Chapter 26
Postwar America at
Home, 1945-1960
The American People, 6th ed.
I. Economic Boom
The Thriving Peacetime
Economy
 The years following World War II saw one
of the longest sustained economic
expansions in the history of the U.S.
 The automobile industry played a key
role in the expansion with millions of cars
quickly produced and the steady
construction of the interstate highway
system
Changing Work Patterns
 At this point in history, the United States
stopped being primarily a goods producer
and began a new path as a service
provider
 People enjoyed the leisure resulting from
work which was characterized by
conformity and “belongingness.”
 White-collar and blue-collar workers
enjoyed a higher standard of living than
ever before
II.
Demographic and
Technological Shifts
Population Growth
 During the Great Depression, the
birthrate had dropped to an all-time low
 The birth rate exploded as millions of
postwar Americans began families
 The death rate was also declining due to
peacetime and new medical
breakthroughs
Movement West
 Postwar American became more mobile
than ever before; most headed west
 Cities throughout the Sunbelt South and
West coast saw enormous growth as
Americans who had been stationed in
these areas returned after the war.
 Population also shifted away from the
traditional city centers to outlying suburbs
where housing was cheaper
Technology
 A technological revolution transformed the war
efforts of the Atomic Commission into a
collection of scientist hard at work to improve
transportation, satellites, and other consumer
goods that were often the byproducts of
military research
 The new field of computers also reflected the
technology of the era; tiny transistors would
help miniaturize computers for use in many
items from ovens to vacuum cleaners
III. Consensus and
Conformity
Traditional Roles for Men
and Women
 The necessities of World War II had
interrupted the natural progression of social
roles for men and women
 Postwar, men and women had different
expectations: education and business for
men and homemaking and childrearing for
women
 Slow change during the decade
reestablished the working patterns of the
war: women found more entry points into
corporate America
Cultural Rebels
 Influences of mysticism and Buddhism
 Writers of the “Beat Generation” Jack
Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg: developed
new styles of writing; introduction of the
paperback novel
 Elvis Presley and new rebellion of Rockn-Roll
 Art experimentation: Jackson Pollock
IV. Origins of the
Welfare State
Harry Truman
 America’s first postwar president
 Believed the federal government held the
responsibility of ensuring social welfare
of Americans
 His liberal program of social reform was
rejected by Congress, but he was elected
to his first stand-alone term (Truman
replaced Roosevelt after his death)
despite a split within the Democratic
Party
The Fair Deal
 With a new national mandate as a result
of the election, Truman again tabled his
liberal social program which would be
known as the “Fair Deal”
 Despite mixed results and some failures,
Truman was responsible for keeping the
Democratic Party alive after its near
collapse
Ike
 Truman’s popularity fell drastically during
his term
 Former General Dwight D. Eisenhower
was elected the next Republican
president
 The opposite to Truman in almost every
way, Eisenhower was a restrained
president and desired a limited role of the
presidency in national affairs
V. The Other America
Poverty Amid Affluence
 Economic growth of the era favored the
middle and upper classes
 Fully one third of the population lived
substandard existences, usually along
the lines of race
 African Americans continued to be this
country’s least prosperous group of
citizens