On June 29, 1956, the Federal Aid Highway Act was passed allowing for the construction of the Interstate Highway System. These limited-access highways would open the door for economic development across the country with their higher speeds and consistent route across state lines. In 1960, after the development of the interstates had yielded early promising economic results, a group of governors in Appalachia met with Presidential Candidate John F. Kennedy to discuss the needs of their impoverished people. The poverty of the Appalachian region was a dark spot on a nation that was experiencing so much success in the post-World War II era. After the lack of success of an earlier program, the Area Redevelopment Association, Kennedy would form …show more content…
The first efforts to create a national highway network was started by the American Association of State Highway Officials in 1914, founded by Logan Waller Page, with public support of The Good Roads Movement, led by John Hollis Bankhead. Along with avid motorist President Woodrow Wilson, the men worked to establish state sponsored highway agencies to improve the transportation network across the country to keep pace with the growing popularity of the automobile. With the help of these men and their enthusiasm for well-developed highways in America, the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916 (FARA 1916) was passed on July 11 providing the first federal funds towards highway construction projects. The stated aim of the FARA 1916 was the improvement of postal roads to appeal to the rural population, who had initially seen this as a project with the wealthy urbanites in mind. In the final version of the approved bill, there were also provisions added to exclude the use of this federal funding within city limits. This was done to ensure the funding would go towards improving access to the most isolated locations with agriculture industries in mind. Additionally, there was heavy federal oversight of the state projects utilizing these funds. All highway improvements were subject to final approval by the Secretary of Agriculture. While these provisions would favor
The problem, this time around, will be aesthetics. In 1956, the Federal-Aid Act yielded essentially immediate ostensible results; you could see workers actually making roads where before there was mud and nothing else.
e. Workers: the workers were given less money when the prices of the goods decreased.
Between 1865 and 1920, industrialization caused significant changes in many people’s lives. First, the development of a new railroad system help settle the west and made it more accessible to people. Second, public transit systems in big cities provided an outlet from congested cities. Last, the discovery of a method for transmitting electricity helped to light up our daily lives. I feel that these are three of the most important changes in people’s lives caused by industrialization.
This episode of American Greed presents the subtle yet very dangerous white collar criminals, whose tactics lead to financial losses with harrowing effects. The criminal in this particular case, Mr. Steven Palladino, manages an ice cream store in his neighborhood of West Roxbury and as such is a widely trusted man. The trust he obtains be founded from having been born and grown here as well as having his entire family as the mascots for his fraudulent enterprise. Having studied finance and finally making his way successfully through college to become a registered stock broker, he makes use of his social status to start in the pursuit of a Ponzi scheme under the appearance of Viking Financial. On the flip side, his investors seem to have unwavering trust in him despite the location of his office, a small
At this time the Governor of New South Wales, General Sir Ralph Darling, was implementing a major road building project with new roads heading north, south and west from Sydney. He formed the Roads and Bridges Department to oversee these projects. This increased the radius of the Sydney area from 40 miles to 200 miles. Expanding the opportunities for the growing
In 1956, President Eisenhower signed the Federal Highway Act. Created all US highways and interstates.
Total government spending more than doubled during the 50s, and surplus increased twelvefold. (Document H) To fight fears of depression, they enacted Public Law 627 and launched the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways. (Document D) These revolutionary pieces of legislation brought about jobs by constructing 40000 miles of road, joining hundreds of American cities.
After the Civil War, the nation witnessed two major social-economic movements: Reconstruction and Industrialization, which changed the country completely and made it one of the greatest industrialized countries in the world. However, it changed not only the country, but also, the society, its way of life and traditions.
