Creating a Synthetic Organic Chemicals Industry in the United States, 1914-1930
Kathryn Steen
Department of History and Politics
Drexel University
USA
Abstract:
Prior to World War I, Germany dominated the world's production of synthetic dyes and pharmaceuticals, supplying nearly all consumed in the United States. When the war severed the supply of German chemicals to the United States, key manufacturers, policymakers, and chemists lobbied strenuously to promote the development of a domestic industry. Under protectionist policies and through the confiscation of German property in the United States, among other strategies, the United States built a domestic synthetic organic chemicals industry by 1930. Without protection after the 1960s, the dyes section of the U.S. industry quickly faded, but a broader-based industry thrived on newer synthetic organic products.
Key Words: United States, synthetic organic chemicals, policy, World War I
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