The Great Depression Unit 5 Chapter 9

Essential Question for Lecture #1 1.) How did the government’s financial policies in the 1920s cause the Great Depression?

Lecture #1: Causes of the Great Depression A. The 1928 Election 1. Candidates  Republicans nominated Herbert Hoover  Democrats nominated Alfred E. Smith 2. Campaign Issues and Outcomes  Prohibition, economic prosperity, and religion  Hoover won promising “two cars in every garage” B. The Stock Market 1. Bull Market  Americans invested heavily in the 1920s  Investors speculated hoping to make quick returns on their investments  People who did not have enough $ to invest in stocks bought on the margin by paying a small cash down payment 2. The Great Crash  Summer 1929 the stock market slowed  In September fearful investors began selling their stock  The value of the stock began to decline and stockbrokers began making margin calls  October 29, 1929 (Black Tuesday) prices crashed to an all time low as fearful investors dumped their stocks  $30 Billion lost by mid-November

C. Banks Fail 1. Banks in the 1920s  Banks made risky loans to speculators  Banks invested deposits in the stock market 2. Bank Runs  Many banks closed their doors taking with them Americans’ life savings  Fearful Americans ran to the banks hoping to pull their money out before the banks failed

D. The Roots of the Great Depression 1. Uneven Distribution of Wealth  Overproduction of goods that Americans could not afford to buy  Americans over spent using installment plans 2. Hawley-Smoot Tariff  Increased taxes on imports which led to a decrease in demand for American made goods in Europe 3. Interest Rates  Federal Reserve lowered interest rates encouraging Americans to borrow $ to buy cars and consumer goods  Banks made risky loans

Review and Summarize Your Learning Step 1: After class, review your notes and create questions or headings on left hand side of your paper. Step 2: Complete the summary section of your Norco Notes. Make sure you answer the essential questions and include the highlighted vocabulary.

Essential Question for Lecture #2 1.) How did the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl impact the daily lives of Americans?

Lecture 2: Life During the Great Depression A.The Depression Worsens  1933: 9,000 banks failed 30,000 companies out of business 12 million Americans unemployed 1. Soup Kitchens and Bread Lin es  Provided free meals to the poor  Operated by non-profit organizations, churches, and local govts. 2. Shanty Towns  Homeless men and women created shack villages on the outskirts of towns/cities and in public parks  Often referred to as “Hoovervilles”

3. The Dust Bowl ( )  Drought + poor farming techniques eroded the soil = huge dust storms  Dust storms ruined crops, killed livestock and made it impossible for farmers to make $  Farms were foreclosed on and many farmers migrated westward for job opportunities; referred to as “Okies” and “Arkies”

Dust Bowl Map

Dust Bowl Aftermath

B. Escaping the Depression 1. The Hollywood Fantasy  Entertainment industry provided a mental escape from the depression  Americans loved comedic actors, musicals, feature length cartoons, and dramas that instilled optimism and the will to survive

C. The Depression in Art 1. Art  Emphasized traditional American values ; farm life, hard work, small towns, patriotism  Example: Grant Wood’s American Gothic 2. Literature  Themes of poverty and misfortune  Example: John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men 3. Photography  Chronicled poverty and the experiences of migrant farmworkers  Example: Dorothea Lange’s American Exodus (Migrant mother photo)

Grant Wood and Thomas Hart Benton

Dorothea Lange

Review and Summarize Your Learning Step 1: After class, review your notes and create questions or headings on left hand side of your paper. Step 2: Complete the summary section of your Norco Notes. Make sure you answer the essential questions and include the highlighted vocabulary.

Essential Question for Lecture #3 1.) Describe President Hoover’s cautious efforts to help recover the failing economy? Were they effective?

Lecture #3: Hoover Responds A. Promoting Recovery 1. Volunteerism and Public Works Projects  Hoover asked industry, local governments and organizations to help the poor and homeless ; by these volunteer efforts were abandoned  Hoover asked city and State govts. to fund building projects to ; he was unwilling to let the federal govt. deficit spend in order to fund these projects 2. Midterm Elections  Republicans lost the 1930 congressional elections  Americans blamed Hoover and the Republican party for the worsening economy

B. Pumping Money Into the Economy 1. Reconstruction Finance Corp  Govt. made loans to banks, railroads, and agriculture  $238 million in loans; failed to help the economy 2. Emergency Relief and Construction Act  Hoover opposed direct $ relief payments to the poor  Congress passed the Emergency Relief Act in 1932  Act gave $1.5 billion for public work projects and $300 billion to State govts. for direct relief payments

C. Angry Americans 1. Hunger Marches  Communist Party began holding hunger marches throughout US  Police arrested 1200 marches and held them without food and water 2. The Bonus Army (May 1932)  WWI vets marched on Washington DC demanding war bonus payments; Congress and Hoover refused  In response, Bonus marchers set up a Hooverville in Wash. DC to continue protesting  Hoover ordered the military to clear out the Bonus Army which resulted in violence and the death of a baby boy

Review and Summarize Your Learning Step 1: After class, review your notes and create questions or headings on left hand side of your paper. Step 2: Complete the summary section of your Norco Notes. Make sure you answer the essential questions and include the highlighted vocabulary.