The Role Of Cars In The 50's

Improved Essays
Cars in the 1950’s

In the 1950’s, one in six Americans were employed in the automobile industry. America was growing rapidly. The 50’s were considered the “Golden Age” of the 20th Century. World War II was over and manufacturing was on a roll. Automobiles became a big part of life. The car industry in the 1950’s were effected by a few key things that happened during that century.

As a matter of fact the 1950’s were some of the most influential times in history. World War II ended in 1945. Manufacturing companies had been busy making lots of products for war, like guns and army vehicles. During the 40’s there was a shortage of metal because all the metal was being used for guns and weapons so automobile companies had to find other materials. Later in the century, Eisenhower called for The Interstate Highway Act. This Act planned to make around 41,000 miles of highway. A different kind of transportation became popular around that time. In 1957 the Russians launched “Spudnik”, the first man made object in space. The 50’s had lots of exciting things happening.
…show more content…
Elvis Presley became famous and rock and roll music became popular. New types of businesses popped up everywhere to serve people. Drive-in diners where waitresses roller-skated to your car to take your order were everywhere. At the same time, along with “Spudnik”, the space age was growing and becoming an exciting part of our culture. Scientists wanted to see if they could get a person into space. The space race began where America and Russia competed to see who could get a man on the moon first. America was full of

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Race To Space Analysis

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. This unknown area is a major interest by the large world powers. The thought of being able to control this infinite far-off territory compelled people to attempt to explore. In 1957 the Soviet Union and the United States became eager in learning about this remote abyss. The “race to space” quite clearly reflected the political, social and economic aspects if the Cold War because it was a fight for supremacy between two superpowers, both powers wanted to be the first to do everything including go to space and lastly both the Cold War and the “race to space” overall cost a great deal of money.…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Of the competitions that occurred, the most commonly known was the space race. The space race began in 1957, under the concept of bipolar world, which meant that the U.S and Russia were trying to come out as the best country in the world.…

    • 2529 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Impact On 1960's Sports

    • 383 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Impact on 1960’s Sports The 1960’s was a very important time. It has affected music, art, fashion, and other things. People also helped change history in that time. Music, art and fashion were important to that time but so was sports.…

    • 383 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the time of the 1950s, there were many factors that contributed to the prosperity that many Americans enjoyed. The 1950s were a time where there were highs and lows, but through it all, it made America what it is today. The past wars were hard on people, and they had to work to make sure they had a life for them and their families. Parents did all they could to support their families. This paper will reflect on how Americans grew to enjoy the prosperity they created by the GI Bill of RIghts, Suburbs and Highways, and Consumerism.…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1920's Business Analysis

    • 1178 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The New Era was a great time of business. The 1920’s saw an economy prosper due to consumerism, leisure expansion, and the establishment of a middle class. In contrast, just prior to the 1920’s America was still in the industrial age, where the unemployment rate peaked at 20 percent, and bankruptcy rates were threatening farmers by increasing tenfold. The reading states that before President Harding’s death, he was able to implement high tariffs protecting business in America, supporting costs for agriculture, and undoing wartime government control above an industry in favor of unregulated private business. Coolidge not only carried on Harding’s policies of promoting business and limiting government, but he extended them.…

    • 1178 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Today, it is custom in America for citizens to own automobiles and use them in everyday life; this was not a normalcy until the 1920’s though. In the years previous to the 1920’s the only people who could afford automobiles were the extremely wealthy. The automobile that these upper-class citizens would often buy was the Model N from Ford. This was a very large and expensive automobile. Henry Ford knew that he had to create a smaller more affordable car to sell to the mass market (ask for help).…

    • 1117 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In response to the massive surplus of babies in the 30s and 40s, the youth flourished in the 1950’s. The age of conformity kicked in as students dressed the same, listened to the same rock-and-roll music and even thought in unison (very few rebellions/war-like events). Along with the growing youth, the American Market expanded throughout the world and placed the U.S. into the highest ranking for the years to come. During the 1950’s, the Cold War was evident and many people, who were proposed to be communists, were expelled from American society.…

    • 427 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    1920s Cars Essay

    • 1421 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Cars of the 1920s started the age of the automobile which over time became faster, stronger, more fuel efficient and more reliable. Henry Ford plays a major role in the automotive industry in this time period. His model-T was and still is a very popular car. The cars of this time period could not reach very high speeds and the safety of these cars were dangerous. Cars were a new thing during the 1920s and have forever changed transportation and life of the average american.…

    • 1421 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    (“Culture in the 1950’s”)The establishment of the new car reflected the prosperity of the 1950 's because more people wanted to live in a suburban setting so living farther away from town made cars…

    • 1471 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Jfk Space Race Analysis

    • 2213 Words
    • 9 Pages

    I. Political and Economic Situations surrounding the Space Race in America “The good news for space exploration in general is that public opinion favors it – but only when not taking economic costs and budgetary spending into consideration.” (Hsu) Setting up the backdrop for the rise of the space program simultaneously builds the opposing argument for its continuation past 1969 as well. As culturally beneficial as it eventually resulted to be, it can be widely agreed that the initialization of the race to the moon was not sparked by human curiosity itself. The primary motivator for initial American exploration into space was a silver beach-ball sized hunk of metal called Sputnik. Normally a Russian ball made of metal wouldn’t unnerve anyone-…

    • 2213 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    1950s Vs Today Essay

    • 1098 Words
    • 5 Pages

    General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler produced 94 percent of the cars Americans bought. It was also during this time when they convinced families that two cars were a necessity to support their lifestyles. The Interstate Highway Act was put into effect, constructing 40,000 miles of new highways. Now, we use cars as the main mode of transportation in most cities, but in the urban areas, like Chicago, they still use subways, buses, trains, taxis, and “Uber” to get around the city more efficiently and faster. Due to the need of these transportations in the 1950s, it allowed more jobs to be created in large corporations like…

    • 1098 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The 1950’s was defined as one of the most economic eras in the history of the United States, the decade following World War II provided the stability for American citizens to build wealth and start families.…

    • 1079 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gas stations began dotting roadsides across the world, and more gas stations meant a larger demand for oil. Despite the heightened demand, oil prices decreased by $1.80 over the course of the decade (Chartsbin, 2015.) To conclude, 1920’s automobiles led to the expansion and creation of many…

    • 584 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gas stations began to be made and mechanics began to earn a living fixing unavoidable problems that were sure to happen. When the demand for automobiles increases, so did oil and steel, which became two well-known industries (The Age 5). Automobiles also affected cuisine. The typical…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    It was the 1960s, gas was cheap, 37 cents a gallon on average, and people were finding their way back to normal life after World War 2. Racial tensions and tension with the USSR were coming to turning points, art and music were growing as an outlet for personal expression. The economy was circulating as the decade was run by democratic presidents between 1961 and 1969.The 1960s were a decade of change, and the auto industry was no exception. In the 1960s the automobile industry was shaped by a new generation of baby boomers, the emerging counter culture, the cold war which evoked americans to experiment with new technology, a market aimed towards the people,and the public's growing unrest about safety.…

    • 1347 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays