Catherine Poirier
APUSH period 1
3/8/11
C28 KTs
America Unified (740): there was unity about the conflict itself; Congress claimed it was a unified effort,
the country had never faced anything like this before; their unity was tested in the first part of war –
1942, the war was going poorly, Britain was ready to collapse & the USSR was staggering
Midway (740): Midway Island; June 3-6, 1942; an enormous four day battle in which the US, despite
their great losses, won; major turning point in the war; they took control of the central Pacific for the
US; destroyed 4 Japanese aircraft carriers while losing only one.
Guadalcanal (740): August 1942, the US forces were in offensive mode – attacked Gavutu, Tulagi, &
Guadalcanal; fight at Guadalcanal continued for 6 months; there were great losses on both ends, but
ultimately, the Japanese were forced to abandon the island; this loss was their last chance for any hopes
of trying to launch an effective offensive in the south
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The US launched an attack from the outside of the Nazi Empire on Nov. 8; they suffered a great
loss from the Nazis in Africa, but eventually drove the last Germans out of Africa in May 1943 
leads up the invasion of France (their main goal to regain)
Stalingrad (741): Threats of USSR collapse were diminished; winter of 1942-3 the Red Army held off
German offenses; Hitler committed and lost so many that their entire eastern offense was out off by this
defeat  did not come without cost for the Soviet Union; shrunk population size and destroyed the
countryside  20 million casualties during WWII
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July 9, 1943 – American & British troops landed in Sicily; made their way up the main land,
conquering the island in 8 days; Mussolini’s government collapsed & Mussolini fled the country
himself – his second in command Petro Badoglio divided the country in 8; Hitler send massive
troops in the country; Allied offense bogged down, and did not resume until May 1944 –
captured Rome June 4, 1944.
Dispute over the Second Front (742): Invasion of Italy  Delayed invasion of France by one year,
angering the Soviet Union; some believed the US & GB were delaying the invasion on purpose to allow
the Russians to absorb the brunt of the fighting; gave the Soviets time to move toward the countries in
eastern Europe.
Official Anti-Semitism (743): Efforts by anti-Semite Assistant Secretary Breckinridge Long prevented Jews
from entering the US; a ship of 1,000 + Jews looking for refuge were not allowed into the US because of
this – that year the quota for immigration for Jews was only 10% of what it could have been; more
instances like this occurred
War-Induced Economic Recovery (744): In the middle of 1941, WWII was the cause of the end of the
great depression; all of the economic problems of the GD virtually vanished before the new wave of
wartime industrial expansion.
Union Gains (745): war employment gave boost to union membership (10.5 million to 13 million 194145); were less able to fight for its members; as well as the Little Steel Deal – set 15% limit on wartime
wage increases, “no-strike” pledge (couldn’t stop production in wartime); had to give up the right to
major economic gains during the war.
Office of Price Administration (745): Oct 1942, Congress passed the Anti-Inflation Act; gave the
administration authority to freeze agricultural prices, wages, salaries, and rents throughout the country;
enforced by the OPA, led by Leon Henderson & then by Chester Bowles; WWII had a very small inflation
problem.
War Production Board (746): January 1942; FDR faced criticism for creating it; WPB was under the
direction of former Sears Roebuck exec Donald Nelson; WPB was in theory, supposed to be a
“superagency” that had economic powers; didn’t have as much control as the WIB of WWI; Nelson also
never displayed enough political or administrative strength either
National Defense Research Committee (746): 1940; America started putting money into research &
development; headed by MIT Vannevar Bush – pioneer for early development of the computer; agency
spent more than $100 million on research.
Radar and Sonar (746): taking advantage of radio technology in the 1920s +; technology was all about
trying to limit the amount of damage – intercepting movements; they helped destroy many German Uboats; important to the creation in 1940 of “centimetric radar;” used narrow beams to make radars
more effective; they could detect enemy vessels & devices that were farther away than before.
