American History 2: Chapter 17 – Section 2
I. Americans Move to the Suburbs
A. 40 million Americans move to the suburbs (1940-1960)
1. Why?
a. GI Bill & FHA loans for homes
b. Desire for clean, orderly communities near major cities
2. Levittowns (Describe, criticisms?)
B. Major increase in car ownership
II. Creation of the Interstate Highway System
A. Introduced by Eisenhower
B. Initially meant as a military defense project
C. Impact on America
1. Commuter traffic
2. Vacation travel
III. Moving to the Sunbelt
A. From Rustbelt areas to the South and West
B. Defense contractors and oil companies
C. Significant numbers of Latinos
D. Impact on the Rustbelt
IV. Changing the American Economy
A. From manufacturing to service based jobs (blue collar to white collar)
B. More women entering the workforce (Impact on women?)
C. Declining number of farmers
D. Creation of franchised businesses (criticisms?)
E. Formation of the AFL-CIO