Chapter 24 The Great Depression

Chapter 24 The Great Depression
In 1928 Herbert Hoover predicted: “We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land. We shall soon…be in sight of the day when poverty will be banished from this nation.” Less than one year later, disaster struck, and millions of Americans became victims of poverty during Hoover’s presidency. –brother can you spare a dime Contemplating the wreck of his country's economy and his own political career, Herbert Hoover wrote bitterly in retrospect about those in his administration who had advised inaction during the downslide: The 'leave-it-alone liquidationists' headed by Secretary of the Treasury Mellonfelt that government must keep its hands off and let the slump liquidate itself. Mr. Mellon had only one formula: 'Liquidate labor, liquidate stocks, liquidate the farmers, liquidate real estate'.He held that even panic was not altogether a bad thing. He said: 'It will purge the rottenness out of the system. High costs of living and high living will come down. People will work harder, live a more moral life. Values will be adjusted, and enterprising people will pick up the wrecks from less competent people'

Chapter Instructional Objectives
1. What were the origins and consequences of the Great Depression? 2. How did American families react to the deprivations of the Great Depression? 3. Describe popular American culture of the early 1930s? 4. Evaluate President Hoover’s response to the Great Depression. 5. How and why did the national election of 1932 mark a turning point in American politics?

Figure 24.1 Statistics of the Depression (p. 698)

Figure 24.2 Unemployment, 1915–1945 (p. 699)

I. The Coming of the Great Depression A. Causes of the Depression
1. After 1927, consumer spending declined, housing construction slowed, and in 1928, manufacturers cut back on production and began to lay off workers 2. 10% of the nation’s households owned stock 3. In 1928 and 1929, stock prices rose an average of 40%; market activity, such as margin buying, was essentially unregulated .5 Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the U.S. had experienced recessions or panics at least every twenty years, but none as severe as the Great Depression of the 1930s –The country would not recover from the depression until WWII 1. ….reducing incomes and buying power and reinforcing the slowdown --by the summer of 1929, the economy was clearly in recession --Yet the stock market continued to soar 2.The stock market had become the symbol of the nation’s prosperity, yet only about-- 10% of the nation’s households owned stock (4 million people) More of a gambling arena that an investment Article in Ladies’ Home Journal ‘Everyone ought to be Rich’ financier John J. Raskob advised that $15 a month invested in sound common stocks would grow to $80,000 in twenty years --customers bought stocks w/ a small down payment and financed the rest w/ a broker loan

4. Oct. 24th & 29th, Black Tuesday & Thursday,
4. Oct. 24th & 29th, Black Tuesday & Thursday, overextended investors began to sell their portfolios; waves of panic selling ensued "October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, December, August and February.“ --Pudd'nhead Wilson (Mark Twain) Black Thursday & Tuesday A. Thursday, October 24, 1929 1. Worried investors began to sell off stock 2. Plummeting prices panicked others who sold in turn B. N.Y. Bankers step in 1. Bankers pooled their $ and poured it into the market in an attempt to stabilize prices 2. This action only temp. halted the decline C. Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929 1. A record 16.4 million shares were sold --Practically overnight stock values fell from a peak of $87 billion (at least on paper) to $55 billion

5. Commercial banks and speculators had invested in
5. Commercial banks and speculators had invested in stocks; the impact of the Great Crash was felt across the nation as banks failed and many middle-class Americans lost their life savings 6. Long-standing weaknesses in the economy accounted for the length and severity of the Depression 7. Newer consumer-based industries were not yet strong enough to lead the way to economic recovery 8. Unequal distribution of wealth & income, top 5% received 30% of family income 5. a bank collapse meant that depositors lost their money –the sudden loss of their life savings was a tremendous shock to members of the middle class 5.5 The crash destroyed the faith of those who viewed the stock market as the crowning symbol of American prosperity, precipitating a crisis of confidence that prolonged the depression 6. …agriculture and certain basic industries had suffered setbacks in the 1920s ***In 1929 the American agricultural sector was suffering from overproduction and surpluses, which caused prices to drop & because farmers accounted for about ¼ of the nation’s gainfully employed workers in 1929, their difficulties weakened the general economic structure --Textile industry left New England for the S., but still suffered from overproduction --Mining & lumber saw demand decline after WWI Railroads suffered from competition w/ trucks 7. chemicals, appliances, food processing, etc. 8. Once the depression began, America’s unequal income distribution left the majority of people unable to spend the amount of money needed to revive the economy --Policies of Sec. of Treasury Andrew Mellon contributed to a concentration of wealth by lowering personal income tax rates, eliminating the wartime excess-profits tax, and increasing deductions that favored corporations and the affluent

