Farming conditions worsened in the mid-1930s in the USA due to years of over-farming and poor conservation practices that blew and washed away topsoil, causing hundreds of thousands to leave their farms and become migrant workers. The government established more permanent camps in 1937 to help house these displaced farmers.

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Source A: From a history of the USA, published in 2009.
Conditions worsened in the Dust Bowl in 1935–36. ‘Black Blizzards’ blew harder, for longer, and came more often. In 1936 rain came –
heavy rain that flooded many places and swept away much of the remaining topsoil. Hundreds of thousands of people had left to become
migrant workers in other states. They travelled around, by car or on foot, to work on the seasonal crops. The Farm Security
Administration set up more permanent camps after 1937.
What can you learn from source A about farming in the USA in the mid 1930s?
You can learn from the source that farming radically worsened in the mid1930s. This was due to over farmed topsoil being blown and
washed away after years of over farming, poor conservation and extreme summers. This caused many people to leave the land they had
farmed to avoid starvation. These migrants became known as ‘Okies’, and many tried to head West with the hope of working on the
California fruit harvests. The situation was so bad that hundreds of thousands moved and the government had to set up camps through
the ‘Farm Security Administration’ to house and try and look after these farmers.
Explain the effects developments in the car industry had on the economy in the 1920s.
The Car Industry affected the economy in a positive way as cheap mass produced vehicles allowed businesses to expand, deliver and
sell their products to a wider market place. This allowed travelling sales men and the delivery of goods from catalogue purchases.
Cheap motor vehicles also encouraged other consumer spending on lake houses and suburban homes.
The Car Industry also stimulating other industrial production, and road building which became the largest single employer in the
1920s. Car production improved other areas of the American economy such as Petroleum, rubber, glass and steel production. All these
businesses made good profits and employed workers who received decent salaries who often were able to buy new consumer goods
such as fridges and radios which also helped the economy.
The Car Industry helped create a new and more profitable way of producing goods, as other businesses followed Henry Ford’s
production model and brought in factory lines. These reduced the cost of goods, standardised quality and meant that people could
afford to buy more goods, especially when companies such as Ford allowed people to buy now with a deposit and hire purchase even if
they didn’t currently have enough money.
What is the purpose of this source?
‘The purpose of the poster was to raise support from the public and senators to pass a Prohibition law to ban the sale of alcohol. It also intended to persuade
Americans to not drink. The cartoonist’s viewpoint is that they are in sympathy for the wife and child and want to raise a wider awareness of the dangers and
damage of alcohol on American families. This was made by the ‘Anti-Saloon League’ an organisation that following WW1 had many reasons for wanting to
ban alcohol; they felt that Alcohol fuelled dangerous foreign politics such as Communism (and with the recent example of the Russian Revolution in 1917 they
didn’t want the same for America), they had also patriotically turned against German brewing families during the war . Many protes tant Americans saw
drinking alcohol as a sin, and likely to cause other sins.
Finally in times of great change and with more people living in cities many traditional American’s saw alcohol as damaging the family and society. This is
clearly shown in the source as the man passes over his entire weeks wage to the bar tender whilst his poor wife weeps at home because of the eviction notice
on the floor and the child is hungry. The source skilfully persuades drinker, voter and politician that something needs to be done.

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Describe the problems faced by farmers in the USA in the 1920s?
American farmers firstly faced the problem of reduced demand following the end of WW1. They had used loans to buy machinery and
more land to cope with demand and make healthy profits during WW1 when countries like Britain required additional food. During the
1920s the demand was less but as they continued to produce prices for their crops dropped, yet farmers still had loans to repay.
A second problem faced by American farmers was that they struggled to compete from oversees competition from Canadian wheat. A
third problem was that they also suffered from a lack of demand from the alcohol industry due to the introduction of prohibition in
1920, this reduced the demand and prices for wheat, barley, hops and grapes.
Explain how Prohibition changed the lives of many Americans in the 1920s.
