[5] There was also a rise of leisure time, emergence of an urban middle class, technological advances, and an increase of wages. The twenties saw an increase of consumer spending. Many wages were spent on cars, radios, and household appliances. The economy was booming. Workers were making enough money to have some leisure spending and time, and industries were taking advantage of this by catering to these new audiences.
Highlights of the boom included; Consumer boom – growth of personal possessions (Woolworths, hire purchase, commercial travellers). Because goods could be produced in greater numbers and at much lower prices, more people were able to afford them. This led to huge increases in the sales of products such as cars, refrigerators, radios and cookers. Innovation in production methods, especially in the motor industry (by 1925 Ford were producing a car every
You could call NASCAR, or the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, a successful business but that would be an understatement. NASCAR is the biggest spectators sport in America, out of the 20 highest attended sporting events, in America in 2004, 17 of them were NASCAR events. NASCAR has 75 million Americans follow NASCAR. That is one and three people in the US that follow the sport, and it’s the number two rated regular season sport on TV in America. Their was more than 2 billion dollars in licensing in 2005 and over 200 licensees.
When he was younger he planned on creating something for the rich as well for common man that would involve engines. He created the Ford Model T, which was affordable for the poor, and continued to create Model A and other modeled cars (Joans 2010). By the end of World War I half of Americans owned the model T car. The affordable cars like those Ford produced transformed America (Roak et al., 2011). Ford created the automobile industry, which employed thousands of workers and inspired new industries as well (Heritage, 2010).The new industries included but were not limited to: gas stations, mechanics, fast food restaurants drive-ins (pig stands) and motels (A&E, 2006).
The 1920s America is often referred to as the ‘Roaring Twenties’. This period is often portrayed a picture of the US filled with changes, prosperity and excitement, when were women finally given more freedom and rights, when the motor industry was growing, when new movie stars made the people roaring with laughter, when many people agreed that America was the best place to live. So is it true? The answer to the question ‘Did everyone in the US benefit from these changes?’ is difficult, because different sources show different sides of the American society in the 1920s. These sides can give us very conflicting ideas of America at the time.
Running Head: THE ROARING TWENTIES 1 The Roaring Twenties What Made it Roar? THE ROARING TWENTIES 2 Following severe post war depression in the 1920s, the American economy was booming. The 1920s saw new discoveries that became the foundation of thriving businesses. New businesses and production methods allowed large profits of new factories and higher wages. This booming period of economic expansion was often referred to as the “Roaring Twenties”.
The economic growth that occurred during the 1920s was remarkable and there has not been growth like it since. The automobile industry exploded which had a domino effect on the rest of the nation's economy. For instance, with one in six Americans owning a car by 1929, this decade
GEICO, on the other hand, currently specializes in automobiles, which could be a major benefit if auto insurance is the only thing you need. In addition, their array of products is constantly growing. The networks of the two companies are very comparable, too. GEICO has 12 major offices around the country, while Allstate has 14. Allstate employs a larger number of professionals, at 70,000 compared to GEICO’s 24,000 associates.
Charles Forbes for example stole $250 million from the government. The first role the presidents played in the 1920’s was the Laissez faire approach to the economy; this allowed people, especially the business men to have more freedom as the government had a noninterventionist policy. The standard of living for the America civilians improved massively during this period as the Model T car was invented along with fridges, vacuum cleaners, electricity, flush toilets and cinema’s. This brought huge benefits to the economy. The spread of technological advancements was key to the increase in consumerism.
Apart from the social injustices, the progression and good far outweighed the bad. It was two steps forward and one step back while the economic effects were one huge leap forward and a just as big step back. There were more than a handful of inventions and discoveries that revolutionized American society, led to urban sprawl, made tasks exponentially easier, and were the centerpiece for recreation. Cars were mass produced and people decided to live outside the cities and take vacations more frequently. They produced many new jobs with the need for new roads since the American landscape was drastically expanding.