B. The Deepening Economic Crisis
1. Fear & Panic: Self-fulfilling prophecy 2. In the 1930s, many farmers went bankrupt, causing rural banks to fail; the rural banks defaulted on their obligations to urban banks, which also began to collapse 1. The more the economy contracted, the more people expected the depression to last; the longer they expected it to last, the more afraid they became to spend or invest their money III. Banks Close A. People w/ loans to pay and nervous depositors rushed to get their money out—A bank run B. By 1933, more than 5,500 banks had failed The Money from 9 million savings accounts had vanished

3. In 1931, the Federal Reserve System increased the
3. In 1931, the Federal Reserve System increased the discount rate, squeezing the money supply, forcing prices down, and depriving businesses of funds for investment 4. Americans kept their dollars stashed away rather than deposited, further tightening the money supply 3. discount rate –the interest rate it charged on loans to member banks; …while reducing the amount of money in circulation by limiting its purchases of government securities

C. The Worldwide Depression 1. U.S. hardest hit
2. By 1931, most European economies had collapsed 3. In response to the Hawley-Smoot Tariff of 1930, foreign govts. imposed their own trade restrictions, further intensifying the worldwide depression 4. From 1929 to 1933, the U.S. gross national product fell by almost half, private investment plummeted 88%, and unemployment rose to a staggering 24.9%; those who had jobs faced wage cuts or layoffs .5 Domestic factors far outweighed international causes of America’s protracted decline, yet the economic problems of the rest of the world affected the U.S. and vice versa --the whole system had been out of kilter since WWI. 2. By the late 1920s, European economies were staggering under the weight of huge debts and trade imbalances w/ the U.S.; by 1931, most European economies had collapsed --When U.S. companies cut back on production, they also cut their purchases of raw materials and supplies abroad, devasting many foreing economies

2. Most families had to “make do” but did not face extreme deprivation
II. Hard Times A. The Invisible Scar 1. Race, ethnicity, age, class, and gender all influenced how Americans experienced the depression 2. Most families had to “make do” but did not face extreme deprivation 3. Most people blamed themselves 4. Going on the “dole” --we didn’t go hungry, but we lived lean Invisible scar: accepting lower-paying menial jobs. The loss of identity that resulted from unemployment, moving to poorer neighborhoods, or accepting charity was psychologically damaging for both breadwinners and their spouses --left a legacy of fear that they might someday lose control of their lives again 2.5 People who believed the ethic of upward mobility through hard work suddenly found themselves floundering in a society that no longer had a job for them 4. After exhausting their savings and credit, many families faced the humiliation of going on relief, and, even then, the amount they received was a pittance 5. hardships left an “invisible scar,” and for the majority of Americans, the fear of losing control over their lives was the crux of the Great Depression

"Washington D.C. Government Charwoman," 1942. Photo by Gordon Parks
His famous photograph, an ironic reflection of Grant Wood's American Gothic, was taken in the FSA's office. The woman in the photograph is Ella Watson, the building's charwoman. Posed stoically with a mop and a broom before the American flag, Watson represents the people who didn't achieve the American Dream.

