America in the 1950s

1. America in the 1950s

2. 1. Postwar Policies and Prosperity After the war in 1945 many American veterans returned home from war. Experts were worried that the veterans returning home would not find jobs. If the unemployment rose experts were afraid the economy would tumble. Congress passed the G.I. Bill of Rights to help returning veterans. The G.I. Bill provided loans for veterans to pay for college or a new home.

3. Inflation, or rising prices was the major postwar problem. After the war prices of merchandise rose. Workers demanded higher wages for the price increases. When employers refused, labor unions called strikes. President Harry Truman told workers to go back to work and do not strike. President Harry Truman the 33rd President of the United States

4. With the election of 1948 President Truman defeated Governor Thomas Dewey. It was a surprise victory.

5. During hid presidency, Truman produced a new reform called the Fair Deal. He wanted to extend the liberal policies of his predecessor, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Only a few proposals passes: a higher minimum wage, extended Social Security benefits, and loans for buying low cost houses.

6. In 1952, President Truman decided not to run for reelection. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, known as “honest Ike,” promised to end the conflict in Korea and lead Americans through the Cold War. For vice president, the Republicans selected Richard M. Nixon. General Dwight D. Eisenhower 34th President of the United States

7. The Republicans faced a brief crisis during the presidential campaign when the story broke that Richard Nixon had accepted political gifts from supporters. Nixon went on television to defend himself in what came to be known as the “Checkers” speech. He proclaimed that he had done nothing wrong and had kept only one gift- his family dog, Checkers. The speech won broad support for Nixon, persuading Eisenhower to keep him on the ticket. • In November 1952, Americans elected Eisenhower to the presidency in a land-slide victory.

8. Although Eisenhower had little political experience, he proved to be an effective politician. During his two terms in office, Eisenhower followed a moderate, or middle-of-the-road, approach to domestic policy. He described himself as “conservative when it comes to money and liberal when it comes to human beings.

9. The Nation Expands • The greatest domestic program of the Eisenhower presidency involved building a network of interstate highways. In June 1956 Congress passed the Federal Highway Act. The law funded the construction of more than 40,000 miles of highways that tied the nation together.

10. The nation itself grew during Eisenhower’s presidency. In 1959 Alaska and Hawaii entered the Union, bringing the number of states to 50. Alaska and Hawaii became the only states not bordering on the other states.

11. Competing in Space • The Soviet launch of Sputnik and the Vanguard failure led America to develop its own space program. Federal money poured into the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the new government agency in charge of the space program. • The space race had begun, and the U.S soon began pulling ahead. Project Mercury was the nation’s first program to put an astronaut in space.

12. Section 2: 1950s Prosperity After the Great Depression many Americans put off having families. When the war ended prosperity returned, and the number of births soared. Population experts called this phenomenon a baby boom. In addition to the baby boom, their was an economic boom. The economy rapidly expanded. More good were produced and sold and more jobs were created. New technology added to the boom, by promoting steady rises in productivity, or the average output per worker. Birthrate Chart

13. The economic boom raised Americans’ standard of living, and index based on the amount of goods, services, and leisure time people have. Americans bought washing machines, vacuum cleaners , television sets, automobiles, and many other consumer goods. television sets washing machines vacuum cleaners

14. William Levitt With their newfound wealth, many people bought homes in the suburbs, or communities outside the cities. Builder William Levitt pioneered a new way of building suburban houses. He bought large tracts of land and divided them into small lots. He build identical homes on each lot. Because these homes were mass produced, they were cheaper to buy. This eventually led to the building of shopping centers. Levitt called the project Levittown. African Americans were barred from owning or renting in Levittown. Levitt feared that if he sold to blacks, whites would not buy the homes. Levittown

15. Many Americans flocked to the Sunbelt, a region stretching across the southern rim of the country. People were lured there due to the warm climate and good jobs. Automobiles became very important to people in the 1950’s. By 1969, 9 of 10 Americans living in the suburbs owned a car and a television set.

16. In the mid 1950’s Rock-and-Roll combined sounds or rhythm, blues, country, and gospel with a hard driving beat. Teenagers liked rock and roll because it provided an opportunity to show their independence. A small group of writers and artists criticized the materialism in American society. Novelist, Jack Kerouac termed these people beatniks in his book. beatnik cartoon

17. One of the first rock hits, reaching number one in 1955, was Bill Haley and the Comets’ Rock Around the Clock. • Adapting the style of African American performers such as Chuck Berry and Little Richard, Elvis Presley burst on the national scene in 1956. He quickly became known as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.

18. The differing attitudes of the older and younger generations toward music, as well as other forms of popular culture, later came to be known as the generation gap.