Primary Sources: The 1920s: Business - General

"The Ad*Access Project, funded by the Duke Endowment Library 2000" Fund, presents images and database information for over 7,000 advertisements printed in U.S. and Canadian newspapers and magazines between 1911 and 1955. Ad*Access concentrates on five main subject areas: Radio, Television, Transportation, Beauty and Hygiene, and World War II, providing a coherent view of a number of major campaigns and companies through images preserved in one particular advertising collection available at Duke University. "

Selected issues between 1904-1923 are available full-text

"The single most important product in the early twentieth-century culture of consumption was the automobile, and the number of cars produced more than tripled during the 1920s. Like many other products, however, marketing cars to consumers effectively became as important as manufacturing them efficiently. This 1927 advertisement for Paige-Jewett cars suggests how manufacturers and advertising firms used colors and new styles to differentiate their products from those of competitors. Buying became confused with self-expression as consumers were urged to purchase products as a way to display individual taste and distinction. " History Matters - GMU

"The Avon Digital History Archive provides a unique perspective on the history of the company, its sales representatives, employees, and consumers. The Avon Archive at the Hagley Library encompasses a range of materials such as advertisements, catalogs, representative's sales tools, and corporate documents."

"The Taylor Bulletin is a business newsletter produced from 1914 to 1933. Written by individuals with a wide range of expertise, the bulletin contains articles on a variety of subjects, pertaining to the study of business and cultural trends."

"The Belo Records, 1842-2007 archive includes the business documents and artifacts preserved by the company’s leadership since its establishment in 1842."

"... contains images from the Detroit Public Library's National Automotive History Collection and Burton Historical Collections. These photographs and postcards document the auto industry in the Detroit area during the first half of the twentieth century."

"Various views of the Ford Model T automobile including women on a shopping trip, the car on a hilly country road, crowds of people surrounding the Ten Millionth Ford, and a couple looking at a Model T with a salesman."

"The Henry Ford Trade School, the brainchild of Henry Ford, trained teen-aged boys in a variety of skilled, industrial trades -- machining, metallurgy, drafting, and engine design among others. The school opened in Highland Park in 1916 with only six students and one instructor. By 1927 there were 1,700 students and 135 instructors and a second school was established at Ford's River Rouge plant. This film depicts the school life of the boys who attended."

"The Dynamo, a monthly company magazine first published in April 1917, was designed to educate and motivate JCPenney associates. Each monthly issue of The Dynamo contained company news, inspirational messages, and training to help associates increase sales." Southern Methodist University Library

"The Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation & Archives is the unit of Catherwood Library that collects, preserves, and makes accessible special collections pertaining to the history of the workplace and labor relations." Some items are available online.

"This 1924 film footage shows radiator and wheel assembly at Ford's Highland Park Plant. Ford used assembly line techniques to produce vehicle components used in his Model T. These components, once completed, were sent to the main vehicle assembly line where they were installed on the Model T. The footage ends with views of Ford's finished product in various outdoor settings."

"Nearly 10,000 photographs of billboards and other outdoor advertising, mostly on the Atlantic City Boardwalk from the 1920s to 1950s."

This Sears website provides access to information from the company archive dating back to 1886.

"An archive of 14 million documents created by tobacco companies about their advertising, manufacturing, marketing, scientific research and political activities, hosted by the UCSF Library and Center for Knowledge Management. "

"In 1995, the Ohio Historical Society (now the Ohio History Connection) became the home of the White Castle corporate archives. This collection contains 39 cubic feet and 19 volumes of business records, and approximately 40 cubic feet of photographs, negatives, motion picture films and audio recordings. The photographs and restaurant histories document the evolution of White Castle restaurants from the five-seat hamburger stands of the 1920s to the larger restaurants with drive-throughs and parking lots common today."

"Edward E. Purinton’s 1921 article, “Big Ideas for Big Business,” from the magazine Independent similarly promoted business as "the salvation of the world." " - History Matters - GMU

"In the 1920s, advertisements sought to create consumer demand by manufacturing new wants. Some advertisements associated products with a desirable lifestyle, while others, like this 1928 cigarette advertisement, made use of celebrity endorsements. Here, aviator Amelia Earhart, the first woman to successfully fly solo across the Atlantic, testifies to the pacifying virtues of Lucky Strikes. Although advertisers suggested that everybody needed the latest of everything, most families set their own priorities and purchased the things they wanted most. " History Matters at GMU

"In this 1925 address to the New York State Chamber of Commerce, Coolidge mixed new prescriptions for a pro-business government with traditional homilies about the contributions of American business “to the spiritual restoration of the world.” He insisted that “traditional” values could fit comfortably into a business civilization." History Matters - GMU

"This 1921 cartoon from the Chicago Tribune newspaper prescribes “good old fashioned hard work” as the cure for the 1920–21 economic depression. While this artist attributed unemployment to lack of motivation, for many workers and their families employment remained unstable throughout the decade. Corporations, along with skilled and white collar workers, saw their earnings rise considerably during the 1920s, but unskilled or blue collar workers saw only modest increases or found their income decreasing. Growing inequality meant that even in a decade of prosperity, two-fifths of Americans lived in poverty." History Matters - GMU