William Green over the AFL, the government moved back to a pro-business stance, and the Supreme Court was unsympathetic toward labor

The automobile changed the American way of life more than any other development or invention Henry Ford’s revolutionary new assembly system

made it possible to produce a car every 10 seconds by 1925 (it took 13 hours in 1913)

Ford doubled the average industrial worker wage to $5/hr for an 8-hour day Note: this was more pay for less hours He did this for two reasons: he knew that his

producers were consumers, and it reduced his high turnover rate

By making the cars more affordable, millions more would drive the $300 Model T car that he produced

By 1927, Ford had produced 15,000,000 Model T’sBy this time, General Motors had become a

stiff competitorGM developed a new marketing strategy by

dividing the company into separate divisions that each targeted a particular audience Cadillac = Wealthy Chevrolet = Working and middle class

GM also developed market research and sale forecasting, which has since become a model for large American corporations

The auto industry helped steel, rubber, glass, and petroleum markets It stimulated spending for roads, and is credited

for the boom in suburban communities It led to the development of showrooms, repair

shops, gas stations, motels, billboard advertising, and roadside diners

It is credited with the rapid development of California and Florida

Autos changed the experience of American people by allowing them to travel to far-off places, visit other cities for shopping or to see family

It changed the way young people dated

Cities grew a significant amount by 1930Cities promised business opportunities,

good jobs, cultural opportunities, and personal freedom

Most people moving into cities were black or immigrant

Cities grew horizontally and verticallySkyscrapers began to appear, including the

Empire State Building Completed 1931, tallest in the world at 102

stories

New York City, 2006Above: Cityscape from 80th floor of the

Empire state buildingRight: Skyline pictures from Statue of

Liberty and ferry

For the following question provide ONE of the body paragraphs you would use in writing this essay

How did TWO of the following help shape American national culture in the 1920s?AdvertisingEntertainmentMass Production

The automobile allowed the suburbs to have lower residential density, as well as workplaces and shopping centers outside of the interior of the city Despite advancements in industrial workers’

lives and urban living, parts of the country lagged behind in prosperity

One-third of American workers in the 1920s were employed in agriculture

Due to record high prices of crops during World War I and a massive surplus left over from the war, prices began to drop in 1920

Prices also declined on property, wiping out billions in capital investment

Due to expanded debt coupled with lower prices for crops, farmers were in need of bailout (which was unsuccessful)Wheat was one of the few exceptions to this

trend While a handful of agricultural products

were at least breaking even, the income gap between farmers and non-farmers increased ($223 : $870)

The main relief act, passed by Congress but vetoed by President Coolidge (McNary-Haugen Bill) proposed that the government purchase the farmers’ surplus and then sell it on world markets or when domestic prices roseFarmers would not see any government

relief until the New Deal programs of the 1930s

Coal, railroad, and textile industries lost significance as oil, cars, and cost-cutting measures rose in prominenceAreas such as Appalachia became

significantly poorer than more urban areas of the country

The rise of mass media (communication to a large audience) led to a standard of habit, dress, language, and social behavior The Roaring 20s was so named because of the

explosion of image and sound machinery While most people had limited access to this

up-and-coming way of life, those who did found the new definition of “the good life”

Initially, Americans saw movies in nickelodeons at a rate of about 7,000,000 daily admissions

As the movie industry shifted to Hollywood, large studios such as Paramount, Fox, MGM, and Warner Brothers dominated the business

These studios were founded by European immigrants who came to America and started in menial jobs With the invention of “talkies” (the first being The

Jazz Singer in 1927), Hollywood came to rely heavily on Wall Street for funding

Just like today, Hollywood emphasized liberal social themes and used celebrity fanaticism to “teach” people, particularly the youth, how to live their lives

As Hollywood became more permissive in its themes, people began to push for censorship Studio moguls brought in Will Hayes to develop their

own form of censorship to avoid governmental involvement

Radio was launched by Harry P. Davis The first thing aired on public radio was the

1920 election results After that KDKA offered regular nightly

broadcasts heard by a few hundred people By 1923 600K radios had been sold and

programs included music, talks by college professors, church services, as well as news and weather

Radio provided a link to a larger national community

Soon, advertisers began footing the bill for radio broadcasting

Amos ‘n’ Andy was the nation’s first hit show

A new form of journalism emerged called tabloidsKnow for scandalous, racy headlines about

public figuresMost often bought by poor, uneducated

peopleWas criticized for being in bad taste and

vulgar Advertising emerged as a profession

Many techniques were used to persuade consumers to buy certain products

Sports grew increasingly popular in the 1920s Athletes were ideally rich, famous,

glamorous, and a rebel (Babe Ruth and A-Rod have similar traits)

Ruth is the most well known name in baseball, America’s national pastime When a reporter commented on Ruth’s $80,000

salary being more than Pres. Hoover’s Ruth replied “Well, I had a better year than he did.”

