Essay, Research Paper: American History Paper, 1900 To 1975

American History Final Jay Neault

The beginning of the 20th century was lead by President Mckinley. He was re- elected in 1901, but was shot dead the same year, bringing Theodore Roosevelt into office. TR was just what the country needed to get it rolling. He was the leader of what was called the Progressive Era. In this time businesses were beginning to be regulated, and the citizens had more say in their governments. The journalists of this time were called "muckrakers", named by Roosevelt. They would bring crime and corruption in the big cities to the people through stories that were sometimes true, and sometimes false. One muckraker, named Ida Tarbell told how Rockerfeller's Standard Oil Company had driven her father, and many others out of business. These stories would stir up the people, and get the country moving.
The next president in the Progressive Era was William Howard Taft. Taft was backed by TR in the beginning of his presidency, but then began to disappoint him. His reform of the Payne Aldrich tariff was seen as a betrayal of the Progressive Party because it wasn't a significant drop in the tariff. Taft produced more of a lull in the growth of the country, which set it up for the next big surge. The election of 1912 was between two Progressives, TR and Woodrow Wilson, and President Taft. TR wanted more of an aggressive approach to running the country, while Wilson wanted to merely keep the businesses in line. In the end the Americans chose Wilson over TR.
Wilson made many moves to push the country ahead economically. He signed the Underwood- Simmons bill which cut the tariff 11 percent. One of the biggest moves for the country was the Federal Reserve Act. This act made all banks Federal Reserve banks, connected to larger banks for security. It also made the Federal Reserve note, a nation wide currency. This act unified the country economically making it stronger. The Clayton Antitrust Act was passed to stop monopolies from taking the stock of merging companies, and prohibited anyone from being director of two or more corporations, to prevent interlocking directorates. The FTC was also set up to stop any unfair practices.
A more powerful stand was taken with TR's corollary to the Monroe doctrine, which said the U.S. would intervene with affairs in Latin America.
Taft was more into the commerce of military action. Tafts foreign policies were called Dollar diplomacy. When a civil war broke out in Nicaragua, Taft sent troops in to protect American businesses.
Wilson was faced with a military problem in Mexico as soon as he became president. A new leader had taken over by force and was asked to step down by Wilson. When he refused, Wilson sent troops into Mexico and took the city, then re- established the proper government. But soon a civil war arose, and Wilson sent more troops in with John J. Pershing leading. With the entrance into World War I in 1917, the troops were withdrawn and the progressive era was over.
T the start of the First World War, the U.S. stayed neutral. We said that the war had nothing to do with us. Germany declared waters around Britain a war zone, and said they would sink ships without warning by U- boats. The British luxury liner Lusitania was sank, killing 1198 people. Next was the liner the Arabic, it still wasn't enough to get the U.S. into the war
During the war, trade with England and the allies went up to $3 billion. Trade with Germany and its allies went down to $1 million. This trade kept the economy going, which included ammunition, food and raw materials.
Wilson was re- elected as President and tried to arrange a peace deal, "a peace without victory" but all the talks failed. Kaiser Wilhelm announced that unlimited submarine warfare would begin, with a plan to starve England.
The U.S. finally went to war after getting word of Germany saying they would helpMexico get Texas back. The message was published and called the Zimmerman Note. In 1918 Wilson presented Fourteen points, which was sort of a declaration of democracy for the world. It called for freedom of the seas, and for a League of Nations to keep peace and insure justice.
To feed all the soldiers over in Europe, a food administration was set up, lead by Herbert Hoover.
The Versailles Treaty at the end of the war was a debate on what to do with conquered land, and the Fourteen Points.
The 1920's proved to be a unique decade. Prohibition swept the nation, enforced by the 18th amendment. The ban of alcohol set up the underground sale of liquor by mobs and gangsters.
Along with prohibition came the 19th amendment, which gave women the right to vote. The 20's were a time of new inversions, assembly lines, automobiles and the stock market. The economy was booming with new products and ideas. Many people were getting rich overnight. In 1929 Herbert Hoover became president, and it seemed that nothing could stop the country's growth. On October 24, the stock market crashed. Bankers threw $30 million into the market to hold it up, but on Tuesday the next week prices dropped rapidly. People had bought their stock on margin, and ended up owing lots of money. It was known as Black Tuesday, and triggered a nationwide depression.