Map 24.1 The Great Depression: Families on Relief, to 1933 (p. 702)

B. Families Face the Depression
1. The Depression intensified already existing patterns of behavior 2. Men considered themselves failures if they were no longer the breadwinners, while women’s sense of importance increased as they struggled to keep their families afloat 3. Families stretched their incomes buy means of installment buying 4. Americans bought fewer new cloths and used the telephone less, but indulged in cigarettes, movies, and radios to help counteract the bleak times 5. Marriage & divorce rate fell; birth rate dropped 1. On the whole, far more families stayed together during the depression than broke apart 3. Americans as a whole maintained a fairly high level of consumption during the depression; deflation lowered the cost of living, and buying on credit stretched reduced income 5. One measure of the depression’s impact of family life was the change in demographic trends: the marriage rate fell, the divorce rate fell, and the birth rate dropped drastically

10. Few of the jobs that women held were sought by men
6. In. U.S. vs. One Package of Japanese Pessaries (1936) a federal court struck down all federal restrictions on the dissemination of contraceptive information 7. Abortion remained illegal, but the # of women undergoing the procedure increased 8. Margaret Sanger pioneered the est. of professionally staffed birth control clinics and in 1937 won the American Medical Association’s endorsement of contraception 9. Women encountered sharp resentment and discrimination in the workplace 10. Few of the jobs that women held were sought by men 7. between 8,000 and 10,000 women died every year 9. …because it was widely—though erroneously –thought that such women were taking jobs that a male breadwinner would otherwise fill 9.5 Many fields where women workers already had been concentrated suffered less from economic contraction that did the heaby industires, which employed men almost exclusively

12. Hobos // “sisters of the road” // 250,000
11. Observers paid little attention to the impact of the depression on the black family, as white men and women willingly sought out jobs usually held by blacks or other minorities 12. Hobos // “sisters of the road” // 250,000 13. High school attendance increased 14. The financial sacrifices involved in attending college encouraged a seriousness of purpose 12. Some of America’s young people became so demoralized that they became hobos or ‘sisters of the road’ --roughly 250,000 young people lived rootless lives as hoboes and ‘sisters of the road’ 13. The proportion of students who stayed in high school rose substantially, in part because boy, who traditionally tended to drop out to take jobs, now could not find work 14. College was a privilege for a distinct minority, and many college students became involved in political movements; the Student Strike against War drew student support across the country 14.5 Youths enjoyed more education in the 1930s, yet men who entered their twenties during the depression era had less successful careers than those who came before or after them

C. Popular Culture Views the Depression
1. Americans turned to popular culture in order to alleviate the trauma of the depression 2. The majority of Americans saw at least one movie a week 3. Production Code Administration regulated explicit sexuality, immorality, and violence in movies 4. Traditional values such as democracy and individualism were reaffirmed in many films 5. Gangster films popular –Little Caesar 6. Frank Capra: Mr. Smith goes to Washington 7. Radio & family life –monopoly 3. In response to public outcry against immorality in the movies, the industry established a means of self-censorship –the Production Code Administration 4. Many movies contained messages that reflected a sense of the social crisis engulfing the nation and reaffirmed traditional values like democracy, individualism, and egalitarianism; other contained criticisms that the system wasn’t working 5. Popular gangster movies suggested that incompetent or corrupt politicians, police, and businessmen were as much to blame for organized crime as the gangsters 6. Depression –era films by Frank Capra pitted the virtuous small-town hero against corrupt urban shysters whose machines subverted the nation’s ideals 6.5 Radio offered more than escape; the business failures of radio characters mirrored the lives of many Americans and reaffirmed the traditional values of diligence, saving, and generosity ---Amos ‘n’ Andy contrasted the virtues of hard work with the follies of irresponsible moneymaking schemes 7. In a resurgence of traditionalism, attendance at religious services rose, and the home was once again the center for pleasurable pastimes such as playing Monopoly, reading aloud, and talking

Can hard times be good for people?
Can prosperity bring about problems? Would you rather be poor in a prosperous or depressed economy?

3. Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath : Okies
B. Dust Bowl Migrations 1. The years 1930 and 1941 witnessed the worst drought in America’s history, but low rainfall alone did not cause the dust bowl 2. Demand for wheat during WWI encouraged farmers to plow up marginal land, which lost its topsoil during the drought 3. Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath : Okies 2. To maximize profit, farmers stripped the land of its natural vegetation, destroying the ecological balance of the plains; when the rains dried up, there was nothing to hold the soil 3. John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath immortalized the Okies, ruined by the ecological disaster and unable to compete with large-scale corporate farms, who headed west in response to promises of good jobs in California --A few Okies (1/6th) were professionals, business proprietors, or white-collar workers, and the drive west was fairly easy along Route 66 3.5 Key California crops had staggered harvest times and required a great deal of transient labor; a steady supply of cheap migrant labor made this type of farming feasible 4. At first, migrants met hostility from old-time Californians, but they stayed and filled important roles in California’s expanding economy II. Farm Distress A. Destruction of the Supply 1. Farmers dumped their milk & destroyed their crops to the chagrin of a hungry nation 2. Many farmers were kicked off their land when they defaulted on their mortgages B. Internal Migration 1. Feeling the ravages of the dust bowl, hundreds of thousands of people left the Great Plains—many flocked to California A1. Farmers dumped thousands of gallons of milk //six million pigs killed A2. Share croppers, tenant farmers, etc. B.1. What king of migration is happening now more than 440,000 people left Oklahoma more than 300,000 left Kansas

"Tractored Out: Power Farming Displaces Tenants from the Land in the Western Dry Cotton Area, Childress Co., Texas Panhandle," June Photo by Dorothea Lange

"One of Few Remaining Inhabitants of Zinc, Ark. ," October 1935
"One of Few Remaining Inhabitants of Zinc, Ark.," October Photo by Ben Shahn

Dorothea Lange's famous photograph, "Migrant Mother" taken during the Great Depression, 1936
Credit: Lange, Dorothea, photographer. "Migrant Mother." (Other title: "Destitute Pea Pickers in California. Mother of Seven Children. Age Thirty-Two. Nipomo, California.") March America from the Great Depression to World War II: Black-and-White Photographs from the FSA-OWI, , American Memory collections, Library of Congress. In 1960, Lange gave this account of the experience: I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet. I do not remember how I explained my presence or my camera to her, but I do remember she asked me no questions. I made five exposures, working closer and closer from the same direction. I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was thirty-two. She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food. There she sat in that lean- to tent with her children huddled around her, and seemed to know that my pictures might help her, and so she helped me. There was a sort of equality about it. (From: Popular Photography, Feb. 1960). 1. Who is the most important person in this photograph? (Mother.) How is attention drawn to her? (She is the largest figure; she is in the middle; hers is the only face clearly visible.) 2. How many children do you see in this photograph? (Three.) How are they related to the woman? (They are her children.) What makes you think so? 3. What clues do you see in this photograph that tell you this family is going through hard times? (Mother's facial expression, the figures' ragged, dirty clothes, their body language.) 4. Look closely. Can you see a triangle suggested by the arrangement of the figures? What parts of the figures form the sides? Where is the triangle's point? 5. An IMPLIED LINE is a line that is visually suggested by the arrangement of forms. Where did Lange use implied lines in this photograph? (One implied line runs from center top to bottom, and another runs from center left to right.) Where do these implied lines meet? (In the photo's center.) 6. When a photographer "frames" a photograph, she or he chooses what to include within the edges of the photograph, as well as what to leave out. What has Dorothea Lange left out of this photograph? (Parts of the figures' bodies, part of the post in the lower right, and clues to their setting.)

Map 24.3 The Dust Bowl, 1930–1941 (p. 710)

Farm foreclosure sale. (Circa 1933)

Dust Storms: "Dust Storm Near Beaver, Oklahoma." (July 14, 1935)

Dust Storms: "Kodak view of a dust storm Baca Co
Dust Storms: "Kodak view of a dust storm Baca Co., Colorado, Easter Sunday 1935"; Photo by N.R. Stone (Circa April 1935)

Dust Storms: In 1934 and 1936 drought and dust storms ravaged the great American plains and added to the New Deal's relief burden.

Drought Refugees (p. 709)

Migratory Mexican field worker's home on the edge of a pea field
Migratory Mexican field worker's home on the edge of a pea field. Imperial Valley, California, March 1937.

