LESSON 3 Hard Times for All

From Boom to Bust In October 1929, the stock market crashed, causing a chain of events that led to the Great Depression. Stock Market Crash Businesses & Farms Fail Banks Fail Unemployment increases Demand for Goods and Services Drops More businesses and farms fail

From Boom to Bust From p. 269 of textbook: The Brooklyn branch of the Bank of the United States along with more than 650 banks throughout the country were forced to close their doors following the 1929 stock market crash. Why do you think these people are lined up outside of the bank? How do you think their actions might affect other people and banks?

From Boom to Bust In South Carolina SC’s agriculture had been in steady decline after World War I ended. Farmers were producing as if a war time economy still existed European countries were not trading as much as they could focus their own agricultural production now that the war was over

From Boom to Bust In South Carolina, the economy reverted back to a collateral system. Farmers traded food for the services of doctors and lawyers. South Carolinians began to flee the state. Most were black, 25% were white Many moved to textile mill towns or factory towns in the north, others moved west.

A New President and A New Deal Franklin D. Roosevelt, FDR, was elected president in 1932. He promised Americans a “New Deal” to address the worst problems of the Depression. He thought the federal gov’t had to take action to end the economic crisis. The 3 Rs of the New Deal = Relief Recovery Reform Discuss with students the fact that FDR had polio and could not walk without the aid of a walker most of the time. He was often in great pain. Ask students how his own struggles might have made him able to relate to Americans during the Depression. 3 Rs of the New Deal (simplified) Relief: provide help to those who are suffering … What kind of help? Jobs, food, money. Recovery: help the economy recover … by providing loans to businesses and farmers and jobs to the unemployed Reform: fix the parts of the economy that caused the Depression so that it never happens again. Reform the stock market and the banking system. Address corruption and unfair practices in business.

FDR’s New Deal Alphabet Soup The Public Works Administration (PWA), the Works Progress Administration (WPA), and the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) put many people to work.

A New Deal for All? Although New Deal work programs brought jobs and hope to many Americans, they were also all segregated. More opportunities were offered to whites than to blacks and many construction projects when to white neighborhoods first. BUT, the fact that the government was willing to help blacks led to the beginning of a political shift.

The Social Security Act The New Deal The Social Security Act The Social Security Act was designed to protect the elderly and the unemployed in case of another economic crisis. Social Security became the only source of financial support for many of the nation’s poor citizens. This was really important in South Carolina because it didn’t offer an old age pension program like other states.

South Carolina Portrait Mary McLeod Bethune The daughter of former slaves, Bethune excelled in academics despite racial unrest. She had a hand in creating schools throughout the South. Her achievements led to FDR naming her the Director of the Office of Negro Affairs in the National Youth Administration.

The Santee Cooper Project The New Deal The Santee Cooper Project The Santee Cooper electricity project was the largest New Deal project in South Carolina. Workers on the project built dams on the Santee and Cooper Rivers. The dams produced hydroelectric power to the area and provided jobs. It improved the living conditions of many South Carolinians. Electricity changed the lives of South Carolinians as urban dwellers now had access to new appliances that used electricity.

Electricity helped people in rural areas Electricity helped people in rural areas. For the first time, this woman had electric power to run her water pump. Getting fresh water became a lot easier.

The New Deal Helping Farmers The Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA) was created to prevent the overproduction of certain crops. The AAA paid farmers to excess destroy crops or not plant on all of their fields Farmers could also be paid for killing excess livestock. The New Deal brought an end to sharecropping and tenant farming in most of the South. Zero in on the second and third bullet points and explain to students that the AAA was one of the more controversial programs of the New Deal. Why would many Americans have a problem with a program that pays farmers to destroy crops or not plant them and also to kill excess livestock?