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Exam 2 Notes
Dual Credit U.S. History
Second Semester
World War I
Causes of World War I
• Pre-War Alliances
• Triple Entente (Allies) – Russia, France and Britain
• Triple Alliance (Central Powers) – Germany Austria Hungary and the
Ottoman Empire
• Militarism – the build of militaries around the world
• Nationalism – pride in some countries and the desire to be independent in
others
• Imperialism – Competition to build the largest empire
Trigger Event of World War I
• The assassination of Franz Ferdinand the Archduke of Austria in Bosnia by a
Serbian nationalist.
U.S. Response to WWI
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

Originally the U.S. under Woodrow Wilson wanted to adopt a policy of neutrality.
Many Americans had anti-German feelings even though they were urged to not take
sides
The U.S. begins to produce war goods and sell them to both the Central Powers led by
Germany and the Allied Powers led by Britain.
Reasons for U.S. Involvement
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The Germans begin to practice unrestricted submarine warfare with the sinking of the
Lusitania off the coast of Ireland
To avoid war with the U.S., Germany agrees to the Sussex Pledge which promises that
they will warn ships before sinking them.
One year later, the Zimmerman Note is intercepted in which Germany asks Mexico to
declare war on the U.S. if the U.S. declares war on Germany. They also promise to return
any former Mexican territories in the U.S. southwest
Germany feels it cannot allow neutral shipping to Britain and feels it can win the war
before the U.S. can mobilize for war.
Germany resumes unrestricted submarine warfare and sinks five unarmed U.S. vessels.
The U.S. Declares War

Woodrow Wilson asks Congress to declare war to fight against inhumanity and to “make
the world safe for democracy “and to “vindicate the principles of peace and justice.” He
also declares WWI as the “war to end all wars”.
The U.S. Mobilizes
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Wilson creates the Committee on Public Information which is led by George Creel.
Creel used posters, leaflets, cartoons and any other method he could to arouse
patriotism.
The military begins to draft men to serve in the military because the military was not
prepared for war in any way.
The government received support from most Americans and political groups including
the Progressives who felt war would be good for American workers and farmers.
The sale of war bonds begins to help fund the $33 million dollars that would be needed
for the war.
Labor Unions
 Most industrial leaders like Samuel Gompers of the AFL support the war.
 Socialist industrial leaders like Eugene Debs of the IWW do not support the war.
 Debs and anti-war leaders were arrested and imprisoned for speaking out
against the government and the war with the passage of the Alien and Sedition
Acts of 1917.
African-Americans in WWI
 African Americans serve in segregated units, but are never paid equally with
white soldiers.
 The “Great Migration” of African-Americans from the South to the North begins
as the need for laborers in the war industries opens up new job opportunities.
Women in the War
 Women help out in the war industries and more than 20,000 serve in the military
as operators, secretaries and nurses.
 Women also get the 18th Amendment which calls for the prohibition of alcohol
passed during the war
 The efforts of women in WWI help to insure the passage of the 19th Amendment
which guarantees their right to vote.
Americans At War
 Arrive one year after declaring war (1918) and boost the morale of the Allies.
 They only fight in two major battles in Chateau-Thierry and the Meuse-Argonne
before the war ends.
 General Pershing uses “The American Way of Fighting” by using brutal frontal
assaults combined with surprise attacks on the flanks to wear down the
Germans.
 German morale suffers as their losses grow.
 Germany surrenders on Nov. 11th at 11:00 a.m.
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
 Woodrow Wilson had worked out a plan for countries to follow after the war.
 His plan called for self determination for all countries, an end to secret treaties,
freedom of the seas, free trade, reduction of arms and a League of Nations to
secure future peace.
The Treaty of Versailles
 Wilson is hailed as a hero at the peace talks.
 The other allied countries want the treaty to be a revenge on Germany.
 Wilson agrees in order to get his League of Nations approved.
 Germany has to disarm, loses territories and pay reparations to the allied
nations. Germans feel humiliated.
The League of Nations
 Republicans led by Henry Cabot Lodge do not like the idea of a League of Nations
and they don’t want to ratify the Treaty of Versailles without some safeguards in
place.
 They are worried that our joining the League would lead us into future wars.
 Wilson refuses to change anything. His refusal to compromise results in the U.S.
not ratifying the treaty and not joining the League of Nations which our own
President had proposed.
 Wilson suffers a stroke and never regains his pre-war power. The U.S. also loses
power in the world wide scene.
Postwar Changes
 Within a few month soldiers were given 60 dollars and a one-way ticket home.
 In 1919, nearly 4 millions workers went on strike to protest working conditions.
 The government under A. Mitchell Palmer began to search out possible
“communists” within our own country. (Red Scare)
1920s to the Great Depression
Postwar Problems
 National unemployment hit an all time high of 20%.
 Farmers income fell and bankruptcy rates increased ten times.
 People want “normalcy”
 The “Red Scare” swept the U.S.
 Attorney General Palmer, used the justice dept. to arrest suspected communists,
anarchists and socialists. (Witch hunt)
 Two Italian anarchists, Sacco and Vanzetti were charged with murder and
robbery. They were found guilty on circumstantial evidence and were executed
in the electric chair in 1927 amidst world-wide criticism.
Results of Prohibition
 Emergence of organized crime (ex: Al Capone)
 Police and judges are bribed by criminals
 Growing general disrespect for the police
 People began distilling their own liquor at home
 Repealed by the 21st Amendment to stop crime and violence
Harding’s Presidency – 1920
 Warren G. Harding wins the election promising “normalcy” through a steady
order of things.
 Progressivism is abandoned
 Friends that he gave jobs to are involved in scandals that contribute to his early
death from a heart attack.
 Retreats from foreign affairs and signs several treaties reducing naval
armaments and creating peace with European nations.
 He helps pass bills that limits immigration tremendously.
The Presidency of Coolidge
 Becomes president when Harding dies
 Worked to minimize the role of government in business through tax cuts for
corporations and wealthy individuals
 Believes in a minimum of government regulation in business
Henry Ford and the Automobile
 Using the assembly line, his Model T by 1913 cost about $300 and could be built
in about 93 minutes.
 He helped to develop the Midwest by moving his factory to Detroit, MI in order
to have easy access to raw materials, transportation and industrial might.
 He used “scientific management” to create his empire. This allowed for
increased profits, lower consumer prices and a slightly higher wage for laborers.
The Roaring 20s
 Women felt they could do everything that men did. (smoking, drinking,
promiscuity)
Accomplishments of the 1920s
 Charles Lindbergh makes the first trans-Atlantic flight.
 African Americans experience an appreciation of their music (jazz), literature and
art. It became known as the Harlem Renaissance.
 Talking movies become very popular. (first talkie was “The Jazz Singer”.
 A sport becomes very popular with stars such as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Jack
Dempsey.
Controversy
 The Ku Klux Klan rises in the 1920s to a membership of 4-5 million.
 The Scopes trial pits science against Christian Fundamentalism.
 People begin to use credit and installment plans to purchase goods and instead it
weakens the economy.
The Great Depression
The Stock Market Crash
 Oct. 29th, 1929 – The stock market goes into a panic and crashes.
o Too many bought stock on margin
o Many got rich in paper profits and not “real” profit
o Too many buying on credit
o International trade suffered due to an increase in tariffs while at the
same time the U.S. was demanding payment on war loans.
o By 1929, both national and international economies were experiencing
severe problems.
Hoover’s Plan
 President Hoover felt that it was the job of business and the community to help
each other.
 Other depressions had been handled with very little government help.
 He insisted that no was really starving, and did not really investigate the
problems facing the U.S.
 Helped businesses, but not individuals
Results of Hoover’s Plan
 Hardest hit were farmers, sharecroppers and the jobless
 Unemployment hits 25% by 1932
 Women joined the workforce, changing family dynamics
 Mexican Americans were the targets of those who felt they took American jobs
away from Americans.
 Fewer children were born
 Fewer marriages
 The U.S. government turns our troops on our own WWI veterans (The Bonus
Army) when they demand payment of their bonuses early.
Franklin Roosevelt’s (1932) “New Deal”
 New Deal outlines a government that should:
o look out for it’s people during hardship.
o reduce unemployment through work relief programs
o encourage economic recovery through government programs
o the government should take a more active role and give the public a
place to turn to in times of need.