A family on the road in the Midwest, 1935
A family on the road in the Midwest, Photo by Dorothea Lange for the Resettlement Administration.

A family on the road, the hard way, heading toward Los Angeles
A family on the road, the hard way, heading toward Los Angeles. Photo by Dorothea Lange for the Resettlement Administration.

Farm Security Administration-Resettlement Administration: Vernon Evans family leaving South Dakota drought area for west. (Circa 1935)

Farm Security Administration: migrants. (Circa 1935)

Dorothea Lange Jobless on Edge of Pea Field, Imperial Valley, California 1937

Farm Security Administration: Christmas dinner in the home of Earl Pauley near Smithland, Iowa. (Circa 1935)

Children of rehabilitation clinic in Arkansas. (Circa 1935)

Young Oklahoma mother; age 18, penniless, stranded in Imperial Valley, California. (Circa March 1937)

18-year old mother from Oklahoma now a California migrant
18-year old mother from Oklahoma now a California migrant. (Circa March 1937)

Farm Security Administration: School in Alabama. (Circa 1935)

Resettlement Administration; Rural Rehabilitation; "Dave Mayberry"; Iredell Co., N.C. (Circa November 1933)

Now Tom said "Mom, wherever there's a cop beatin' a guy Wherever a hungry newborn baby cries Where there's a fight 'gainst the blood and hatred in the air Look for me Mom I'll be there Wherever there's somebody fightin' for a place to stand Or decent job or a helpin' hand Wherever somebody's strugglin' to be free Look in their eyes Mom you'll see me." The highway is alive tonight But nobody's kiddin' nobody about where it goes I'm sittin' downhere in the campfire light With the ghost of old Tom Joad Dorothea Lange's famous photograph, "Migrant Mother" taken during the Great Depression, 1936 Credit: Lange, Dorothea, photographer. "Migrant Mother." (Other title: "Destitute Pea Pickers in California. Mother of Seven Children. Age Thirty-Two. Nipomo, California.") March America from the Great Depression to World War II: Black-and-White Photographs from the FSA-OWI, , American Memory collections, Library of Congress. In 1960, Lange gave this account of the experience: I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet. I do not remember how I explained my presence or my camera to her, but I do remember she asked me no questions. I made five exposures, working closer and closer from the same direction. I did not ask her name or her history. She told me her age, that she was thirty-two. She said that they had been living on frozen vegetables from the surrounding fields, and birds that the children killed. She had just sold the tires from her car to buy food. There she sat in that lean- to tent with her children huddled around her, and seemed to know that my pictures might help her, and so she helped me. There was a sort of equality about it. (From: Popular Photography, Feb. 1960). 1. Who is the most important person in this photograph? (Mother.) How is attention drawn to her? (She is the largest figure; she is in the middle; hers is the only face clearly visible.) 2. How many children do you see in this photograph? (Three.) How are they related to the woman? (They are her children.) What makes you think so? 3. What clues do you see in this photograph that tell you this family is going through hard times? (Mother's facial expression, the figures' ragged, dirty clothes, their body language.) 4. Look closely. Can you see a triangle suggested by the arrangement of the figures? What parts of the figures form the sides? Where is the triangle's point? 5. An IMPLIED LINE is a line that is visually suggested by the arrangement of forms. Where did Lange use implied lines in this photograph? (One implied line runs from center top to bottom, and another runs from center left to right.) Where do these implied lines meet? (In the photo's center.) 6. When a photographer "frames" a photograph, she or he chooses what to include within the edges of the photograph, as well as what to leave out. What has Dorothea Lange left out of this photograph? (Parts of the figures' bodies, part of the post in the lower right, and clues to their setting.)