The New Deal was a set of federal programs with the principle of social-welfare liberalism. President Roosevelt was deeply compromised to help the most vulnerable in the ongoing crisis. In second inaugural address he outlines the progress of the New Deal “We have always known that heedless self-interest was bed morals…. Out of the collapse of a prosperity whose builders boasted their practicality has come to the conviction that in the long run economy morality pays.” At some extend President Roosevelt proudly tell the Nation that he was heading to the right direction to progress. Some of the New Deal successful programs that brought relief and dignify living to many Americans were Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) a direct governmental regulation of farm economy to resolve the overproduction problem. In the unemployment relief, the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) that provided federal funds for state relief programs. Public Works Administration (PWA) a construction program that lead to Civil Works Administration (CWA) that provide work for more than 4 million Americans repairing, building, and constructing America's infrastructure. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) that mobilized young men to do reforestation and conservation work helping their family’s income and the country reservation. In 1935 in housing issues Works Progress Administration (WPA) Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC) that help many Americans keep their
This chapter in our nation's history begins on May 18th of 1933, the day when President Roosevelt signed the Tennessee Valley Authority Act. The purpose of this act was to fix one of the many socioeconomic problems found during the times of the Great Depression, and helping the entire Tennessee Valley region would essentially help a greater portion of the American Society (1). To do this, a central authority was created within this region that focused on the usage and development of resources within the entire area. The overall goal of this authority was to improve agriculture, industry, methods to protect against flooding, and the quality of life throughout the Tennessee Valley. What was created by this act quickly brought this change to
Americans, during the 1930s, clearly needed help. Too many were unemployed, struggling, starving, and/or homeless. One of the biggest legacies of the New Deal is that it combated unemployment with jobs in infrastructure. Many agencies and programs were set up to help increase America’s infrastructure and provide many needy people with jobs. One of those organizations was the Works Progress Administration. Incredibly, the WPA employed an average of 2.1 million people annually for a total of almost 8 million people. It had become largest New Deal program and required almost 11 billion dollars to fund it (Friedrich). The WPA was made with one goal in mind: to get people back to work so they can get money in their pockets to survive. The WPA built highways, airfields, public buildings, and did rural rehabilitation such as planting trees. In total, it had built around 110,000 public buildings, 600 airports, 500,000 miles of roads, and 100,000 bridges (“New Deal”). Like the WPA, the Civilian Conservation Corps, had been created to provide jobs, but it was mainly for younger Americans. This program had employed and put 3
The U.S. Democratic Senator, John H. Bankhead, was prominent in contribution by amending the Federal Aid Road Act of 1916. This act, “promoted by the national Good Roads Movement, marks the first time that the federal government provided assistance for state highway costs… The Federal Aid Road Act provided funding for the improvement of any rural road over which the U.S. mail was carried” (History of the Federal-Aid Highway Program).
In the midst of Cold War, under threat of a nuclear attack, the United States government was looking for a way to increase the speed of transporting military personnel, resources, and people quickly across the US in a dynamic fashion. The Interstate highway was the most effective plan that was spawned as it could be easily repaired in the event of the nuclear attack, and it would regionally connect the entire nation. Although the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 was a costly federal spending program burdened with exorbitant maintenance costs,the construction of the Interstate Highway system proved to advance the nation economically with the facilitation of interstate transportation of goods allowing faster trade at lower costs, socially the
Currently, America is a very different country as compared to its political, social and economic status at the end of the Civil War. The Civil War is widely recognized as a major event in the country's historical consciousness since it played a crucial role in determining what kind of nation the United States would be. This is mainly because it resolved two essential questions and concerns that were left undetermined by the Revolution of 1776-1783. First, the Civil War helped in determining whether America would be an inseparable nation with a sovereign central government or dissolvable union of independent states. Secondly, the historic event helped to determine whether the United States would remain as the largest country with slaves across the globe despite the declaration that every individual has equal right to freedom.
As the stock market seemed rebound back from the worse recession since the Great Depression, the situation on the ‘Main Street’ hasn’t improved much. The unemployment rate is hovering around 10%, and over 6 million of people are jobless for more than 27 weeks (Employment Situation Summary, 02/05/2010, Bureau of Labor Statistics). Some economists believe strongly that it is quite possible those lost jobs won’t return to pre-recession levels at any point over the next 10 years (A decade of high unemployment is looming, 12/27/2009, Associated Press). As the government is scrambling to try either ‘create’ or ‘save’ jobs, maybe we should take a step back, and try to understand some fundamental issues about the economy crisis.