Ultra (748): Britain’s top secret intelligence agency; they tried to capture and steal German and
Japanese intelligence – they could easily decode their encrypted messages due to technological
advances  most effective way to gain intelligence
Magic (748): US Intelligence breakthrough; 1941 – dramatic coding break in the Japanese system by
magic; they broke the code, it was unlike the German’s Enigma (code) – called Purple; if they had
discovered this information earlier, they could have prevented the attack on Pearl Harbor & could now
prevent future attacks
FEPC (748): Fair Employment Practices Commission; created out of the deal between FDR & Randolph –
leader of the black Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters; marched to DC because they wanted the
government to require companies receiving defense contracts to integrate their work forces;
investigated discrimination against blacks in war industries; enforcement power was limited but its
creation was a symbol of hope/
CORE (748): Congress of Racial Equality; 1942 – mobilized mass popular resistance to discrimination in a
new way; young black leaders organized sit-ins and demonstrations in segregated theaters and
restaurants; 1944  victory – restaurants agreed to serve blacks  civil rights movement
“Code-Talkers” (749): Native Americans were hired to be code talkers during WWII; they spoke their
native tongues over the radio to ensure the enemies could not intercept any messages, because they
wouldn’t know the language.
Employment Gains for Mexican Americans (749): farm workers were put out of work because of the
Great Depression; in WWII they found refuge in factory jobs for the first time in a long time; second
largest group of migrants to cities, after blacks.
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Pachucos – teenagers who were part of street gangs in reaction to the tensions rising in the
cities; dressed in “zoot suits” – loose jackets, baggy pants tied at the ankles, long white chains,
broad-brimmed hats, and greased back hair
Zoot-Suit Riots (749): animosity grew & sailors invaded a Mexican-American neighborhood in June 1943,
they attacked the zoot-suiters, and the police did very little to stop it; when the Hispanics tried to hit
back they ripped off their clothes & were beaten  banned the wearing of zoot-suits
Dramtic Increase in Female Employment (750): increased by 60% percent; 1/3rd of workers in 1945; most
likely to be married and were older than women who had entered the wrok force than before.
“Rosie the Riveter” (750): famous war time symbol of women joining the “men’s” workforce; symbolized
their importance; they joined unions & work places despite prejudice that had previously kept them
from being paid.
Limited Child Care (750): new employment opportunities presented a limited amount of child care;
women would have to leave their kids at home while they worked – “eight-hour orphans”; or left them
in locked cars outside their work
Beginning of the “Baby Boom” (751): WWII increased the rate & lowered the age of marriage; many
young couples were unable to survive the pressures of wartime separation; divorce rate went up; rise in
birth rate was the first sign of the “baby boom”
Economic Good Times (751): created buoyancy in American life – people had money to spend freely
again; there was a shortage in consumer goods however; book, theater, and movie industries made
great business; half the population attended a movie every week; magazines (Life)did extremely well –
satisfied hunger for pictures and stories about the war; Radio listening increased as well
Fighting for Future Prosperity (752): America was fighting for a future of material comfort & consumer
choice for themselves/children; mass production, mass distribution, ownership; troops were fighting for
the future of their home country, not to defeat the enemies.