IV. Herbert Hoover and the Great Depression Hoover Responds
Hoover asked businesses to maintain wages and production levels voluntarily during the depression Hoover cut federal taxes, asked governments to increase public construction projects, signed the Agricultural Marketing Act, and declared a moratorium on payment of the Allied debts A 33% tax increase, designed to balance the budget, chocked investment and contributed significantly to the continuation of the depression Glass-Steagall Banking Act Reconstruction Finance Corporation .5 Hoover’s response to the depression was slow because he failed to view the situation realistically Hoping to avoid coercive measures on the part of the federal government …. 3. Hoover began to worry about the rising federal deficit 2. The federal govt. under Hoover spent $700 million—an unprecedented sum for the time—on public works 4. Hoover pushed congress to create a system of government home-loan banks and supported the Glass-Steagall Banking Act, wich temporarily propped up the ailing banking system 5. The RFC was the first federal institution created to intervene directly in the economy during peacetime --The RFC would provide federal loans to railroads, financial institutions, banks, and insurance companies in a strategy that has been called pump priming Although the RFC’s trickle-down effect was minimal, it represented a watershed in American political history and the growth of the federal govt. 6. Hoover believed that privately organized charities were sufficient to meet the nation’s social welfare needs and refused to consider plans for direct federal relief for those out of work

B. Rising discontent 1. Feelings of ill-will toward Hoover; his willingness to bail out banks and businesses, though not individuals, added to his reputation of cold- heartedness Hoover believed direct govt. aid would destroy people’s self-respect & create a huge bureaucracy. 4. Reconstruction Finance Corporation —gave banks money so they could give loans a. Trickle-Down Economics —Prosperity at the top would filter down to the lower levels of society 5. Hoover wanted State & local govt. & private charities to offer relief a. Hoover believed direct govt. aid would destroy people’s self-respect & create a huge bureaucracy 6. John Maynard Keynes —English economist who advocated huge govt. spending to save failing economies and encourage private spending

2. Hoover became the scapegoat of the depression
Blame it on Hoover 2. Hoover became the scapegoat of the depression 1. The importance of a scapegoat

3. Hoovervilles—shanty towns, built with cardboard boxes & garbage
Many moved in w/ relatives, back home, drifted around the country NY city in 1931—15,000 homeless Piano box—condo

Outside of Seattle: Hooverville

4. Hoover Blanket—newspapers bum’s wrapped themselves in to keep warm

—empty pocket turned inside out
5. Hoover flag —empty pocket turned inside out Why? Asking for help w/out having to ask. Keep people from asking you.

6. Hoover Hog —a big juicy rat

--I’m going to use the Hoover
--A Hoover Handshake?

7. Farm Holiday Association
& 1932 violent strikes in the coal and automobile industries “Bonus Army” 7. Even as some Americans were going hungry, farmers formed the Farm Holiday Association and destroyed food rather than accepting prices that would not cover their costs 8. In 1931 and 1932, violence broke out in cities as the unemployed battled local authorities over inadequate relief; some of the actions were organized by the Communist Party Miners in Harlan Country, Kentucky struck over a 10% wage cut, were crushed by the National Guard 1932 at Ford’s River Rouge Factory outside Detroit, demonstrators provoked violence from police & Ford’s security forces; 3 demonstrators were killed, fifty more were injured 9. Hoover’s reputation was further damaged in 1932 as newsreels showed the U.S. Army moving against its own veterans, the “Bonus Army,” in Washington C. March on Washington 1. 20,000 WWI veterans marched on Washington in 1932– Bonus Army, they wanted immediate payment of bonuses a. Senate rejected their demands b. Most went home; some set up a shantytown c. A few violent incidents occurred d. Hoover calls in the army—General Douglas MacArthur; Major Dwight D. Eisenhower & Major George S. Patton e. Army used tear gas and tanks to drive off veterans

"We must do it to obtain the information we need in dealing with our employees."

