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Spanish Flu Outbreak
The deadly Spanish Flu outbreak occurred just as World War 1 ended. An estimated 675,000 Americans died from the influenza, during the pandemic. A total of 117,465 people died in World War 1, showing that the flu killed off more citizens than the Great War. The flu finally ended in December, 1920. -
World War 1 Ends
At 11am on the 11th of November in 1918, Germany signed an armistice (an agreement for peace and no more fighting) which was organised by Britain and France. Germany decided to sign the agreement when they realised they were not strong enough and did not have enough followers to win the war. -
Treaty of Versailles
It was a peace treaty signed at the end of WW1, however the USA did not sign it but instead signed separate peace treaties with Germany and its allies. The USA chose not to sign the treaty as a group of senators called the Irreconcilables believed that under the rules of the treaty, they would loose too much of its autonomy to the League of Nations. -
Race Riots
The summer of 1919 became known as 'red summer' due to over two dozen cities including Washington DC and Chicago experienced violent uprisings. This was a riot of white men caused by racial inequality of the African-American. -
The Wall Street Crash
The Wall Street Crash, also known as Black Tuesday, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the US. It was caused after a fall in stock prices that began around September 4, 1929. Approximately 12,000 people were made unemployed daily, 20,000 companies went bankrupt, 1616 banks had gone bankrupt, 1 in every 20 farmers were evicted and 23,000 people committed suicide in just ONE year. -
The Great Depression
The Great Depression was the result of the Wall Street Crash and is considered the deepest and longest-lasting economic downturn in the history of the Western world. It originated in the United States and lasted from 1929 all the way into the late 1930s. By 1932, unemployment had reached 23.6% and by 1933 it increased to 25%. In 1936, the economy regained the levels of the late 1920s except for unemployment which was still at a high 11%, although this was fairly lower than the 25% seen earlier. -
Roosevelt Wins Election
In November 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt became president in the US. He promised the people a 'New Deal' which US banks would be rescued from the collapse. The 'New Deal' mainly operated through government agencies set up to create jobs and help people. Roosevelt helped the numbers of unemployment to decrease which revived the US during the Great Depression. -
First New Deal
President Roosevelt saw to it to make sure USA’s future was not declared impossible. He established and created the New Deal, which incorporated the 3 r’s. Relief for the unemployed and poor, recovery of the economy to normal levels and reform of the financial system to prevent a possible repeated depression. This deal occurred between 1933 and 1934, which dealt with banking crisis. The number of banks failing decreased from a steady 500 banks per year, to only around 10 per year after 1933. -
Second New Deal
In early 1935, President Roosevelt declared the Second New Deal. This was a deal which promoted labour unions, the Works Progress Administration relief program, a program that employed millions of unemployed people to perform public works projects. The deal also included the Social Security Act, which was basically providing insurance for Old-age, survivors and disabilities, and also the new programs to aid tenant farmers and migrant workers. This deal occurred between 1935-1938. -
Huey Long Shooting
Huey Long was an American politician and an outspoken populist, who thought that wealth should be shared among citizens rather than individuals withholding fortune. He is known for his program, Share Our Wealth, which included the redistribution of wealth by way of tax on corporations and individuals, this in turn decreasing poverty and homelessness caused during the Great Depression. He was assassinated the day after he announced he would be running for president. -
Hatch Act Signed to the Law
The Hatch Act of 1939 was a federal law in the USA stating that any employees except for the president, vice-president and certain designated high-level officials of that branch, were forbidden to perform any political activity. It restricted any form of influence from voters, and political campaign activities run by federal employees were banned.
