Seeing America pre and post World War II is like looking at two totally different countries. Although pre World War II America is still developing in numerous ways but compared to after World War II it seems to be at a turtles pace. There are very important inventions that come into place such as, the telephone and automobile. Another feat before this era is the railroad system that is put in place all this with the industrial revolution being taken place. As far as the economy goes, it was suffering and barely there and when the Great Depression hit it was a severe spiral downhill. Needless to say World War II which was the main reason we got out of the Great Depression, helped jumpstart our economy as well as the growth of our country as well in all aspects. The winning of World War II gave people the confidence and optimism in themselves that they needed. One of the major events that took place was the event of “urban sprawl” or the spread of the suburban areas around the United States. The Federal Housing Administration was made into effect as a part of the National Housing Act in 1935. In a 1936 Bulletin the FHA took concepts from three people, Unwin, Perry, and Stein, and put them all together to come up with a concept of planning a neighborhood. Three forms were then laid out for a framework of residential street layouts; Curvilinear, Cul-de-sacs, and Courts. By 1959 this administration had helped three out of every five American families purchase a home and helped millions of families to repair their damaged homes. The FHA did not only help homeowners but banks, business establishments, farms, and building and loan associations. Another helpful attribute was The G.I. Bill of Rights that passed in 1945, helped veterans get money to go to school along with being able to afford and own homes. This helped the veterans want to further themselves after getting back from war and along with this start a family. In turn here comes the baby boom and population started to rise. With the added population and people buying houses, the economy started going up again with the necessity of needing/wanting to buy more goods for the house.
One other very important invention post World War II was the jet engine, by Frank Whittle in 1928 but not technically used until 1941 when the air forces started using them. The first U.S. jet was the Bell P-59A Airacomet. Mostly jets were used in the war or commercial use but then followed for public use as well as delivering mail and cargo. This in turn became huge airports which created more job opportunities that put more people being able to contribute to the economy.
Finally one of the most influential attributes to America that is pictured above is the Eisenhower Interstate Highway System. On June 29th, 1956 President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act. This bill pertained to the elimination of unsafe roads, insufficient routes and all things that encompasses all troubles on roadways. This included a 41,000 mile of national systems of interstate and defense highways that linked a little over 90 percent of all cities with populations over 50,000. The cost of this act was distributed over a span of thirteen years that totaled a whopping twenty five billion dollars.
With these aspects that furthered the American economy after World War II, we start to see an America that is unafraid and striving for improvement. The optimism and confidence that was found among Americans just kept getting stronger throughout the years post World War II. We see this by the wills in the people of America. People who are fighting for their rights as individuals, fighting to stay a “free” country. From African Americans fighting so bravely for their rights to equality to the all the women who stood up for what they believed to fight gender standards. As far as a community of people we have come a long way since before the Great Depression and these are some of the things that influenced these happenings.
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