The Great Depression

Before there was pain, suffering, migration, desperation, evictions, homelessness, heartache, and high unemployment, and the great crash… How would you describe the Great Depression?

The picture looked like this

The 1920s: Years of Prosperity

Ford and his cars

…Signs of a trouble economy were everywhere... Overproduction & Under-consumption Unequal Distribution of Wealth Failure of major industries (mining, manufacturing, clothing, agriculture, etc) Americans lacks of savings Over-dependence of credit, Margin Buying and Speculation Inability of European nations to pay war debts

The Great Crash

The Market Crashes Market crash happened very quickly. September Dow Jones Industrial Average, reached an all time high of 381. On October 23 and 24 the Dow Jones Average quickly plummeted, which caused a panic.

Panic in the streets of NY

Panic on Wall Street

Black Tuesday On Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929, most people sold their stocks at a tremendous loss. This collapse of the stock market is called the Great Crash. Overall losses totaled $30 billion. The Great Crash was part of the nation’s business cycle, a span in which the economy grows, and then contracts.

The Stock Market

“Speculation” causes many Americans to loose their life savings

Effects of the Great Crash, 1929 The Ripple Effect: Great Crash Investors Businesses and Workers Investors lose millions. Businesses lose profits. Consumer spending drops. Workers are laid off. Businesses cut investment and production Some fail. Banks Businesses and workers cannot repay bank loans. Savings accounts are wiped out. Bank runs occur. Banks run out of money and fail. Worldwide Depression Overall U.S. production plummets. U.S. investors have little or no money to invest. U.S. investments in Germany decline. German war payments to Allies fall off. Europeans cannot afford American goods. Allies cannot pay debts to United States.

For many Americans, whatever was left of their livelihoods, they had to claim immediately before that too was lost So………. Lines of people made bank runs, causing even more banks to fail as the first people there cleared out everything the bank held

Please, can I have my money… Americans making bank runs

The Human Impact How did the Great Depression Affect Americans? “The Migrant Mother” Credit: Photo by Dorothea Lange,

Hoovervilles People faced hardships Unemployed laborers became homeless. Hoovervilles- homeless built shacks of tar paper and scrap supplies

Hoovervilles

Farmers Suffered from selling crops at low prices (necessity) Midwest called the “Dust Bowl” Causes: Severe drought Over-farming removed protective prairie grasses Combination creates dust storms Result: 60 percent of families lose their farms.

Hoover help us…

The Government Response

Hoover’s Philosophy “ I do not believe that the power and duty of the federal Government ought to be extended to the relief of individuals suffering…The lesson should be constantly enforced that though the people support the government, the government should not support the people.”

Assignment With a partner, take 5 minutes to discuss Herbert Hoover’s statement regarding the care for American citizens. Voice your opinion about Hoover’s statement by either supporting his position and explaining why using details, or by creating a counter-argument in favor of supporting American citizens.

Hoover did try to help… He created the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) Prosperity at the top, helps economy as a whole “Trickle-Down Economics” (Ice-cream Cone Theory) Money given to banks, industries, railroads, insurance companies, etc. Americans saw it as helping big businessmen/banks, while ordinary people went hungry.

…the help was not enough, as many Americans still suffered

Americans Pull Together Americans helped those they saw as worse off than themselves. Penny auctions-when banks foreclosed on a farm, neighboring farmers would bid pennies on land and machines, which they would then return to the original owners.

Election of 1932 Herbert Hoover(R) Franklin D. Roosevelt(D)

The Election of 1932 Govt should not try to fix people’s problems. Herbert Hoover (Republican) Govt should not try to fix people’s problems. Federal aid would teach people to give up and rely on the govt. Seen as unwilling to help Americans and lost political support Franklin Roosevelt (Democrat) Govt had a responsibility to help people in need. Sometimes “making it on their own” without any help doesn’t work and that’s OK! Seen as the “Savior of the People” to many who were struggling

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) won the 1932 Presidential election by a landslide 472-59 Electoral College Votes.

The Election of 1932 Here comes Superman

The New Deal FDR promised a “New Deal for the American people.” Ready to experiment with government roles in an effort to end the Depression. Track Record--FDR and his wife had worked to reform(improve): public housing state government working conditions for women unemployment

Signs of Change and the ever classic… Prohibition Is Repealed February 1933, Congress passed the Twenty- first Amendment This repealed the eighteenth amendment (prohibition) The Empire State Building About 4,000 people worked on the project. It was the world’s tallest building at 102 stories. Symbol of American ingenuity and strength. SECTION