Prohibition changed the lives of many Americans as many went from law abiding citizens to either being involved in supporting criminal
supply of alcohol by drinking, or by being involved in the production or supply of alcohol, or by working as showgirls or musicians, staff or
cleaners in illegal speakeasies or by producing alcohol such as moonshine. As many people didn’t see breaking prohibition as a crime they
were also more open to bribery to look the other way if they were involved in law enforcement. Police officers and officials raised their
incomes by the taking of regular bribes which allowed them a higher standard of living.
Peoples’ lives were also changed in a negative way as gangsters and organised crime which had risen due to prohibition were often
untouchable so as areas were negatively affected by organised crime, as small businessmen may be forced to pay protection money, or
innocents were killed in gangland warfare between rival gangs then they couldn’t rely on law enforcement or the courts to protect them
or punish those responsible. Prohibition had to be ended largely because it damaged American society and had resulted in the rise of
organised crime and corruption. Some people also lost jobs in the legal alcohol industry and farmers lost income due to the reduced
demand for barley and hops as a good deal of illegal alcohol was now imported to and not manufactured in America.
Explain why organised crime grew in the USA in the 1920s. (6)
Organised Crime grew in America because Prohibition created a perfect and relatively easy way to make a lot of money as a vast amount
of the American population still wanted to drink and had the money to pay due to an economic boom. By the end of prohibition the amount
of illegal speakeasies exceeded the amount of legal pre prohibition bars. Organised crime was able to use its profits, drinking clubs and
protection from arrest to expand into other profitable areas such as gambling, protection rackets and prostitution. Criminals often
became popular local figures due to their generosity, and that they supplied those things many wanted but couldn’t get elsewhere. Al
Capone often tipped waitresses $100 and he was cheered at baseball games, prohibition was able to grow as many everyday people
supported it both directly, or indirectly by consuming alcohol.
Organised crime was often developed by urban ethnic groups such as the Italian American Al Capone. They were able to use massive
incomes which weren’t taxed to create vast fortunes and bribethose that could cause them problems such as politicians, judges, police
officers and even prohibition agents this meant they could carry on and expand their business empires with freedom from serious
disruption or arrest. The power of big crime lords such as Bugsy Moran and Al Capone meant that they had the wealth and power to
expand their control and take over other businesses or competitors.
Explain why the American economy crashed after 1929. (8) (Jan 2010)
The American economy firstly crashed after 1929 because the demand for consumer goods had steadily dropped as people had already
bought the cars and radios they needed and were often still paying the finance on these goods and either didn’t want or couldn’t afford
more. Factories had gone on producing at high levels for consumers that didn’t really exist, when confidence was lost and when people
started to lose the jobs and funds in their bank accounts as banks went bankrupt then they stopped spending straight away and this
worsened the crash. Another reason the American economy crashed was that isolation had led to an economy that was focused only on
domestic sales and high government tariffs reduced the demand for American goods abroad. So when the American consumers had spent
up then they didn’t have developed markets abroad through which to sell their goods.
The American economy firstly crashed because of the rapid drop in share prices. In October 1929 some wise investors realised that
companies were not worth the amount their share values suggested. Scandals and investigations into corruption and false accounting, as
well as the vast amount of uniformed, trained or educated investors convinced professionals who could read the signs that the boom
couldn’t go on forever, and when the market started to drop they often sold quickly. When panic selling started at the end of October
1929, people just wouldn’t buy and so values dropped making shares next to worthless and adversely affecting those who had put their
pension funds, savings, company wage accounts, company and bank investments into shares. Many had gambled money they didn’t have on
the stock market as they bought on the margin which only required a 10% deposit this easy way of buying had encouraged speculation and
not long term investment. Speculation resulted in an increased demand for shares and caused values to rise although many of these
companies were actually having problems due to reduced consumption by American consumers.

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Task: Complete this answer…To what extent did the New Deal help solve the problems of the Depression?
The New Deal helped address the problem of unemployment with alphabet agencies such as the CCC which created….(Add statistical
evidence and other supporting facts)
…by 1937 prosperity seemed to be returning and unemployment had dropped to 7.7 million ( 14%) , however when Roosevelt cut the new
deal budget unemployment spiralled up again to 10.4 million (19% of the labour force). Roosevelt did however get re-elected in 1936 and
1940 with good majorities so this suggests the majority of the American public still felt Roosevelt’s New Deal was helping, but it was
really only WW2 which brought pre-1929 levels of unemployment back to America.