USO (753): recruited thousands of women to serve as hostesses in clubs – expected to be wholesome,
chat with lonely men; to give a healthy outlet for their heterosexual impulses; dance brigades would
march to bases to provide entertainment to the troops; were not allowed to contact men outside of
these meetings; no dates with soldiers; they took measures to take out lesbians & homosexuals
Ethnic Distinctions Blurred (754): not too much racial animosity, but they had certainly not disappeared;
restrictions on Italians in wartime – provisions forbidding men to travel and the imprisonment of a few
hundred – they were “enemy aliens”; war worked to blur ethnic lines; there was little hostility towards
German Americans  extremely different with Japanese Americans; hostile, believed to be cruel
Anti-Japanese Prejudice (754): target of ethnic animosity; Asians were unable to dispel the prejudice
unlike those of Europe; Americans believed even native-born Japanese could never be “real” Americans
– they lived so close-knit, reinforced the idea of aliens
“relocation centers” (754): WRA (War Relocation Authority) was created in 1942 to oversee the project
to hire intern Japanese Americans; 100,000+ were rounded up, told to get rid of their property, and
were taken to relocation centers – weren’t different from prisons; harsh, tried to “Americanize”
Japanese
Korematsu v. U.S. (755): 1944; Supreme Court ruled relocation was constitutionally permissible; it
barred the internment of loyal citizens – but left the definition of “loyal” up to the government; bu the
end of 1944, internees had been released; 1945 – they were allowed back to the West Coast; faced
harassment and persecution; 1988 – when most had died, congress granted reparations
Chinese Exclusion Acts Repealed (756): alliance with China enhanced status of Chinese Americans during
WWII; 1943 – to improve relations with China, Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Acts; increase in
immigration quota – but still miniscule (105); women got into the country anyways – over 4,000 in the
first 3 years – through war brides & fiancées
Dismantling the New Deal (756): within the admin of FDR, they were displaced by new managers of
wartime agencies; came from large corporations; conservatives in congress contributed the ost to the
end of the new deal; they wanted to dismantle the New Deal in peacetime – the war helped them do so;
no need for the mass unemployment programs – employment rate was raising
1944 Election (756): election revolved around domestic, economic issues, not the war, and the
president’s health; FDR was gravely ill (arteriosclerosis); campaign revived him momentarily; captured
53.3 percent compared to Dewey’s 46 percent; Democrats lost one seat in the senate & gained 20 in the
House – maintained control.
Strategic Bombing (757): Allied powers bombed strategically in Europe to make way for their attack on
France; in german cities – Leipzig, Dresden, and berlin; feb. 1945 – raid on Dresden created a huge fire,
destroyed 3/4th of the city, and killed 135,000 people
D-Day (758): June 6, 1944; General Dwight Eisenhower deployed 3 million troops and the largest array of
vessels to Normandy beach; had been gathering in England for two years; germans expected the landing
to be at the narrowest part of the channel, hadn’t expected the Cotentin Peninsula; offshore vessels and
airplanes bombed Nazis; 4,000 vessels landed troops and supplies on the beaches; allied forces
prevailed; german forces were gone within a week
Battle of the Bulge (758): Rhine River – put Allied domination to a halt; faced a line of German defenses;
german forces struck out in the middle of December along 50 miles in the Ardennes Forest; they drove
55 miles before they reached Antwerp; ended German resistance
Germany Defeated (759): April 30; Soviet forces were on the outskirts of Berlin, Hitler killed himself;
May 8, 1945 remaining forces surrendered  VE Day
Battle of Leyete Gulf (759): American forces landed on the western Carolines; oct 20 – General
MacArthur’s troops landed on Leyete Island in the Philippines; Japanese used their entire fleet in
attempt to destroy the Americans, but the US left them with little naval power
Okinawa (759): Japan sent suicide bombers week after week; troops on the shore of the island attacked
Americans during the night time; suffered 50,000 casualties before capturing Okinawa during June 1945
 an example of Japanese resistance
Enrico Fermi (760): Discovered the radioactivity of Uranium in 1930; made the creation of atomic
weapons possible in the 1940s; 1939 – Niels Bohr sent this news to the US & scientists at Columbia
provided evidence for its use at atomic weapon fuel.
The Trinity Bomb (761): war in Europe ended before they could test the first weapon; July 16, 1945 –
Alamogordo, New Mexico; scientists gathered to witness the first atomic bomb explosion in history;
plutonium filled bomb named trinity; created a huge brater in the desert
Debating the Bomb’s Use (761): were truman’s motives justified?; some argue that the attack was
unnecessary; Japanese would have surrendered anyways; some were worried about becoming the most
hated & feared in the world.
Hiroshima (762): August 6, 1945; an American B-29, Enola gay dropped an atomic bomb on the
industrial center; the US incinerated a four square mile area; 80,000+ died
Nagasaki (762): August 9, 1945; one day after the USSR declared war on them; killing over 100,000 this
time; Japanese government announced it was ready to give up on August 14.