Posts

HIUS 713 Blog 3 - Economic Theories of the Great Depression – A Keynesian Analysis

The Great Depression remains one of the most profound economic and psychological crises in American history. Between 1929 and 1941, the United States experienced a catastrophic collapse of output, employment, and confidence that reshaped both public policy and economic thought. Among the competing explanations for the Depression’s causes and resolution, the Keynesian framework—emphasizing insufficient aggregate demand and the need for active fiscal intervention—stands as one of the most influential. This analysis applies Keynesian theory to explore both the underlying causes of the Depression and the mechanisms through which recovery was achieved, particularly through the policies of the New Deal. By integrating primary sources such as Franklin D. Roosevelt’s speeches and economic data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics with secondary interpretations from scholars like Christina Romer, Michael Bernstein, Fred Foldvary, and Robert Samuelson, this blog traces how the Keynesian revolutio...
Post a Comment
Read more

HUIS 713 Blog 2 - William Levitt and the Business of Postwar Suburbia

  Economic Foundations and the Politics of Entrepreneurship in Modern America William Levitt, often called the father of modern suburbia, reshaped American housing and entrepreneurship in the twentieth century. Yet the foundations of his success were not born in the postwar boom but in the speculative real-estate culture of the 1920s. Levitt’s early life and apprenticeship under his father, Abraham Levitt—a Long Island builder and investor—reflect how the entrepreneurial spirit of the interwar years shaped new ideas about housing, credit, and community development. During this period, the American housing market underwent a structural transformation driven by urban expansion, mortgage innovation, and the spread of consumer credit. These forces laid the groundwork for Levitt’s later innovations in mass-housing construction and suburban design. By studying Levitt’s formative years, we can better understand how early-twentieth-century economic and cultural trends forged the entreprene...
Post a Comment
Read more

HIUS 713 Blog 1 - Postbellum Economic Growth and Regional Development in the United States

Postbellum Economic Growth and Regional Development in the United States (1865–1900) The decades following the Civil War marked a period of intense economic growth and regional transformation in the United States. Between 1865 and 1900, industrialization, urbanization, and new infrastructure reshaped the national economy, yet regional differences persisted. To examine these developments, this study compares the economic trajectories of the industrial Northeast and the reconstructing South. Drawing on the *Historical Statistics of the United States*¹ and U.S. Census Bureau data², the analysis highlights differences in real estate, construction, and transportation as indicators of economic dynamism. By doing so, it reveals how entrepreneurial activity and capital investment fueled divergent yet interconnected patterns of growth during the postbellum era. This study employs both quantitative and qualitative data to understand postbellum economic change. Primary sources include Census ...
Location: North Carolina, USA
Read more

HIST 701 Week 7 - Sunken Towns Outside Raleigh

Image
  If you live in Durham, Wake, or Chatham counties (NC) outside the Raleigh-Durham area, you have undoubtedly heard of Jordan Lake. It is one of the favorite summertime destinations for recreation. The lake spans about 13,940 acres with a shoreline of 180 miles. The lake is large and deep enough for power-boats, but also has extensions ("fingers") and inlets suitable for kayaks, fishermen, and even a beach for swimming.  What most people do not know, however, is that Jordan Lake is not a natural lake! Created in response to devastating floods from the 1945 hurricane, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began building the dam in 1967. Completed and renamed in honor of Sen. B. Everett Jordan in 1974–83, it transformed the New Hope River Valley.  Prior to the flooding of the area, there were railroads and towns that existed. For example, the Durham and South Carolina Railroad was relocated from the New Hope basin to higher ground but its stations were not rebuilt, and...
Post a Comment
Read more

HIST 701 Week 3 - Presbyterian Pastor in Prison!

When one considers the political and religious landscape today, it is not uncommon to find Christians on all sides of the sociopolitical spectrum. Despite the religious freedoms enjoyed by modern Americans, such freedom was not always so; and even Christians did not always find themselves on the “right side of the law.”  One only has to consider the persecution and imprisonment of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement to realize that being a “law abiding citizen” and standing firm for one’s beliefs are not always one & the same.   However, this was not just an issue in the 20 th  or 21 st  Centuries. In fact, even before the founding of the American nation, the “father of American Presbyterianism,” Francis Makemie, was imprisoned for preaching the gospel—much like the apostle Paul! History is not as far removed as one might think! Who was Francis Makemie? He was considered one of the founders of American Presbyterianism, and one of...
Post a Comment
Read more