1937 Memorial Day Massacre in Chicago - Republic Steel Mill.

C. The 1932 Election: A New Order 1. Election of 1932
a. Demo. Nominate Franklin Delano Roosevelt 1. Harvard Grad NY State Senator Assistant Sec. of the Navy Struck w/ polio in Gov. of NY b. Rep. nominate Hoover c. FDR wins big The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. 1921 Roosevelt had suffered an attack of polio that left both his legs paralyzed, yet he emerged from th eillness a stronger, more resilient man --FDR won the election, yet in his campaign, he hinted only vaguely at new approaches to alleviate the depression. People voted as much against Hoover as for Roosevelt --The 1932 election marked the emergence of a Democratic coalition that would help to shape national politics fo rthe next four decades --In the worst winter of the depression, unemployment stood at 20 to 25 %, and the nation’s banking system was close to collapse --The depression had totally overwhelmed public welfare institutions, and private charity and public relief reached only a fraction of the needy; hunger haunted both cities and rural areas “I pledge myself to a new deal for the American people”—FDR announced when he accepted the nomination Born in 1882 Job in law firm C. In Wilson's cabinet Compassion for people "Once I spent two years lying in bed trying to move my big toe. After that anything else seems easy."

Grandpa O’s Poem As long as the river Shannon flows
As long as a single shamrock grows As long as a single Irishman's heart is true That’s how long I will love you. Now be a good boy and bring me That bottle over there.

With Man Gone, Will There Be Hope For Gorilla?

With Gorilla Gone, Will There Be Hope For Man?

Depression: "Runs on Banks": people milling about outside of bank
Depression: "Runs on Banks": people milling about outside of bank. (Circa 1933)

Depression: Breadlines: long line of people waiting to be fed: New York City: in the absence of substantial government relief programs during 1932, free food was distributed with private funds in some urban centers to large numbers of the unemployed.

Map 24.2 The Spread of Radio, to 1939 (p. 707)

Map 24.4 Presidential Election of 1932 (p. 718)

Looking for Work (p. 694)

The Breadline (p. 701)

Drought Refugees (p. 709)

Bert Corona (p. 712)

“The Stock Market Crash”
U.S. History Chapter 22, Section 2 “The Stock Market Crash” "October. This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, December, August and February.“ Pudd'nhead Wilson (Mark Twain)

Black Thursday & Tuesday A. Thursday, October 24, 1929
1. Worried investors began to sell off stock 2. Plummeting prices panicked others who sold in turn B. N.Y. Bankers step in 1. Bankers pooled their $ and poured it into the market in an attempt to stabilize prices 2. This action only temp. halted the decline C. Black Tuesday, October 29, 1929 1. A record 16.4 million shares were sold B. NY Bankers had done this in the past successfully C. Sept high of 381 – Nov 13, 198.7

II. Resonance of the Crash
A. Stock investors were the 1st to be hit B. Industries began to layoff workers 1. GNP—Gross National Product—the total annual value of goods & services a country produces, fell by $47 billion C. Ripple effect 1. Businesses assoc. w/ any of the industries effected 2. Restaurants and other small business 3. Domestic help

B. By 1933, more than 5,500 banks had failed
III. Banks Close A. People w/ loans to pay and nervous depositors rushed to get their money out—A bank run B. By 1933, more than 5,500 banks had failed The Money from 9 million savings accounts had vanished

IV. World Wide Repercussions
A. The economies of the world had become interconnected B. Reparation cycle—U.S. to Germany to Allies to the U.S.

“Social Effects of the Depression”
U.S. History Chapter 22, Section 3 “Social Effects of the Depression” In 1928 Herbert Hoover predicted: “We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land. We shall soon…be in sight of the day when poverty will be banished from this nation.” Less than one year later, disaster struck, and millions of Americans became victims of poverty during Hoover’s presidency. What do we mean by social effects? Loss of job, home, family, idenity

A. Hoover became the scapegoat of the depression
Blame it on Hoover A. Hoover became the scapegoat of the depression 1. The importance of a scapegoat

1. Hoovervilles—shanty towns, built with cardboard boxes & garbage
Many moved in w/ relatives, back home, drifted around the country NY city in 1931—15,000 homeless Piano box—condo

Outside of Seattle: Hooverville

2. Hoover Blanket—newspapers bum’s wrapped themselves in to keep warm

3. Hoover flag—empty pocket turned inside out
Why? Asking for help w/out having to ask. Keep people from asking you.

4. Hoover Hog—a big juicy rat

--I’m going to use the Hoover
--A Hoover Handshake?