The New Deal dealt with the immediate problem of the banking collapse which had reached its height when Roosevelt took power in 1933.
Roosevelt used the Emergency Banking act and reassurance through his fireside radio chats to …
The New Deal did address the immediate need for the poorest in society who needed emergency aid and brought much needed relief
which during the time of Hoover hand only really been provided by charities. To do this he created FERA the Federal Emergency Relief
Administration this helped by…
The New Deal provided significant support to remedy the problems of the Depression, and in the first instances brought to a halt the
worsening banking collapse, provided emergency relief and gave jobs to millions of unemployed. Significant benefits were brought by
Roosevelt’s New Deal but the $5 billion spent and although the fact that when funding was lowered the problems of the Depression
worsened, it still eased but didn’t truly solve the problems of the depression.
Was the poor treatment of black people the most serious problem facing US society in the 1920s? Explain your answer. You may
use the following in your answer and any other information of your own. (10)
The poor treatment of black people / Prohibition / Organised Crime / The Treatment of immigrants
American society faced many problems in the 1920s. Black American’s suffered from Jim Crow laws in the south despite slavery being
ended they were still second class citizens and these local laws deprived them of rights they had in the north. Blacks were forced to
take very difficult tests to decide whether they could vote and have a say, they also were segregated as to where they lived, where they
sat on the bus or where they could wait, what drinking fountain and park they could use and what school they could go to. Blacks were
also not allowed to eat at lunch counters and were expected to be deferential to white people. The Ku Klux Klan also made many Blacks
live in fear our beatings and lynching’s, the Klan used these tactics as well as cross burnings and threatening calling cards to intimidate
the whole of Black society and punish those they believe stood out or those that may be guilty. The harsh treatment of Blacks led to
many moving to cities in the North where they often still had to live segregated in black Ghettos such as Harlem but life was that bit
freer and more opportunities were open to them.
Recent immigrants from Eastern and southern Europe were also badly treated in Americas, and they often lived in poor Ghettos in
northern cities. They were disliked by those earlier generations of Americans who could trace their heritage back to Northern Europe,
they believed they were criminal and carried dangers ideas such as anarchism and communism which they saw as dangerous to the
American way of life. This led to such cases as the Sacco Vanzetti case where two immigrants were hung following a lengthy but biased
court case.
Both organised crime and prohibition affected some American’s as criminality and corruption rose during the 1920s. People lost faith in
the legal system and law enforcement and they could be occasionally caught up as innocents when gangland violence spilled onto the
streets or small shop owners may be forced to pay protection money. This although serious was largely limited to the city and was such
activities did not affect as many Americans in as many different ways as the everyday prejudice of being a Black American, and the many
acts of violence carried out by the Klan. Therefore the poor treatment of Black people was the most serious problem for American
society and whilst prohibition and the extremes of Gangsters quickly came to an end by the mid 1930s, it took much longer before black
Americans could experience a better way of life.

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Explain why relations between the USA and the USSR worsened in the years 1943-56 (16)
Relations between the big three, Stalin Roosevelt and Churchill were already worsening before WW2 ended, At the Potsdam conference
in July-August 1945, there was Truman the new American president. Stalin did not like Truman as they disagree on most policies
proposed such as Truman denying Stalin a military base in the Mediterranean, since he could see no real reason for it and did not like the
idea of giving Stalin a military advantage over the USA. Another reason for Stalin’s relationship with Truman worsening was that during
the conference Truman had not told him of his intention to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although Stalin’s spies in
the US and bugging of American conference facilities had made him aware of this, the atomic bomb suddenly meant that despite the
Soviet’s massive conventional army the USA now had the tactical advantage as a superpower. This started the arms race between the
USA and the USSR as Stalin viewed the USA’s development on missiles as I direct threat.
Other issues in Europe which worsened the relationship were events at the end of the 1940s such as the Greek Civil War where British
and US support defeated an attempted Communist Revolution supported by the USSR (1947-9), and the Berlin Blockade (1948-49) where
Stalin tried to force the allies out of West Berlin but failed all worsened the relations between these two sides. This was worsened by
the movement of skilled East Berliners to West Berlin which was benefitting from aid and reconstruction brought about by the Marshall
plan. People seemed to want to choose Capitalism but we being forced to accept Communism.
