America after the World War One

The Espionage Act of 1917 stayed on the lawbooks; over the years it has been used against hundreds of spies, but also leakers and whistleblowers, such as Ellsberg and Russo in the 1970s. Disillusioned by the failure of the war to achieve the high ideals promised by President Woodrow Wilson, however, American commercial interests did finance Europe's rebuilding and reparations efforts in Germany, at least until the onset of the Great Depression. The American economic influence allowed the Great Depression to start a domino effect, pulling Europe in as well.
The postWorld War I recession was an economic recession that hit much of the world in the aftermath of World War I. In many nations, especially in North America, this growth continued during the war as nations mobilized their economies to fight the war in Europe. After the war ended, however, the global economy began to decline. In the United States 19181919 saw a modest economic retreat, but the next year saw a mild recovery. A more severe recession hit the United States in 1920 and 1921 when the global economy fell very sharply. In North America the recession immediately following World War I was extremely brief, lasting for only 7 months from August 1918 to March 1919.[1] A second, much more severe recession, sometimes labeled a depression, began in January 1920. Several indexes of economic activity suggest the recession was moderately severe. The Axe-Houghton Index of Index of Trade and Industrial Activity declined by 14.1 percent in this recession and by 31 percent in the Panic of 1907). The Babson index of physical volume of business activity declined by 28.6 percent in this recession (compared to 32.3 percent in 1921 recession and 22.7 in the Panic of 1907). [

The years after World War One were an important turning point in the making of the American nation. The country turned away from the problems of Europe. Now it would deal with problems of its own. For twenty years, since the beginning of the century, the United States had become more involved in international events. Young Americans had grown up with presidents like Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt. Both Wilson and Roosevelt had active foreign policies. Both helped start the nation on the road to becoming a major world power. Then came World War One. It was like a sharp needle that bursts a balloon. The United States and the Allies won the war against Germany and the Central Powers. But thousands of American troops had died in the European conflict. And many months were taken up by the bitter debate over the peace treaty and the League of Nations. Most Americans did not want to hear about Europe and international peace organizations any more.

During World War One, they had lived under many kinds of restrictions. The federal government had controlled railroads, shipping, and industrial production. At the end of the war, these controls were lifted. Industries that had been making war supplies began making products for a peacetime economy. Technology made it possible for millions of people to improve their lives. It also caused great changes in American society. Two of the most important new technologies were automobiles and radio. In the early years of the twentieth century, automobiles were very costly. Each one was built separately by a small team of skilled workers. Most Americans did not have the money to own an automobile.