New Deal Acts and Programs
 Banking and Finance
o Emergency Banking Act -Closed all the banks and only reopened those
that were sound. Most of the banks were able to reopen and stay
solvent.
o Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - Insured bank customers against
the loss of their deposits if the bank should fail.
o Securities and Exchange Commission – licensed investment dealers,
monitors stocks, and require corporations to make full disclosures on the
worth of their company.
 Relief and Conservation Programs
o Federal Emergency Relief Admin.(FERA) – supported 4-5 million
households and funded thousands of work projects
o Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) - gave young men jobs in forestry, dam
building, national parks and stringing telephone wire.
 Agricultural Programs Designed to Assist Farmers
o Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) – paid farmers to leave some land
idle. Did not benefit tenant and sharecroppers.
o Farm Credit Act (FCA) – provide credit on mortgaged farms to head off
foreclosures.
 Programs to Assist Rural Americans
o Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) – built hydroelectric electric power
dams to bring power and light to impoverished rural areas.
o Rural Electrification Admin. (REA)- extended transmission lines into
sparsely settled areas.
 FDR’s Second Hundred Days
o Social Security Act – established an old-age pension and grants for states
to use for dependent mothers and children as well as unemployment
compensation.
The Second New Deal
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
The Works Progress Admin.
o employed 10 million
o built roads, airports, buildings, etc.
o produced cultural programs such as the Federal Theater Project
o cost 10 billion by 1943
o largest and most ambitious of all the projects
Wagner Act
o guaranteed workers the right to organize unions
Fair Standards Act
o set standards for wages and hours
Minorities in the Depression
 Women in the Depression
o Eleanor Roosevelt very influential with FDR
o Mary McLeod Bethune, appointed as highest-ranking black official in the
government.
 African-Americans
o New Dealers continued to focus on relief and recovery, but also looked at
making the social condition of blacks more equal.
 Native Americans
o The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 restored to Native Americans, the
right to own land communally.
Opponents to the New Deal
 Court Packing - The Supreme Court which was very conservative had struck
down several New Deal programs. FDR tries to add 6 new justices and failed.
Supreme Court backs off.
 Huey P. Long – encouraged his “Share the Wealth” plan which called for a form
of socialism.
 Father Coughlin – anti-Semetic, favored a guaranteed income and nationalization
of banks
 Dr. Francis Townsend – wanted a pension plan for the elderly
World War II
Isolationism
 Due to problems with the Great Depression, FDR chose to remove the U.S. from
any possible international involvement.
 Isolationists were led by Gerald Nye of North Dakota who reported that
American munitions makers, bankers and financiers had been responsible for
bringing the U.S. into WWI and that the “Death Merchants” were trying to push
the U.S. into another tragic mistake.
 The U.S. slowly began to pull out Latin America and the Philippines.
The Rise of the Dictators
 Fascism and extreme nationalism had begun to spread across Europe and the
Pacific in the form of dictatorships.
 The U.S. felt most threatened by:
o Germany – Hitler
o Italy – Mussolini
o Japan - Tojo
German Actions Leading to War
 Hitler begins to rearm Germany and moves into the Rhineland and then into the
Austria. No one stops him.
 Hitler then moves into the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia and Britain and France
appease him after he promises it is his last territorial demand.
 Hitler then moves into Poland after signing a secret non-aggression treaty with
the Soviet Union. World War II begins.
U.S. Reaction to War
 The U.S. was determined to stay neutral in this new war and was unable to
supply the Allies with loans because of the Neutrality Acts of 1935, 1936 and
1937 and the Johnson Debt Default Act of 1934.
 FDR is able to get the Lend-Lease Act of 1941 passed, which would allow the U.S.
to lend armaments to Britain as long as they returned them after the war was
over.
 In August, 1941, FDR and Churchill meet to create the Atlantic Charter which
addressed the defeat of Germany and plans for the post-war world. Their goals
included freedom of the seas, arms reductions and self-determination.
The U.S. Enters WWII
 The U.S. had been asking the Japanese to leave China for years. When the
Japanese refused, the U.S. launched an embargo on oil and scrap metal.
 The Japanese felt their only choice was to take oil reserves from other British,
French and Dutch possessions in East Asia. They first would have to get rid of
any U.S. resistance to their plans of Pacific domination.
 Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. They killed or wounded more
than 3500 Americans.
 Congress and the American public was no longer intent on neutrality. They
wanted revenge and were committed to war
(Japan had indeed awakened a “sleeping giant”)
Japanese Americans
 Following Pear Harbor, anti-Japanese racism and hysteria led many to believe
that the Japanese could not have completed their mission without help from
spies and might strike again.
 FDR then issued an executive order which called for the interment of any people
of Japanese decent until the end of the war.
 Later in the war, many would leave the camps to fight in Nisei units for the U.S.
in order to prove their loyalty. They were among the most decorated.
Minority Groups
 Ethnic groups including African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, ChineseAmericans and Japanese-Americans fought in large numbers and were highly
decorated.
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African Americans moved out of the South to work in industrial cities for the war
effort, found new employment opportunities and believed that they were also
fighting to end racial discrimination at home.
Mexican laborers were welcomed back to the U.S. to help grow crops for the
troops. This practice became known as the bracero program.
The War at Home
 Women went to work in the war industries and played a major role in the war
effort. “Rosie the Riveter”
 Children went on scrap metal drives
 Ration books were issued that limited rubber, shoes, meat, gas, flour etc. These
items were reserved for the military.
 Children had to adjust to a working mother and an absent father. This caused
problems especially for girls which increased their juvenile delinquency.
War in Europe
 Strategy from the beginning of the war had been, “Get Hitler First”.
 From 1942 until 1944, the Allies had slowly begun to reclaim land in North Africa,
and then Italy while Stalin was putting pressure on Germany from the West.
 Once Italy fell and Mussolini was killed, the next step was to regain France and
make the final push into Germany.
D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy
 June 6, 1944, the Allies launched a massive attack on the beaches of Normandy.
While the Germans knew that an attack would take place, they had intercepted
phony troop movements and radio reports and thought the attack would occur
at Pas de Calais.
 The Germans were not prepared for the attack on D-Day led by General
Eisenhower.
 The invasion included a naval attack, paratroopers and air bombardments.
 By August 25th, Paris had been liberated and Allies were beginning their push
toward Germany.
Victory in Europe
 As the Allies were pushing toward Germany, Hitler made one last attempt to
counter attack. The Battle of the Bulge was the last major offensive by Germany.
 By April of 1945, Germany was being over run by the Soviets in the East and the
Allies in the West.
 Hitler committed suicide on April 30th as the Soviets were entering Berlin. On
May 7th, Germany surrendered. FDR would not live to see it; he died on April
12th from a stroke.
The Pacific War
 Early in the War, Japan had successfully taken over much of the Pacific including
the Philippines and had taken American POWs.
 As the Japanese began to dominate they attempted an attack on Midway which
was close to Hawaii. U.S. forces were able to win the battle, thus pushing the
Japanese back.
 The next major battle would take place at the Coral Sea near Australia. The Allies
once again were able to win.
 These two victories were the turning point in the Pacific and led to a strategy of
“island hopping” to get closer to Japan.
 Another major battle signaling the end of the Japanese empire was the Battle of
Leyte Gulf in which the Philippines was regained.
 The next two victories at Iwo Jima and Okinawa would place the U.S. within
striking distance of Japan.
The Atomic Bomb
 The U.S. had been racing with Germans to building an atomic bomb.
 The Manhattan Project was the name given to the program that would build the
bomb.
 July 16, 1945, an atomic bomb was tested at Los Alamos, New Mexico. Germany
had already surrendered.
Victory over Japan
 President Truman was faced with the decision of what to do with the new
weapon.
 His choice was to fight a prolonged ground war with Japan that could take years
and cost thousands of American lives, or to drop the bomb.
 Truman decided to drop the bomb in an attempt to save American military lives.
 Aug. 6, 1945, the Enola Gay dropped the 1st atomic bomb on Hiroshima killing
78,000 Japanese.
 Three days later, the 2nd bomb was dropped on Nagasaki killing 40,000 more.
Japan surrendered unconditionally on Sept. 2, 1945
Consequences of the War
 35 million people died worldwide, both military and civilian
• 400,000 Americans were killed in military service
• 20 million were Soviet deaths
 Atomic power was unleashed
 The United Nations was created
 The inhumanity of the concentration camps demonstrated a cruelty beyond
what anyone had imagined.