A final reason was Atomic Weapons, this was the most important reason for worsening relations between the USA and USSR as from
1945 to 1956 an arms race raised tensions of a 3rd
World War. As in 1949 the USSR had their first atomic bomb test and the USA
began the development of the more powerful hydrogen bomb which was tested in 1952. With the production of more and more nuclear
weapons the superpowers felt the need protection if an invasion ever happened which links into the development of NATO in 1949 and
the Warsaw Pact in 1955. These two massive opposing forces although focused on defence both show a worsening of relationships with
the establishment of two opposing armies, the prospect of total nuclear destruction and heightened tensions.
Briefly explain the key features of Cominform (1947) and Comecon (1949) (6) (A past Edexcel question)
The first key feature of Cominform was that it was an alliance of Communist Countries influenced by Stalin’s need to tighten his control
over communist parties across Europe and bring them directly under soviet control, by restricting their contact with the west. Stalin
also used it to keep an eye on ministers and ensure he still had their loyalty, those who were found to be diverting from communism were
removed. This process consolidated the power of the USSR in Eastern Europe by stamping out anybody Stalin viewed as competition. A
second feature was that Tito the leader of Communist Yugoslavia was brave and strong enough to stand up to Stalin, and managed to
keep Yugoslavia independent.
A third Key Feature was that Comecon was designed to co-ordinate Communist production and it was a direct reaction to Marshall Aid,
this was Stalin’s alternative as he had prevented Communist Eastern European countries from accepting Marshall Aid. He sought to limit
American influence in Eastern Europe as it prevented trade with Western Europe and America which economically ensured that the
benefits of economic recovery in Easter Europe remained within the Soviet ‘Sphere of Influence’.
2b ‘Explain why the failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion caused problems for the USA.’ (6 marks)
‘The failed Bay of Pigs invasion caused problems for America because they were seen to have lost to a much smaller nation. America was
made to look weaker to the USSR because the American plan had failed so spectacularly with most of the rebels were defeated at the
Bay of Pigs before they could get inland. America was also made to look weak as they had chosen to avoid a direct invasion and had
sought to use Cuban exiles instead of their regular armed forces. This all made Khrushchev confident and made him believe that the new,
young and inexperienced President Kennedy could be bossed around in future incidents and meetings.
America’s planning and resourcing of the invasion made America seem more aggressive and threatening in the eyes of the USSR so this
therefore increased Cold war tensions and influenced Khrushchev to send equipment, weapons and to try to equip Cuba with Soviet
controlled ballistic missiles. This brought warheads within minutes of American cities and took the world close to Nuclear war, it finally
resulted in the American withdrawal of weapons from strategically important Turkey.
A second problem for the Americans was that it was a propaganda failure for America’s claims of the superiority of Capitalism and
democracy as the Cubans had rallied to Fidel Castro’s side to fight, rather than join the invading forces as America had thought. This
showed that the majority of the population supported the Communist revolution and it actually strengthened the Revolution through this
Cuban victory.’
Briefly explain the key features of the events of the Cuban Missiles Crisis in October 1962. (6)
One key feature of the events of the Cuban Missile Crisis October was that they were caused by the Soviet and Cuban response to the
CIA/American sponsored Bay of Pigs failed invasion. Castro successfully defeated American trained and sponsored forces but he now
sought additional protection from other possible American actions. The Soviets were happy to support as it also gave them a nuclear
base from which they could strike America, this gave them an equal position as America had Nuclear bases close to the USSR in Turkey.

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A second key feature was that Khrushchev sent 114 Soviet ships to Cuba which carried a secret cargo of nuclear warheads and long
range missiles that would be used to construct nuclear bases on Cuba. Construction of the site along with Cuban workers and Soviet
forces and engineers was seen by American spy planes. Kennedy viewed this as a direct threat to the USA and believed that it must be
stopped so when he heard about it on the 16th
October he took direct action.
