1920s Automobiles Essay Research Paper Autmbiles of

1920s Automobiles Essay, Research Paper Autmbiles of the 1920s Mike Beckman Per.1 due:5/30/2001 1920s Automobiles I picked Automobiles of the 1920s as my Submission Topic just by chance. I was on lycos.com and I typed in 1920s and automobiles came up so I thought it would be a good idea to click that so I just went with it. I also thought it would be a good topic to find lots of research material . Especially since I already knew a little about the Henry Fords model -T . I will need to find out the effects of the car on America and when the car really started taking off. I think the invention of the automobile was one of the greatest inventions to ever be introduced to the public , and it did and still is improve economy and transportation in America. And was use for just about every thing like delivering mail , milk , lumber , and to take people to the hospital . There was no greater symbol of the 1920’s than the automobile. The impressive leather coaching and customized interiors . The ease of operation and reliability meant freedom. Beneeth their hoods many of the cars large engines delivering speed and excitement were found. The automobile was arguably the most important for social change in the 1920s liberating Americans from often restrictive home or neighborhood situations. Many women used the cars to save time in their daily domestic chores — in turn giving them more free time, in which they could educate themselves, or find a job. The younger generations loved the car as an escape from the chaperones. A juvenile court judge criticized the auto as a “house of prostitution on wheels,” due to the relatively large quantity of “inappropriate” sex occurring in the car. Businessmen, possessing a faster, more personal form of transportation, could live further from the city and subway stops. Consequently the suburb lifestyle began in places like Queens and the Bronx. Rural Americans loved the car as a ride to town and the social circles. Automobiles were around before the 1920s, but were expensive unreliable and generally only for the rich. What made the auto so influential in the 1920s was the increased availability and dependability. Scientific management and the assembly line increased factory productivity and decreased cost making the auto more affordable. By 1930 every 1.3 households owned a car, versus 44 households in 1910. Henry Ford was largely responsible for this movement, pioneering efficient production methods and striving to produce a reliable and practical car for the masses. His legendary Model-T aka ?The Tin Lizzie? produced between 1913 and 1927, was sold as low as $290 . It’s successor the Model-A, sold for as little as $460 . There was a movement in America to make Henry Ford president. However, there was also a large high-priced auto market. The Coolige Prosperity fueled the prices of such monsters as the Locomobile Model 48, for $13,000, and the 1929 Rolls-Royce Phantom, selling between $17-18,000. These luxurious cars undoubtfully functioned as symbols, transporting the occupants in a style that cannot be found today . But the automobile was more than just a practical mean of transportation . It struck roots deep in the national psyche , became part of the American dream. ?George F. Babbitt,? wrote Sinclair Lewis in 1922, ?as to most prosperous and tragedy, love and heroism.? The manual laborer on the south side of the tracks felt the same way . Asked what the men were working for, a trade union official replied: ?25% arefighting to keep their homes;65% are working to pay for cars.? A working-class wife , interveiwed by sociologists Robert and Helen Lynd for their book, Middletown, commented: ?I?d rather go without food than give up the car.? Meanwhile the obesstion with the car grew even more desirable wuth hydraulic brakes in 1920, and balloon tires in 1922. It looked more attractive, with sweeping, rakish fenders and fast-drying colored lacquers, and more comfortable, too. In 1919, 90% of auto bodies were open; while 10 years later they were closed. While the makers reached for new goals 5.3 million cars in 1929 , a few companies were providing with both the rich and near-rich with cars that were individual and distinct. Here is a picture of the 1928 Ford Model-A (Arabian Sand?) The release of this car in December of ‘27 rivaled the excitement of the Sacco Vanzetti trial and execution. Ford closed his factories for 7 months after stopping Model-T production, in order to develop the Model-A. The unnecessary halt translated into a large loss for the Ford Company, despite the mammoth demand for the Model-A. Henry Ford was convinced, obviously, to try adding a little style and comfort to the Model-A, differing largely from the utilitarian Model-T, or ?Tin Lizzy.? While writing this report I had some trouble finding things on the internet so I had to go to the books . But I didn?t need to find to much information since I already knew quiet a bit about automobiles in the 1920s from history class , so I just used my history book as my main research material . And the Encyclopedia as my other research reference. The only thing I had trouble with really was the spelling and all the typing because I really suck at both of them .