Exam 2 Notes
Dual Credit U.S. History
Second Semester
World War I
Causes of World War I
• Pre-War Alliances
• __________________________ (Allies) – Russia, France and Britain
• __________________________ (Central Powers) – Germany Austria
Hungary and the Ottoman Empire
• ___________________________ – the build of militaries around the world
• ___________________________ – pride in some countries and the desire to be
independent in others
• ___________________________ – Competition to build the largest empire
Trigger Event of World War I
• The assassination of ________________________ the Archduke of Austria in
Bosnia by a Serbian nationalist, ______________________.
U.S. Response to WWI



Originally the U.S. under Woodrow Wilson wanted to adopt a policy of _____________.
Many Americans had ____________________________ feelings even though they were
urged to not take sides.
The U.S. begins to produce war goods and sell them to both the ___________________
led by Germany and the ____________________________ led by Britain.
Reasons for U.S. Involvement





The Germans begin to practice unrestricted ________________________________ with
the sinking of the ___________________________ off the coast of Ireland
To avoid war with the U.S., Germany agrees to the _______________________ which
promises that they will warn ________________________ ships before sinking them.
One year later, the _____________________________ is intercepted in which Germany
asks __________________ to declare war on the U.S. if the U.S. declares war on
Germany. They also promise to return any former Mexican territories in the U.S.
___________________________.
Germany feels it cannot allow ____________________ to Britain and feels it can win the
war before the U.S. can mobilize for war.
Germany resumes unrestricted submarine warfare and sinks _____________________
U.S. vessels.
The U.S. Declares War

Woodrow Wilson asks Congress to declare war to fight against inhumanity and to “____
__________________________________ “ and to “vindicate the principles of peace and
justice.” He also declares WWI as the “____________________________________”.
The U.S. Mobilizes





Wilson creates the ________________________________ which is led by George Creel.
Creel used ______________________________________________ and any other
methods he could to arouse patriotism.
The military begins to draft men to serve in the military because the military was not
_______________________________________ in any way.
The government received support from most Americans and political groups including
the ________________ who felt war would be good for American workers and farmers.
The sale of __________________________ begins to help fund the ___________ dollars
that would be needed for the war.
Labor Unions
 Most industrial leaders like ____________________ of the AFL support the war.
 Socialist industrial leaders like ___________ of the IWW do not support the war.
 Debs and anti-war leaders were arrested and imprisoned for speaking out
against the government and the war with the passage of the
_______________________________________________.
African-Americans in WWI
 _______________________ serve in ___________________ units, but are never
paid equally with white soldiers.
 The “___________________” of African-Americans from the South to the North
begins as the need for laborers in the ____________________ opens up new job
opportunities.
Women in the War
 Women help out in the war industries and more than ______________ serve in
the military as operators, secretaries and _________________.
 Women also get the ____________________ which calls for the prohibition of
__________________ passed during the war
 The efforts of women in WWI help to insure the passage of the ______________
which guarantees their _______________________.
Americans At War
 Arrive one year after declaring war (1918) and _______________________ of
the Allies.
 They only fight in two major battles in ______________________ and the
______________________________ before the war ends.
 General Pershing uses “_______________________________” by using brutal
frontal assaults combined with __________________attacks on the flanks to
wear down the Germans.
 German morale suffers as their ___________________________.
 Germany surrenders on __________________________________.
Wilson’s Fourteen Points
 _________________ had worked out a plan for countries to follow after the war.
 His plan called for ____________________________ for all countries, an end to
____________________, freedom of the seas, free trade, reduction of arms and
a __________________________ to secure future peace.
The Treaty of Versailles
 Wilson is hailed as a hero at the _______________________.
 The other allied countries want the treaty to be a revenge on _______________.
 Wilson agrees in order to get his ____________________________ approved.
 Germany has to disarm, loses territories and _____________________________
to the allied nations. Germans feel ___________________________.
The League of Nations
 Republicans led by _______________________________ do not like the idea of
a League of Nations and they don’t want to ratify the ______________________
without some safeguards in place.
 They are worried that our joining the League would lead us into _____________.