The election of 1932 was between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover, FDR came out as the new president, and the new hope for the future of America. FDR offered a new deal. Government programs were set up to employ lots of people. Some of these programs were the FDIC, AAA, PWA, CWA, WPA, NLRB, NRA, AFL, and the TVA. These programs were known as alphabet soup. These programs employed people, and fixed up the county at the same time. The downside to it was the deficit from government spending on all these programs.
While FDR was in office in the U.S., Mussolini and Hitler were becoming threats in Europe. In 1931 Japan seized Manchuria, and were labeled aggressors. They then withdrew from the League of Nations and attacked China in 1937. With these three aggressor groups in the world, the U.S. still remained neutral. In 1938 Hitler's persecution of the Jews increased, and in 1939 he seized Czechoslovakia. In 1939 the arms embargo was repealed enabling the U.S. to sell arms to the Allies. In 1939 Germany signed a non-aggression act with the Soviet Union, and gave them land. Hitler ordered all Polish people with German blood to return to Germany, when they refused Germany invaded Poland. Two days later World War II started. Japanese war planes fighting for Hideki Tojo attacked Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. This bombing sent the U.S. into the war. The Japanese planned to attack Midway in June of 1942, and the U.S. knew about it. The U.S. won the battle and turned the pacific into America's territory. The U.S. and Great Britain Proved their military greatness on D- Day in 1944 when they invaded France across the English Channel. The attack was a success, and in a few weeks 1500 square miles were taken back. After Italy and Germany had surrendered, only Japan was left, and was reluctant to give in. After threats from Truman, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima killing at least 75,000 people. Another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. The Japanese surrendered. In the Nuremberg trials 10 Nazi leaders, and hundreds of soldiers were executed. 500,000 others were punished. In the Tokyo trials 7 Japanese leaders and 400 officers were executed.
After World War II, the threat of atomic weapons, and communism were about. The cold war was happening between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. There was a fear that there was a communist conspiracy in the U.S. In 1949 the Soviet Union exploded an atomic bomb.
The Korean War was fought by communist China in the north and non-communist south. The UN was fighting for the south. Not wanting to provoke a third world war, the UN settled on the 38th parallel, and set up defense.
In 1952 Dwight Eisenhower became president of the U.S. While Ike was president the border in Korea was officially established, and the Hydrogen Bomb was created. One year later the Soviets had an H- bomb. Senator Joe McCarthy was all out against communists in the government and was eventually condemned by the Senate for going overboard.
A step ahead for America accured in the Brown v. Board of Education trial in 1954. The court ruled that the schools couldn't be separated by race, moving the country ahead in equality.
Rosa Parks refusing to give up a bus seat sparked a civil rights revolution. Rosa and Martin Luther King Jr. teamed up and asked everyone to boycott the bus service she was on. The result was the bus service almost going out of business, until they treated blacks like equals.
Russia's satellite Sputnik fueled the space race between the U.S. and Russia, which prompted NASA to be formed.
In 1961 John F. Kennedy was elected president over Richard Nixon. The Bay of Pigs in 1961 was when the U.S. armed Cuban refugees to try and overthrow the Communist leader Fidel Castro. The attack failed and the troops were captured.
During JFK's presidency, a wall was constructed between east and west Berlin. JFK sent 1500 men as a signal that the U.S. would act.
The Peace Corps were set up to help poverty stricken people and places throughout the world.
The Cuban missile crisis proved to be a step back in aggression between the two superpowers, when the missals were removed from Cuba.
A nuclear test ban treaty was signed by the U.S., Russia, and Great Britain, along with 100 other nations. The U.S. was finally starting to make the world a little safer as far as global destruction goes.
The U.S. showed its position on military affairs through Vietnam. Once again the U.S. was trying to save a county from communism. The very unpopular war among Americans never really had a clear-cut purpose, except the stopping of communism. In 1973 a cease-fire was reached in Paris.
As you can see, the United States grew into one of the most powerful countries in the world, with its military intervening with foreign affairs, and its booming economy with a couple of big slumps. It improved its commitment to equality by passing laws within the country, established justice throughout the world, and tried to spread democracy as much as it could.