Statistics: The American Economy during the 1920s

Cars on the Road

1919

6.7 million

1929

23 million

Percentage of Households with Radios

1925

19 percent (5,000,000 homes)

1929

35 to 40 percent

Sales of Radios

1922

$60 million

1929

$842.6 million

Wage Levels and the Price of a Ford Model T

Average Earnings

Price of a Model T

1912

$592

$600

1914

$627

$490

1916

$708

$360

1924

$1,303

$290

Stock Prices

Sep. 3, 1929

Nov. 13, 1929

1932 Low

American Telephone

304

197 1/4

70 1/4

General Electric

396 1/4

168 1/2

34

General Motors

72 3/4

36

7 5/8

New York Central

256 3/8

160

8 3/4

Radio

101

26

2 1/2

U.S. Steel

261

150

21 1/4

Index of Stock Prices

1926

176

1927

245

1928

331

1929

210

1932

30

Share of Disposable Income Going to the Richest 5 %

1920

24 %

1921

29 %

1922

29 %

1923

27 %

1924

29 %

1925

31 %

1926

31 %

1927

32 %

1928

34 %

1929

34 %

Shifts in Investment

Savings Deposits

Stocks

1921

-$1 billion

-$1 billion

1922

+$4 billion

$0

1923

-$1 billion

$0

1924

+$1 billion

$0

1925

$0

+$1 billion

1926

-$2 billion

$0

1927

+$3 billion

$0

1928

-$4 billion

+$1 billion

1929

$0

+$2 billion

Borrowing to Purchase Stocks as a Percentage of Total Consumer Debt

1900

1 percent

1910

2 percent

1920

3 percent

1929

5 percent

1933

2 percent

Business Investment

1920

$18 billion

1921

$ 9 billion

1922

$10 billion

1923

$15 billion

1924

$14 billion

1925

$15 billion

1926

$16 billion

1927

$15 billion

1928

$15 billion

1929

$16 billion

Family Income, 1929

over $10,000

2.3 percent

$5,000-10,000

8 percent

2,500-$5,000

19 percent

$2,000-2,500

11 percent

$1,500-2,000

18 percent

$1,000-1,500

21 percent

under $1,000

21 percent