The Roaring 20s America After WWI A Return to Normalcy This became Warren G. Hardings campaign slogan when he accidentally messed up the word, Normality Americans loved it and elected him Fighting the Recession After WWI, 2 million soldiers were looking for work Factories were closing because they were no longer getting orders for wartime goods from European nations Republicans Rule the 1920s HARD-COOL-HOOV All the presidents of the 1920s were Republican The names of the 3 presidents are Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover Warren G. Harding died in office, probably due to shock Warren G. Harding (died in office) Calvin Coolidge Herbert Hoover President Hardings Corrupt Cabinet Secretary of the Treasury: Andrew Mellon, a wealthy financier Secretary of Commerce: Herbert Hoover, famous for his food raising efforts during WWI Ohio Gang: Hardings old friends from Ohio who were corrupt and stole money from the government The Teapot Dome Scandal Secretary of the Interior, Albert Fall accepted a bribe to lease government land to oil executives One of these areas was called Teapot Dome in Wyoming Fall was sent to prison Vice President Calvin Coolidge Becomes President Silent Cal spoke and spent little (Harding loved to throw parties and give long speeches) He forced corrupt officials to resign He was re-elected in 1924 with the slogan Keep Cool With Coolidge From War Goods to Consumer Goods Coolidge cut regulations on businesses Americans incomes rose People began to buy refrigerators, radios, vacuums, and other appliances Businesses began to advertise their products Soaring Stock Market By the late 1920s, more people were investing in the stock market People became rich overnight Bull Market: Period of rapidly increasing stock prices Prices of stocks rose more quickly than the value of the companies themselves American Foreign Policy in the 1920s Most all Americans (including Harding and Coolidge) wanted to remain isolationist HOWEVER: 1. The U.S. still needed to protect economic interests in Mexico 2. The U.S. gave $10 million in aid to Russia during a famine 3. The U.S. still signed the Kellogg-Briand Pact with 61 other nations (which outlawed war) Women Gain the Right to Vote 19 th Amendment in 1920 gave women the right to vote Carrie Chapman Catt set up the League of Women Voters This group tried to educate voters and ensure the right of women to serve on juries Life Changes for Women Women were told to go back home when the men came home to the factories after WWI Many women stayed in the workforce as typists, cleaners, cooks, servants, seamstresses, teachers, secretaries, and store clerks Many women bought ready-made clothing instead of making their own Many women bought appliances to help them with housework after working a full day outside of the home Impact of the Automobile Car sales grew rapidly in the 1920s because Henry Fords assembly line made them so cheap General Motors also became a popular seller of cars Changing Lifestyles Due to the Automobile Millions of jobs were created through factories, oil refineries, roads, highways, truck stops, gas stations, restaurants and tourist stops Many Americans began to move to the suburbs to escape crowded conditions in cities Mass Culture Radio Movies (Above, lines outside a movie theatre) (Left, family listening to the radio The Jazz Age Fashion Fads, flappers Marathon Dancing More Fads Flagpole sitting: Where young people would sit for hours and even days on top of a flagpole. (The record: 21 days!) Flagpole sitting: Where young people would sit for hours and even days on top of a flagpole. (The record: 21 days!) The Dance Craze The Charleston Has a quick beat Dancers kick out their feet Popular dance for Flappers: Women who wore short skirts (to the knees), bright red lipstick, hair cut short, smoked and drank in public, and drove fast cars New Music Jazz: Born in New Orleans, created by African Americans, combination of West African rhythms, African American songs and spirituals, European harmonies A New Generation of American Writers Depressed about their awful experiences in World War I Criticized Americans for being obsessed with money and fun Many became expatriates (people who leave their own country to live in a foreign land) and moved to Europe Ernest Hemingway Wrote about experiences of Americans during WWI and in Europe Wrote A Farewell to Arms, The Sun Also Rises, The Old Man in the Sea F. Scott Fitzgerald Wrote about wealthy young people who go to constant parties but cannot find happiness He wrote The Great Gatsby His characters had flappers, bootleggers, and movie makers Sinclair Lewis Grew up in a small town in Minnesota and moved to New York City Grew up in a small town in Minnesota and moved to New York City He wrote books about rural people from a city persons perspective (making them look stupid) He wrote books about rural people from a city persons perspective (making them look stupid) Wrote Main Street and Babbitt Wrote Main Street and Babbitt The Harlem Renaissance In the 1920s, many African American artists settled in Harlem, New York City Black artists, musicians, and writers celebrated their African and American heritage Harlem Renaissance Poets Claude McKay: From Jamaica, wrote the poem, If We Must Die that condemned lynchings Countee Cullen: Taught high school in Harlem, wrote of the experiences of African Americans Zora Neale Hurston Write novels, short essays, short stories Write novels, short essays, short stories Traveled throughout the South in a battered car collecting folk tales, songs, and prayers of black southerners Traveled throughout the South in a battered car collecting folk tales, songs, and prayers of black southerners Published these in her book, Mules and Men Published these in her book, Mules and Men Langston Hughes Most well-known of the Harlem Renaissance poets Most well-known of the Harlem Renaissance poets Also wrote plays, short stories, and essays Also wrote plays, short stories, and essays First poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers First poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers Encouraged African Americans to be proud of their heritage Encouraged African Americans to be proud of their heritage Protested racism and acts of violence against blacks Protested racism and acts of violence against blacks Heroes of the 1920s Athletes: Bobby Jones: Won nearly every golfing championship Jack Dempsey: Heavyweight boxing champion for 7 years Bill Tilden and Helen Willis: Tennis champions Gertrude Ederle: 1 st woman to swim the English Channel Babe Ruth Grew up in an orphanage Often in trouble as a boy Hit 60 homeruns in one season, and 714 overall Called the Sultan of Swat Charles Lindbergh The greatest hero of the 1920s The first person to fly an airplane across the Atlantic Ocean alone Flew from New York to Paris Called Lucky Lindy because he had to fly for 33 hours and didnt carry a parachute, a radio, or a map The Noble Experiment Prohibition How did Prohibition help lead to organized Crime????