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End of the Civil War
After the Civil War, the Confederates were destroyed and the Union became rich. Those in control of Washington had an industrialized view of the nation with cities, factories, farms, banks, and other policies. The South collapsed and things such as the Treasury were formed in the North. -
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The Gilded Age
After the Civil War, there was an explosion in the economy and caused the "second industrial revolution". Transportation such as railroads expanded in safety, efficiency, and cost. New ways of communication came into play. Advancements in industry with harvesting natural resources such as coal developed boosts in efficiency. -
First official typewriter
The first typewriter was developed and provided a new and more efficient way of producing documents in writing. -
Golden Spike driven into the Transcontinental Railroad
This ceremony completed the transcontinental railroad, establishing a foudation for transportation and idea movement. -
Standard Oil of Ohio comes into play
John D. Rockefeller founded Standard Oil of Ohio. Sohio became a very large petroleum producer and eventually merged with BP Oil -
Alexander Graham Bell patented the first telephone
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Pure Food and Drug Act is enacted
The pure food and drug act allowed for truth in advertising and changed the way that companies advertised, allowing the consumer to be completely aware of what they are buying. -
Henry Ford introduced the assembly line
Henry Ford of Ford Motorcompany developed the most efficient way to produce automobiles by giving people specialized jobs and allowing each person to build one piece of the automobile. This forced production and output to increase exponentially. -
Federal Reserve is formed
The FED provided a central banking system for the United States. -
Edsel Ford Suceeds his father as head of Ford Motorcompany
This spurred the growth of one of the strongest automobile companies in history. -
Roy and Walt Disney founded the Walt Disney Company
The Walt disney Company revolutionized the entertainment industry with their innovation through cartoons. It started with silent cartoons and has developed into the largest producer of children's products and media in the world. -
The Stock Market Crash
The stock market went through a series of serious price declines, coupled with investory anxiety, led to the stock market dropping over 40%. -
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The Great Depression
Following the stock market crash, the FED enacted the Smoot-Hawley Tariff which caused retaliation from Canada, Germany, Britain and other countries. By 1932, unemployment rose to 25%. The economy was destabilized by bank and large business failures due to investment bankings. -
The 21st Amendment was repealed
This spurned the alcohol business and reduced the problems with bootlegging and illegal trafficking of alochol. -
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Wartime Efforts
The War Production Board organized the efforts of the U.S. to combine in production of supplies such as tanks, ammunition, and other military orders. Six million women tooks jobs in production and were replacing many of the men that were away at war. -
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Post-War Prosperity
From the end of World War II to the early 1970s was a powerful era for American Capitalism. War Bonds matured and G.I. Bills allowed a powerful returning workforce to prosper in the new economic times. Across the board of economic classes, GDP and productivity increased. This time period allowed for a high amount of sustainable growth and full employment, creating the "Golden Age of Capitalism". -
Dwight D. Eisenhower introduced interstate highways
Much like the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the interstate highways created a pathway for ideas and commerce to travel all around the country. -
Stock Market Bear Market
Between January 1973 and December 1974 the market hit a period of being a bear market. There was a 45% drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average within this time period -
1973 Oil Crisis
In October of 1973, Arab members of OPEC enduced an oil embargo on exportation. This block on oil caused a drastic spike in oil prices, up to 12$ per barrel. -
Microsoft Corporation is founded
Paul Allen and Bill Gates, childhood friends began programming and entered into business together. -
Apple Computers is developed
Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne move to sell Apple 1 personal computer and start what will become one of the biggest companies. -
Deregulation
Deregulation of industries became popular around 1976 when Jimmy Carter became president. The first official act was the Airline Deregulation Act in 1978 and was pursued through much of the transportation industry. This allowed businesses to control more within industry and gave them more freedom. -
Reaganomics
Reaganomics developed a series of policies that throughout Reagan's presidency formed a solid economic foundation. Within this time, inflation dropped from 13.5% to 3% on 3 years. Unemployment dropped from 10.8% to 6% and over 20 million jobs were created. -
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Rise of Globalization
The rise of the internet and marketing caused a large spike in trade and communication throughout the world. The S&P 500 tripled and this was evident through the soaring of stocks known as the "Dot-com Boom". Unemployment dropped below 5% and inflation was manageable. -
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Housing Market False Growth
In 2001, the housing market began to bubble causing a false sense of security for buyers. This also showed a fake strength within the U.S. economy and caused people to feel safer than they actually were. In 2006, housing prices peaked and in December of 2008, the Case-Shiller home price index reported its largest price drop in history. -
Recession
Directly following the housing bubble burst, The United States entered into a serious recession. Mortgages were bundled and these collateralized debt organizations were resold in the international market. The government had to bail out many large banks and mortgage companies. The "Big Three" of the automobile companies were also on the verge of bankruptcy and with this ensued the TARP funds. -
Amercan Recovery and Reinvestment Act
Through spending and tax cuts, an estimated $787 Billion, later revised to $819 billion, was and is currently being pushed into the economy. This derives from a Keynesian macroeconomics theory in which the government should offset the lack of private spending with an increase in public spending.