A. Destruction of the Supply
II. Farm Distress A. Destruction of the Supply 1. Farmers dumped their milk & destroyed their crops to the chagrin of a hungry nation 2. Many farmers were kicked off their land when they defaulted on their mortgages B. Internal Migration 1. Feeling the ravages of the dust bowl, hundreds of thousands of people left the Great Plains—many flocked to California A1. Farmers dumped thousands of gallons of milk //six million pigs killed A2. Share croppers, tenant farmers, etc. B.1. What king of migration is happening now more than 440,000 people left Oklahoma more than 300,000 left Kansas

III. Associated Problems A. Psychological disorders
B. Many people suffered from depressed and anxiety—suicide rates increased C. Families moved in together; couples postponed marriage and starting families D. Many women were fired, because it was believed they were taking jobs away from men Man as bread winner//embarrassed to be seen at home during working hours People give up small pleasures—ice cream, movies, etc. C. Boomerang affect //// Life is on hold D. Adolph Hitler did something similar D1. Are there people in the labor market today that don’t belong there D. Country people grew food, ate berries, and other wild plants D. city poor—sold apples & pencils, begged for $ to buy food & fought over scrapes in garbage cans

E. Increase in Racial Discrimination
1. Many whites felt that blacks had no business being in the work force taking up jobs 2. Black unemployment reached 56% in 1932 3. Scottsboro Boys (9) were accused of raping 2 women & 8 were sentenced to die Concept of “our jobs” A.A. denied civil rights such as access to education, voting, and health care Lynching increased Crisis can be the glue for unity, but also when times are tough people can turn on each other

Can hard times be good for people?
Can prosperity bring about problems? Would you rather be poor in a prosperous or depressed economy?

U.S. History Chapter 22, Section 5 “The Election of 1932”

A. Cooperation w/ Business
Hoover’s Position A. Cooperation w/ Business 1. Hoover met w/ business leaders & got them to promise to maintain wages Hoover insisted the key to recovery was confidence At first many business did, but by the end of 1931, many quietly cut wages

B. Government Intervention
1. Public Works —govt. spending more $ on public buildings, roads, parks, and dams 2. President’s Emergency Committee on Employment—worked w/ local relief programs 3. Efforts to protect industries a. Hawley-Smoot tariff —Passed by Congress in 1930, highest import tax ever b. European nations raised their tariffs in response c. Halted international trade

4. Reconstruction Finance Corporation —gave
4. Reconstruction Finance Corporation —gave banks money so they could give loans a. Trickle-Down Economics —Prosperity at the top would filter down to the lower levels of society 5. Hoover wanted State & local govt. & private charities to offer relief a. Hoover believed direct govt. aid would destroy people’s self-respect & create a huge bureaucracy 6. John Maynard Keynes —English economist who advocated huge govt. spending to save failing economies and encourage private spending To people, this action looked as though Hoover was helping banks at the expense of the people Contributed to Hoovers negative reputation –made him look cold-hearted 5. Wanted states and local govt. to handle relief

a. Senate rejected their demands
C. March on Washington 1. 20,000 WWI veterans marched on Washington in 1932– Bonus Army, they wanted immediate payment of bonuses a. Senate rejected their demands b. Most went home; some set up a shantytown c. A few violent incidents occurred d. Hoover calls in the army—General Douglas MacArthur e. Army used tear gas and tanks to drive off veterans Bonuses not due until 1945 Hoover said o.k. to demands Hoover was horrified , but took responsibility for the army’s action Issue would hurt him in the next election

1. Demo. Nominate Franklin Delano Roosevelt
II. A NEW DEAL A. Election of 1932 1. Demo. Nominate Franklin Delano Roosevelt a. Harvard Grad b. NY State Senator c. Assistant Sec. of the Navy d. Struck w/ polio in e. Gov. of NY 2. Rep. nominate Hoover 3. FDR wins big --The only thing we have to fear is fear itself. “I pledge myself to a new deal for the American people”—FDR announced when he accepted the nomination Born in 1882 Job in law firm C. In Wilson's cabinet Compassion for people

Chapter 24 The Great Depression

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Chapter 24 The Great Depression

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