A third key feature was that following the news Kennedy imposed a naval blockade on Cuba on the 20th
October to prevent more missiles
getting to Cuba as the bases being set up in Cuba were in direct missile range of all Americas major Cities and so were seen as a direct
threat. This was the closest the world came to nuclear war, consequentially a consequence of this event was that it caused a greater
effort to reduce tensions and avoid the possibility of similar events. A hotline was established between the American and Soviet leader
to avoid the lengthy and convoluted communications which they had experienced.
Why did American involvement increase in Vietnam from 1954 to 1965?
America was drawn into Vietnam by the vacuum left by the French withdrawal and the American fear of the Domino effect. America had
only just finished stopping the spread of Communism in the Korean War and were not prepared to allow Communism to take hold
elsewhere else in Asia. Following the French defeat at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, and the Treaty of Geneva 1954 it was agreed that
rather than Ho Chi Minh taking all of Vietnam that he would rule the North, with the promise of free elections to come in 1956. America
chose to back the southern leader Ngo Dinh Diem with the promise of $100 million dollars in aid and equipment and 700 military advisors
to develop the South Vietnamese army. America had made the choice in 1954 which committed them militarily, politically and
economically to stopping the spread of Communism.
America’s involvement in Vietnam would further increase because of Ngo Dinh Diem’s refusal to allow elections in 1956, this in-turn led to
a resumption of warfare between North and South. This happened because Ho Chi Minh who was a popular hero having dealt so
effectively with the French and was expected to get 80% of the vote. As Ho Chi Minh was denied his rights under the Treaty of Geneva
and his likely democratic election victory, he now used warfare to try and bring about a Communist unified Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh waged a
war of insurgency with battle hardened fighters infiltrating into the South along jungle trails and through his creation in the south of
the NLF in 1960 which became known as the Viet Cong. Many south Vietnamese had been attracted to the Vietcong due to the corruption
of Diem’s regime, his persecution of Buddhists and the appeal of Ho Chi Minh. These communist rebels couldn’t be effectively dealt with
by the South Vietnamese Army (AVRN ) who were on the back foot in defensive positions, ill equipped and with limited training. President
Kennedy decided to support Diem and increased involvement by committing 12,000 ‘Military Advisors’ by 1962.
Finally America was drawn towards a full scale involvement and war against the North because of the supposed Gulf of Tonkin incident in
1964 when the USS Maddox claimed that they had seen torpedoes in the water and on their sonar scopes from North Vietnamese
Torpedo boats. President Johnson got Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin resolution which allowed him to take direct military action
against the North in retaliation. When the Vietcong attacked American Airbases Johnson finally declared war in 1965. American
Presidents didn’t like being involved in Vietnam and being drawn into a war 8000 miles away but at this high point in the Cold War with
such recent events as the Cuban Missile Crisis many Americans and Johnson particularly believed Communism needed to be met with
aggression. They also believed that if the conflict escalated into a large scale war then this was a war which they could win through US
bases, combat missions and an air war rather than just South Vietnamese troops and military advisors. Johnson said "We are swatting
flies when we should be going after the manure pile." The manure pilehe talks of is the North and the Gulf of Tonkin resolution and
Vietcong attacks allowed him to commit America to a massive intervention and full warfare.
Vietnam practice answer task…
1) You will write 3 PEE paragraphs …Choose 3x blue points from below (to start each paragraph), always start first with…. ‘America
lost the Vietnam war because..’ ‘Why did America lose the Vietnam War?’
 The Vietcong's guerrilla tactics were appropriate to the nature of the conflict, and he South Vietnamese peasants supported and
sheltered the Vietcong.
 The Vietcong had been continuously at war since they resisted the Japanese during the Second World War and were supplied with
weapons by China and Russia.
 The North Vietnamese were motivated, fighting at home to unite their country and the Vietcong were fanatically determined to
drive out the Americans, whatever the cost.
 The American hi-tech tactics continually killed the wrong people and demoralised their own troops. Their short (one-year) tour of
service meant that American troops were always inexperienced.
 The US was trying to supply a war 8,000 miles from America.
 The war became very unpopular in the US, and lost public support and the South Vietnamese regime they were fighting for was
seen as weak, brutal and corrupt.
2) Then find specific examples of events which support these points (Write this up as your evidence & explain how these events
contributed to America losing the War.