The Causes of the Great Depression in Canada

The Great Depression 1920’s- General Wealth & Optimism across the country 1930’s- The Great Depression Worst economic downturn in Canadian History Stock Market Crash NOT only cause A symptom A sign of things to come in N.A.

The Great Depression 1920s- Prosperity The Business Cycle Upswings and Downswings 4 stages Prosperity: Sales, Wages, Prices, Production, Demand- High Labour unrest High, Unemployment Low Recession: Sales & Production Declining, Wages & Prices Falling, Labour Unrest High, Unemployment increasing Depression: Sale, Wages, Prices, Production, Demand, Labour Unrest Low, Unemployment Very High Recovery: Sales, Wages, Prices all rising, Production & Demand increasing Labour Unrest Low, Unemployment Falling 1920s- Prosperity

The Great Depression The Business Cycle 1930s Starts with a RECESSION Sales slow down, Too many goods, Can’t sell everything Cut production & layoff workers Less money to spend and buy goods Employed are careful with money Sales begin to fall If downturn continues it can become a DEPRESSION Worst case scenario Can go from Recession to Recovery

Black Tuesday October 29, 1929

Stock Market Crash Many people “playing” the Stock Market Get rich overnight. How? Buy lots of stock when price is low Sell when price is high…duh! Not that easy Many lost everything

Stock Market Crash Buy on MARGIN- $100 for $1000 worth of stock Stock goes up, pay back loan, keep profit Stocks go down, People panic, sell stocks Price drops further, all downhill Major Stock Exchanges drop more than 50% Exercise Read pg 184-186 In your notes- Summarize Cause of Great Depression (6)

Drought in the Prairies

Drought in the Prairies Western Canada hit very hard 1929-1933 Massive Decline of Income per person Saskatchewan 72% Alberta 61% Manitoba 49% Too dependent on Wheat Severe drought and grasshoppers destroy crops Biggest Issue- Not Too Little, Too Much Wheat Glut on the World Market No Money to Buy it 1929- $1.60 per bushel 1932- $0.38 per bushel Many Farmers leave farms to go to city in search of work

The Great Depression Living Conditions 1933- 1/3 of Canadians out work. People travel from town to town looking for job Ride the rails from town to town. Always hear of work somewhere else No Job= No Money= No Necessities of Life (Food, Clothing, Shelter) People lived near starvation, malnutrition. Question- What Social Services exist today to combat these issues? No Unemployment Insurance, Family Allowance, Government paid medical care Those with money lived well, prices were low. People looked to the Government for Relief

The Great Depression Where did you get your clothes? “Mother made all the clothes for us from old clothes that had been given to us. I remember she knitted wool stockings because it was so cold. Mother’s relatives would send us old clothes and many of these had holes in them. I was embarrassed to wear the old clothes. It seemed mine were the worst of all the kids in the school.”

The Role of the Government City Governments/ Charities Overrun Turn to Provincial & Federal Governments for help Federal Government slow to act PM William Lyon MacKenzie King- “wait it out” Felt the depression will be short-lived Not willing to help, Provinces’ job Vote out by mass unemployed New PM- Conservative- RB Bennett Played to mass unemployed “I Will find everyone work or perish trying” Promised relief funds for provinces Introduce Tariffs to help Canadian market Minimal Impact, band aid solutions

The Role of the Government Cities charged with dispersing relief funds Some cities go into debt, layoff workers, raise taxes, borrow money Getting Relief People had to prove the lived in city- no drifters Had to prove they couldn’t pay bills, services cut off Some Women, even with kids, not given relief without a husband Relief Camps Single unemployed men Isolated Northern Colonies 8 hour days- cutting brush, moving rocks, building roads Given Food, Shelter, clothing, $0.20 per day

The Role of the Government PM Bennett blamed for inability to end Depression Bennett Buggies– Cars pulled by horses or other animals Bennettburghs– homeless communities Bennett blankets- newspapers

On to Ottawa Trek

On to Ottawa Trek 1935- 1000’s of men leave BC, fed up with life in relief camps Board Freight trains, head to Ottawa to protest Government As they move East, more people join their cause Trekkers Wanted: Minimum Wage Social and Unemployment Insurance Stopped in Saskatchewan by Mounties PM Bennett claimed it was a plot to overthrow Government Riot breaks out, several people injured, police officer killed Protester’s demands are ignored by Government

The Great Depression Did you have a job during the Depression? “No but my brother in Kingston worked for 15 cents a day driving tractors. I was on relief. They gave us prunes (to eat) and a pair of boots once a year. We got pants, but not suits- just salvage, surplus clothes I once asked Mayor Kaiser for food but he said no. That guy (the mayor) had butter on his table. Everyone else had fatty, lardy margarine. To get my relief, I killed rats in dump on Gibb Street and dug sewers and ditches”

The Great Escape Hollywood People were looking to away from terrible life Golden Age for Hollywood People could enter the world of film- Escapism Other Forms of Escape Radio shows, song, magazines, books, sports CBC- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation Created by PM Bennett to counter American Radio waves

The Cinderella Man James J. Braddock “The Bulldog of Bergen” 1905-1974 Born In New York Young Boxer, title contender Good right hand, solid chin Looked after family during Great Depression, less focus on his career Wife and 3 kids On Social Relief Took fights without training/ injured Lost a lot- started career 30-2-4 Next 40 fights: 14-23-3 downtrodden population rallied behind him- one of them

A little too late… PM RB Bennett 1935- Canadians angry with lack of change Government doing now Bennett makes radical changes to policy Unemployment Insurance & Social Programs Set a minimum wage & working hours Control prices, to avoid unfair exploitation. “Bennett’s New Deal”- similar to FDR is USA FDR created jobs with large scale projects Put money in people’s pockets to spend Bennett didn’t have the faith of the people Most saw Bennett’s plan as an attempt to get votes- left it too late 1935- William Lyon Mackenzie King win landslide election

Alternative Parties People still fed up with current Political parties Other parties offered answers or just something different Social Credit Party Government of Alberta- 1935 Attacked the Banks people needed extra money to spend- Social Credit $25 per month to every Adult Spread to other provinces and Federal politics Co-Operative Commonwealth Federation Teachers, Farmers, Labour reps Wealth to be share more equally Government should control key industries Social programs/ Welfare state Liberals and Conservatives adopted many of their policies Became the New Democratic Party

AND…. We all lived happily ever after…. Follow Instructions on page 204 (make chart, answer A & B Just Kidding!