College football also saw a growth in popularity Focus on Ivy league teams decreased while

schools like Notre Dame gained in importance

Celebrities became the model of achievement in the new age The “new morality” of more liberal behaviors

began to emerge in common culture The flapper is one of the most iconic images

of new morality, but were flappers new? No…they were just new to the middle-class white

people Black ghettos, bohemian enclaves, and working-

class dance halls had seen these “rebels” long before they became mainstream

The new morality promoted sex as a positive, health impulse, that if repressed would result in psychological issues

Flappers were known for:Sexual

experimentation Jazz dancersHeavy makeupCigarette smokingBobbed hairShort/revealing

skirts

The 1920s ushered in a era of confident Republicans controlling the White House: Warren Harding Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover

The Republicans boosted the government-business partnership as the reason for economic prosperity

Harding did little active campaigning during his election due to fear of being discovered He was somewhat shallow and intellectually

weak

Upon taking office, Harding surrounded himself with “the Ohio gang” (his friends) By 1923, he caught wind of scandals produced

by his cronies He commented, “This is a hell of a job! I have

no trouble with my enemies…But my damned friends…they’re the ones that keep me walking the floor nights.”

Scandal one: Attorney General Harry Daugherty took bribes

Scandal two: Teapot Dome scandal—Interior Sec. Albert Fall pocketed money in exchange for secretly leasing oil reserves to two private investors He was the first cabinet member to be

imprisoned

Harding administration wasn’t all bad Andrew Mellon, who served as Sec. of the

Treasury under all three Republicans lead America through its prosperous period

Mellon’s economic plan included tax cuts for the wealthy, corporations, and on inheritance He also sought to cut spending Under his plan, America’s economy grew

significantly Harding died in office (heart attack, 1923)

“Silent Cal” Coolidge was different from Harding He wanted as little government as possible, he

only spent 4 hours per day at the office Believed people like Mellon were best suited to

be making the money decisions “The business of America, is business.”

After Coolidge’s second term, Herbert Hoover got a crack at the White House

His ideology is summed up in:“Reactionaries and radicals would assume

that all reform and human advance must come through government. They have forgotten that progress must come from the steady lift of the individual and that the measure of national idealism and progress is the quality of idealism in the individual.”

Hoover sought to create an “associative state” between the government and businesses

The Bureau of Standards developed standardized engineering and consumer goods

The Commerce Dept. spoke about the significance of cooperation between government and businessThe Antitrust Division of the Justice Dept.

relaxed their responsibilities due to the partnership

By the end of the 1920s much of the wealth was consolidated/owned by only a few companies

America emerged from WWI as the strongest economic power in the world By 1929 America had an $8B (yes, billion)

surplus Clinton had a public deficit of $5,727,776,738,304.64 The current public deficit is $6,434,552,796,939.87

(an additional $4T in intergovernmental debt also exists now)

Debts undertaken by Britain and France from the US during WWI would not be reclaimed The US brokered a deal to cut the amount of

debt they owed The Europeans viewed Americans as loan

sharks and insistence on repaying at least some of the money fueled anti-American campaigns

Germany felt the reparations under the Treaty of Versailles was too much and unfair Hoover and Charles Dawes created a plan (the

Dawes Plan) to stretch out Germany’s payments, reduced the overall debt, and finance the debt through American banks

This in turn helped Britain and France better pay back their debts to the US

Military restraint was negotiated in the Five-Power Treaty US, Britain, France, Japan, Italy, and China

agreed to reduce navies and build less ships, etc.

Italy and Japan bailed leading to the demise of the treaty

Despite not joining the League of Nations, the US played a role in world affairs In 1928 the Kellogg-Briand Pact was signed

denouncing warMany peace loving groups celebrated its

passingCritics claimed it had no power, and

therefore was essentially meaningless The pact proved meaningless within

weeksThe US Congress approved $250 M for new

battleships

Sec. of State Charles Hughes sought to establish a Pax Americana meaning have a relationship of respect with other nations based on economic, not military or political power Capitalism would have to play an outstanding

role in this Economic threats against European and Asian

governments kept them in line with US capitalistic prosperity

In Latin America, military presence was required to maintain a level of democracy that would encourage “fair trade” with the US This intervention is why our relations with Latin

American countries is still rocky today

Prohibition18th Amendment took effect on Jan. 1, 1920 It was a “noble experiment”The Volstead Act of 1919 was passed to

establish a federal Prohibition Bureau to enforce it

Illegal stills and breweries, smuggling, and “speakeasies” were common (bribes to overlook were often accepted)

Organized crime grew due to the profitableness of illegal alcohol Al Capone saw himself as a businessman

The 21st Amendment passed in 1933

1. Was the governmental assistance to farmers effective at stabilizing the agricultural industry?

2. How did the auto industry change American lives?

3. What was welfare capitalism?4. What were some of the inventions of

the Second Industrial Revolution?5. Did urban populations increase or

decrease during the 1920s?

1. What characteristics were flappers known for?

2. What new form of journalism was introduced in the 1920s?

3. Who were the three Republicans of the 1920s?

4. What did bootlegging lead to during prohibition?

5. What was the Scopes Trial?