 Wilson refuses to ______________________. His refusal to compromise results
in the U.S. not ratifying the treaty and not joining the League of Nations which
our own ____________________________.
 Wilson suffers a stroke and never regains his _______________________. The
U.S. also loses power in the _________________________ scene.
Postwar Changes
 Within a few month soldiers were given ________________________________.
 In 1919, nearly ________________ workers went on strike to protest working
conditions.
 The government under ____________________________ began to search out
possible “_________________________” within our own country. (__________)
1920s to the Great Depression
Postwar Problems
 National unemployment hit an all time high of ________.
 Farmers income fell and _____________________ rates increased ______ times.
 People want “______________________”
 The “_____________________” swept the U.S.
 Attorney General Palmer, used the ____________________. to arrest suspected
communists, ______________________ and socialists. (___________________)
 Two Italian anarchists, ________________________ were charged with murder
and ____________. They were found guilty on circumstantial evidence and were
executed in the ___________________ in 1927 amidst world-wide __________.
Results of Prohibition
 Emergence of ___________________________ (ex: Al Capone)
 ______________________________ are bribed by criminals
 Growing general disrespect for the ___________
 People began distilling their own ________________
 Repealed by the 21st Amendment to stop ________________________
Harding’s Presidency – 1920
 _______________________ wins the election promising “normalcy” through a
steady order of things.
 ________________________ is abandoned
 Friends that he gave jobs to are involved in scandals that contribute to his early
death from a ____________________.
 Retreats from foreign affairs and signs several treaties reducing naval
armaments and creating peace with _________________________.
 He helps pass bills that __________________________________ tremendously.
The Presidency of Coolidge
 Becomes president when __________________ dies
 Worked to minimize the role of government in business through _____________
for _______________________ and wealthy individuals
 Believes in a minimum of ___________________________________ in business.
Henry Ford and the Automobile
 Using the assembly line, his ________________ by 1913 cost about _________
and could be built in about ______ minutes.
 He helped to develop the Midwest by moving his factory to _______________ in
order to have easy access to raw materials, transportation and ______________.
 He used “_________________________” to create his empire. This allowed for
increased profits, lower consumer prices and a slightly higher wage for laborers.
The Roaring 20s
 Women felt they could do everything that men did. (______________________,
promiscuity)
Accomplishments of the 1920s
 _______________________________ makes the first trans-Atlantic flight.
 African Americans experience an appreciation of their music (jazz), literature and
art. It became known as the _______________________________________.
 ___________________ become very popular. (first talkie was
“___________________”).
 Sports become very popular with stars such ____________________________
and Jack Dempsey.
Controversy
 The Ku Klux Klan rises in the 1920s to a membership of 4-5 million.
 The Scopes trial pits science against Christian Fundamentalism.
 People begin to use credit and installment plans to purchase goods and instead it
weakens the economy.
The Great Depression
The Stock Market Crash
 Oct. 29th, 1929 – The stock market goes into a panic and crashes.
o Too many bought stock on margin
o Many got rich in paper profits and not “real” profit
o Too many buying on credit
o International trade suffered due to an increase in tariffs while at the
same time the U.S. was demanding payment on war loans.
o By 1929, both national and international economies were experiencing
severe problems.
Hoover’s Plan
 President Hoover felt that it was the job of business and the community to help
each other.
 Other depressions had been handled with very little government help.
 He insisted that no was really starving, and did not really investigate the
problems facing the U.S.
 Helped businesses, but not individuals
Results of Hoover’s Plan
 Hardest hit were farmers, sharecroppers and the jobless
 Unemployment hits 25% by 1932
 Women joined the workforce, changing family dynamics
 Mexican Americans were the targets of those who felt they took American jobs
away from Americans.
 Fewer children were born
 Fewer marriages
 The U.S. government turns our troops on our own WWI veterans (The Bonus
Army) when they demand payment of their bonuses early.
Franklin Roosevelt’s (1932) “New Deal”
 New Deal outlines a government that should:
o look out for it’s people during hardship.
o reduce unemployment through work relief programs
o encourage economic recovery through government programs
o the government should take a more active role and give the public a
place to turn to in times of need.
