1. Hoover (fails to) Deal(s) with Depression

2. Shantytowns People who lost their homes were forced to
live in shacks with no electricity or plumbing

4. Bread Lines People stood in long lines to get bread for their
families to
have some
food

5. Soup Kitchens
Food provided
for job
seekers

6. Dust Bowl
Farmers in the Great Plains overused the land. When the drought and winds began in the early 1930’s , few trees & little grass was left to hold down the soil.

8. Effects on American Families
Direct Relief ($ from the government to help the needy) did not exist in the early years.
Men wandered in the streets & railways looking for work
Women & Children struggle to survive
Women scraped for food
Children did not attend school & were less healthy because of bad diet & no medical care 8

9. President Hoover’s Response to the Depression
Quotation
“Any lack of confidence in the economic future… is foolish”
Do Nothing Approach
The economy will eventually fix itself
Logic for Do Nothing Approach
Business Cycle
The natural way that business works- ups & downs & up again
Rugged Individualism
People should rely upon themselves and not the government

10. Protests Against Hoover
“Hoover Blankets” Newspapers that people used to stay warm
“Hoover Flags” Empty pockets turned inside out
“Hoovervilles” Shanty towns
Was it really Hoover’s fault?
Why do people blame him?

11. Hoover Takes Action
1930, the Democrats won a majority of the seats in Congress
Enormous protests and losing political power lead to Hoover changing his policies
Federal Construction Projects, $800 million
Boulder Dam (other infrastructure projects)
Federal Home Loan Bank Act (Try to help people from loosing homes)
Reconstruction Finance Corporation (Emergency Financing to Banks)

13. Hoover Takes Action
Bonus Army- group of WWI veterans and their families.
They came to Washington to support a bill in Congress that would grant them a bonus in their compensation.
Hoover opposed the bill but ensured supplies and food for the protestors.
When the bill failed to pass, Hoover called for the Bonus Army to leave. When they didn’t disband, he worried they would become violent and had them gassed.
This showed Hoover as a cruel, heartless person since their were women and children in the Army.

15. Hoover shouldn’t have taken Action
Hoover had sealed his fate after gassing the Bonus Army and not adequately addressing the suffering of people during the Depression.
In the Election of 1932, Hoover stood no chance to be reelected. The Democrats nominated popular New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt who made his fame assisting those suffering in New York during the Depression