Great Depression Begins
“Mellon pulled the whistle, Hoover rang the bell, Wall Street gave the signal, and the country went to hell.”
Election of 1928Election of 1928 Herbert Hoover v. Alfred Herbert Hoover v. Alfred
SmithSmith Hoover wins with his Hoover wins with his
campaign: “closer to campaign: “closer to triumph over poverty than triumph over poverty than ever” (Hoover predicts the ever” (Hoover predicts the end of poverty)end of poverty)
20’s marked the reign of 20’s marked the reign of prosperity (although it was prosperity (although it was on a shaky foundation)on a shaky foundation)
Quite and reservedQuite and reserved ““Two cars in every garage”Two cars in every garage”
•Warning signs of Economic Downturn:• speculation (buying on chance of quick profit), •buying on margin (paying a small % down and borrowing the rest), •inflation of stock prices
Stock Market Crashes
• Oct. 1929: prices begin to fall = confidence in stock market waivers
• Oct 29, 1929: BLACK TUESDAY, bottom falls out of the market
Causes of DepressionCauses of Depression
Overproduction of goodsOverproduction of goodsToo much available creditToo much available creditLess consumption of goods (prices rise, Less consumption of goods (prices rise, widening of gap between rich and poor)widening of gap between rich and poor)Farm surplus (increase during WWI, then Farm surplus (increase during WWI, then decreased demand afterward but production decreased demand afterward but production remained the same)remained the same)High tariff (to protect American industry, but High tariff (to protect American industry, but hurts worldwide trade)hurts worldwide trade)No banking regulationsNo banking regulationsHawley Smoot Tariff:Hawley Smoot Tariff: 1930, highest tariff ever, 1930, highest tariff ever, designed to protect but does the exact oppositedesigned to protect but does the exact opposite
Hard Times Hit HomeHard Times Hit Home
Rural Areas: can Rural Areas: can grown own food, but grown own food, but many lose landmany lose land
Cities: jobs lost and Cities: jobs lost and evictionsevictions
People lost life People lost life savings in stock savings in stock markets and bank markets and bank closuresclosures
Soup kitchen: low cost or free foodSoup kitchen: low cost or free food
Many people can’t afford to buy Many people can’t afford to buy food or feed their families.food or feed their families.
BreadlinesBreadlines
Wait in line for hours Wait in line for hours to receive food, often to receive food, often bread, from charitiesbread, from charities
Hard Times Hit Hard Times Hit HomeHome
Family Life ChangesFamily Life Changes men on the move in men on the move in
search of jobssearch of jobs family as source of family as source of
strengthstrength some families break some families break
apartapart Social effects: Social effects:
increased suicide increased suicide (30%), increased (30%), increased mental illness, ethics mental illness, ethics change, dreams are change, dreams are forsaken, decrease in forsaken, decrease in overall health and overall health and nutritionnutrition
“Here were all these people living in old, rusted out car bodies…There were people living in shacks made of orange crates. One family with a whole lot of kids were living in a piano box…People living in whatever they could junk together.”
Shantytown visitor outside Oklahoma City
Men on the move in search of jobs, some abandon families altogether
Children suffer—malnutrition and poor health during the Great Depression
• Dust Bowl—severe drought in mid-west mostly caused by disregard for the land, few trees, and lack of soil erosion techniques
• Hard to grow food, land unusable, dust storms, etc.
• Farms destroyed
• Many will leave and head west in search of jobs
Picture yourself standing in a field, not an ordinary field of grass and flowers, but a barren field of dust.
You fix your eyes toward the horizon and a sigh comes over you as a dust storm rolls your way.
This was life during the dust bowl of the 1930's.
John Steinbeck
wrote “Grapes of Wrath” a novel
about the Dust Bowl and a
group of migrants or “Okies” that left to go west to California
Bonus Army Marches on Washington
Bonus Army is WWI veterans and their families seeking help
Came to Washington to support a bill under debate in Congress to compensate WWI veterans for their service
When the bill failed, Hoover called them squatters and order them to be removed
Eventually they are disbanned violently (over 1000 gased and 2 shot with many others injured) and their Hooverville is burned and destroyed
Bonus Army (WWI veterans and families) march on Washington and set up a Hooverville in the nation’s capital.
Hooverville being
destroyed in Washington,
D.C. after Hoover calls for
the Bonus Army to be
disbanned by Federal Troops
Hoover’s Resolve Rugged Individualism: people should
succeed through their own efforts and shouldn’t depend on government
Gave no direct relief (cash payments or food provided by gov’t)
Created gov’t agency to help business recover: RFC (Reconstruction Finance Corporation) provides emergency financing to business to prevent failure
All across the country Hoovervilles shantytowns emerge as people are disgraced at Hoover
Rugged individualism: people should
succeed through their own efforts,
without government help
Hooverville (Seattle): shantytowns are coined “Hoovervilles” b/c the American people are frustrated and disappointed in Hoover’s effort to
relieve the Great Depression
Election of 1932 Franklin D. Roosevelt (distant
cousin of Teddy Roosevelt), NY governor, pledged a “new deal” for the American people and help for the common man
Democrats win majority in Congress Hoover remains a lame duck for
several months until FDR takes office
Banking system is in crisis and the Great Depression drags on
Franklin Delano Roosevelt runs for
office in 1932 against Hoover promising a
“New Deal”
Hoover remains a lame duck after the November
1932 election in which FDR won.
The 20th amendment is passed changing the inaugural date for the
President and Congress from March to January
20th.