New Deal Acts and Programs
 Banking and Finance
o Emergency Banking Act -Closed all the banks and only reopened those
that were sound. Most of the banks were able to reopen and stay
solvent.
o Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - Insured bank customers against
the loss of their deposits if the bank should fail.
o Securities and Exchange Commission – licensed investment dealers,
monitors stocks, and require corporations to make full disclosures on the
worth of their company.
 Relief and Conservation Programs
o Federal Emergency Relief Admin.(FERA) – supported 4-5 million
households and funded thousands of work projects
o Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) - gave young men jobs in forestry, dam
building, national parks and stringing telephone wire.
 Agricultural Programs Designed to Assist Farmers
o Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) – paid farmers to leave some land
idle. Did not benefit tenant and sharecroppers.
o Farm Credit Act (FCA) – provide credit on mortgaged farms to head off
foreclosures.
 Programs to Assist Rural Americans
o Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) – built hydroelectric electric power
dams to bring power and light to impoverished rural areas.
o Rural Electrification Admin. (REA)- extended transmission lines into
sparsely settled areas.
 FDR’s Second Hundred Days
o Social Security Act – established an old-age pension and grants for states
to use for dependent mothers and children as well as unemployment
compensation.
The Second New Deal
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The Works Progress Admin.
o employed 10 million
o built roads, airports, buildings, etc.
o produced cultural programs such as the Federal Theater Project
o cost 10 billion by 1943
o largest and most ambitious of all the projects
Wagner Act
o guaranteed workers the right to organize unions
Fair Standards Act
o set standards for wages and hours
Minorities in the Depression
 Women in the Depression
o Eleanor Roosevelt very influential with FDR
o Mary McLeod Bethune, appointed as highest-ranking black official in the
government.
 African-Americans
o New Dealers continued to focus on relief and recovery, but also looked at
making the social condition of blacks more equal.
 Native Americans
o The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 restored to Native Americans, the
right to own land communally.
Opponents to the New Deal
 Court Packing - The Supreme Court which was very conservative had struck
down several New Deal programs. FDR tries to add 6 new justices and failed.
Supreme Court backs off.
 Huey P. Long – encouraged his “Share the Wealth” plan which called for a form
of socialism.
 Father Coughlin – anti-Semetic, favored a guaranteed income and nationalization
of banks
 Dr. Francis Townsend – wanted a pension plan for the elderly
World War II
Isolationism
 Due to problems with the Great Depression, FDR chose to remove the U.S. from
any possible international involvement.
 Isolationists were led by Gerald Nye of North Dakota who reported that
American munitions makers, bankers and financiers had been responsible for
bringing the U.S. into WWI and that the “Death Merchants” were trying to push
the U.S. into another tragic mistake.
 The U.S. slowly began to pull out Latin America and the Philippines.
The Rise of the Dictators
 Fascism and extreme nationalism had begun to spread across Europe and the
Pacific in the form of dictatorships.
 The U.S. felt most threatened by:
o Germany – Hitler
o Italy – Mussolini
o Japan - Tojo
German Actions Leading to War
 Hitler begins to rearm Germany and moves into the Rhineland and then into the
Austria. No one stops him.
 Hitler then moves into the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia and Britain and France
appease him after he promises it is his last territorial demand.
 Hitler then moves into Poland after signing a secret non-aggression treaty with
the Soviet Union. World War II begins.
U.S. Reaction to War
 The U.S. was determined to stay neutral in this new war and was unable to
supply the Allies with loans because of the Neutrality Acts of 1935, 1936 and
1937 and the Johnson Debt Default Act of 1934.
 FDR is able to get the Lend-Lease Act of 1941 passed, which would allow the U.S.
to lend armaments to Britain as long as they returned them after the war was
over.
 In August, 1941, FDR and Churchill meet to create the Atlantic Charter which
addressed the defeat of Germany and plans for the post-war world. Their goals
included freedom of the seas, arms reductions and self-determination.
The U.S. Enters WWII
 The U.S. had been asking the Japanese to leave China for years. When the
Japanese refused, the U.S. launched an embargo on oil and scrap metal.
 The Japanese felt their only choice was to take oil reserves from other British,
French and Dutch possessions in East Asia. They first would have to get rid of
any U.S. resistance to their plans of Pacific domination.
 Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. They killed or wounded more
than 3500 Americans.
