Events After World War I and their Impact on

Georgia

Day1

Learning Targets

I can analyze the important events that occurred after World War I and their impact on Georgia.

--I can describe the impact of the boll weevil and drought on Georgia.

--I can explain economic factors that resulted in the Great Depression.

--I can discuss the impact of the career of Eugene Talmadge.

--I can discuss the effect of the New Deal in terms of the impact of the Civilian Conservation Corps, Agricultural Adjustment Act, rural electrification, and Social Security.

Roaring TwentiesWhen the peace treaty ending World War I

was signed, people throughout the nation were ready to celebrate the end of rationing, the end of worry about loved ones overseas, the end of sadness associated with a deadly worldwide flu epidemic, and the end of hard times associated with the war.

For first time the census reflected an

urban society - people had moved into cities

to enjoy a higher standard of living

Age of ProsperityEconomic expansionMass Production Assembly LineAge of the Automobile

Ailing Agriculture…

President Warren Harding

In his presidential campaign, Harding had promised to return the country to normalcy, and that is exactly what he tried to do.

Women

On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment was ratified, giving women the right to vote.

Suddenly, women felt a new sense of equality and a new freedom

of expression.Many wanted to continue working after the war ended.

Idea of Femininity

Changed Dramatically

Tight Corsets Long Petticoats Long Hair Natural LookDemure & ModestWell-Behaved Matron

Knee-Length, Free-Moving Dresses Exposed Legs & ArmsShort, Bobbed, Boyish Hair StyleLipstick & Rouge Drinking, Smoking, Dancing All Night without Chaperone

Flappers

First Female Legislators

Viola Ross Napierfrom Bibb County

& Bessie Kempton Crowell from Fulton County (no

picture available)

Rebecca Latimer Felton

*appointed to fill U.S. Senator Tom Watson’s position when he died in office. *An acknowledgment of her outstanding reform work and efforts supporting the suffrage movement. *Never really served in the position*A special election was held, and Walter F. George was elected.*But Felton was sworn in for a day...making her the first woman to serve in the US Senate*Served shortest term & oldest senator (87 years old)

US SENATE Georgia House of

Representatives

Music

JAZZ – played in Speakeasies (jazz clubs where liquor was sold) Most famous Cotton Club in Harlem Duke Ellington & Louis Armstrong

BLUES – based on black folk music. Ma Rainey (Georgian known as “Mother of Blues”)

Crime There was a dark side

to the Roaring Twenties.Prohibition gave rise to organized gangs

in large cities (Chicago and New York)Gangsters made millions by supplying

illegal liquor to speakeasies and other private clubs.

Scarface Al Capone, Bugs Moran, Baby Face Nelson, Frank Nitty.

Life in the Roaring Twenties

After the war years, life was good and more convenient.--Many things came right to the front door...milk, butter, cream, ice, fresh vegetables.--Electricity became widely available.--Electric appliances became more common (toasters, ranges, etc...)--Convenience Foods – quick-cooked rolled oats, pancake mix, canned goods, pre-sliced bread. Freezing and Packaging Foods – Clarence Birdseye

Consumer Economy

RadioIn November 1920, radio

station KDKA started broadcasting in Pittsburg, and it changed America forever.

Families would gather around the radio to listen to baseball games, news reports, and favorite programs.

In 1922, WSB (reportedly stood for Welcome South Brother) went on air in Atlanta.

MoviesFirst Talking Motion Picture = The Jazz

Singer with Al JolsonFirst Talking Cartoon = Steamboat Willie

with Mickey Mouse

Boll WeevilFor many

Georgians, the twenties were not a time of abundance.

Boll Weevil = small, grayish, long-snouted beetle was destroying the primary source of income for many Georgia farmers –COTTON.

Came from Mexico, moved through Texas, and appeared in Georgia in 1915.

DroughtIn 1924, Georgia farmers were hit with

another natural disaster – a major drought.Drought and overuse of land from cotton

production ruined most of Georgia’s crops.Number of working farms fell from 310,132

t0 249,095.When farms failed, banks that had loaned the farmers money took huge losses.Many farm-related businesses closed.Georgia was in a deep depression.

The Ku Klux Klan Great increase

In powerAnti-black

Anti-immigrant

Anti-women’s suffrage

Anti-bootleggers

Anti-Semitic

Anti-Catholic

Great MigrationMany black farmers and poor whites

moved to northern industrial cities such as Chicago and Detroit hoping to find work in factories and assembly plants.

Lasted until the 1960s.Many northern companies actively recruited African Americans to jobs.

LindberghCharles Lindbergh flew the Spirit of St.

Louis on the 3,600 mile transatlantic journey

Flew without the help of navigational or weather instruments

Used only landmarks to guide him.Took him 33 ½ hours.