America had tremendous opportunities after World War II. Real wages were up, the GNP was on the rise, industrial production was up, and inflation was under control. The future looked bright. But this abundance was tempered with anxieties about the Cold War. This work assesses these factors.

The United States had tremendous opportunities after World War II. The nation's industrial might, geared to defeat Germany and Japan, could now be focused on domestic production. Real wages were up, the GNP was on the rise, industrial production was up, and inflation was under control. The future looked bright for the average American. But this abundance was punctuated with anxiety. Within four years of the end of the war, the Soviet Union had become the new enemy: they had the bomb and China and Eastern Europe had fallen into the Soviet sphere of influence. These two points, the abundance of the growing economy and the anxiety of the Cold War, defined the period from 1945-1960.

Domestic Politics in Truman's First Term - and the Anatomy of an Upset
The New World Order and the Origins of the Cold War
Domestic Fears and the Red Scare
America and the Forgotten War - Stopping the March of Communism in Korea
The Fair Deal and Truman's Second Term
Eisenhower in the White House - and the Fall of McCarthy
Korea and Foreign Policy in the Eisenhower Administration
The Civil Rights Movement in the Postwar Years
The Use of Abundance - Culture and Society, 1945-1960
The Election of 1960 and the End of an Era.