 Congress and the American public was no longer intent on neutrality. They
wanted revenge and were committed to war
(Japan had indeed awakened a “sleeping giant”)
Japanese Americans
 Following Pear Harbor, anti-Japanese racism and hysteria led many to believe
that the Japanese could not have completed their mission without help from
spies and might strike again.
 FDR then issued an executive order which called for the interment of any people
of Japanese decent until the end of the war.
 Later in the war, many would leave the camps to fight in Nisei units for the U.S.
in order to prove their loyalty. They were among the most decorated.
Minority Groups
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Ethnic groups including African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, ChineseAmericans and Japanese-Americans fought in large numbers and were highly
decorated.
African Americans moved out of the South to work in industrial cities for the war
effort, found new employment opportunities and believed that they were also
fighting to end racial discrimination at home.
Mexican laborers were welcomed back to the U.S. to help grow crops for the
troops. This practice became known as the bracero program.
The War at Home
 Women went to work in the war industries and played a major role in the war
effort. “Rosie the Riveter”
 Children went on scrap metal drives
 Ration books were issued that limited rubber, shoes, meat, gas, flour etc. These
items were reserved for the military.
 Children had to adjust to a working mother and an absent father. This caused
problems especially for girls which increased their juvenile delinquency.
War in Europe
 Strategy from the beginning of the war had been, “Get Hitler First”.
 From 1942 until 1944, the Allies had slowly begun to reclaim land in North Africa,
and then Italy while Stalin was putting pressure on Germany from the West.
 Once Italy fell and Mussolini was killed, the next step was to regain France and
make the final push into Germany.
D-Day: The Invasion of Normandy
 June 6, 1944, the Allies launched a massive attack on the beaches of Normandy.
While the Germans knew that an attack would take place, they had intercepted
phony troop movements and radio reports and thought the attack would occur
at Pas de Calais.
 The Germans were not prepared for the attack on D-Day led by General
Eisenhower.
 The invasion included a naval attack, paratroopers and air bombardments.
 By August 25th, Paris had been liberated and Allies were beginning their push
toward Germany.
Victory in Europe
 As the Allies were pushing toward Germany, Hitler made one last attempt to
counter attack. The Battle of the Bulge was the last major offensive by Germany.
 By April of 1945, Germany was being over run by the Soviets in the East and the
Allies in the West.
 Hitler committed suicide on April 30th as the Soviets were entering Berlin. On
May 7th, Germany surrendered. FDR would not live to see it; he died on April
12th from a stroke.
The Pacific War
 Early in the War, Japan had successfully taken over much of the Pacific including
the Philippines and had taken American POWs.
 As the Japanese began to dominate they attempted an attack on Midway which
was close to Hawaii. U.S. forces were able to win the battle, thus pushing the
Japanese back.
 The next major battle would take place at the Coral Sea near Australia. The Allies
once again were able to win.
 These two victories were the turning point in the Pacific and led to a strategy of
“island hopping” to get closer to Japan.
 Another major battle signaling the end of the Japanese empire was the Battle of
Leyte Gulf in which the Philippines was regained.
 The next two victories at Iwo Jima and Okinawa would place the U.S. within
striking distance of Japan.
The Atomic Bomb
 The U.S. had been racing with Germans to building an atomic bomb.
 The Manhattan Project was the name given to the program that would build the
bomb.
 July 16, 1945, an atomic bomb was tested at Los Alamos, New Mexico. Germany
had already surrendered.
Victory over Japan
 President Truman was faced with the decision of what to do with the new
weapon.
 His choice was to fight a prolonged ground war with Japan that could take years
and cost thousands of American lives, or to drop the bomb.
 Truman decided to drop the bomb in an attempt to save American military lives.
 Aug. 6, 1945, the Enola Gay dropped the 1st atomic bomb on Hiroshima killing
78,000 Japanese.
 Three days later, the 2nd bomb was dropped on Nagasaki killing 40,000 more.
Japan surrendered unconditionally on Sept. 2, 1945
Consequences of the War
 35 million people died worldwide, both military and civilian
• 400,000 Americans were killed in military service
• 20 million were Soviet deaths
 Atomic power was unleashed
 The United Nations was created
 The inhumanity of the concentration camps demonstrated a cruelty beyond
what anyone had imagined.