1 Question of the Day Describe what you see in this picture. What is happening here? What is unusual about the family in this picture? What reasons can you think of for why they are in this situation?

2 The Great Depression Mr. Lamar English 9 RHS 2008

3 Introduction Essential Question— How did the Great Depression affect America?

4 Topics of Discussion The “Roaring Twenties” The economy in the late 1920s The stock market crash The Dust Bowl The New Deal

5 The Roaring 1920s-- Swingin’! Companies spend $1.5 billion on advertising in 1927 Ford built his automobile empire People began to buy things on credit First shopping mall built First fast food chain: A&W Root Beer Appliances all the rage—radios, washing machines, telephones, cars

6 Early 1920s: Mid 1920s: Victorian Woman Jazz Age Woman

7 Economy of the Late 1920s “Everybody ought to be rich” 200 large companies controlled 49% of all American industry Too many goods, not enough demand Farm prices fell after WWI Farmers not able to repay their debts

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9 The Stock Market Crash Stocks hit all-time highs in September of 1929 In October, stocks began to fall Ex. General Electric stocks bought for $400 sold for $283 Black Tuesday—16.4 million shares sold, compared to average of 4 million This collapse of the stock market is known as the Great Crash

10 Why did the market crash? Many people bought stocks on margin— like a loan Companies lied about their profits— remember Enron? Economies like ours go through natural “boom” and “bust” cycles Republican Presidents believed in laissez faire—no control on businesses Stock market was not regulated by government

11 The Stock Market Crash From Riches to Ruin Many wealthy families lost everything Some even committed suicide Millions of people who never owned a single stock lost their jobs, farms and homes The crash triggered a much wider, long term crisis known as the Great Depression The Depression lasted from 1929 to 1941 when America entered WWII The Depression had a ripple effect that hurt the economies of other countries

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14 Great Crash

15 Unemployment in San Diego

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17 a dust storm in Colorado

18 another dust storm

19 a father and his two sons seek shelter from a dust storm

20 sand covering a farm after a dust storm

21 trying to beat a dust storm

22 an abandoned farm in Kansas

23 headlines from the dust bowl

24 a man in the midst of a dust storm

25 The Dust Bowl Poor agricultural practices and years of sustained drought caused the Dust Bowl. The Great Plains region—N. & S. Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas Oklahoma and northern Texas During the years when there was adequate rainfall, the land produced bountiful crops. But as the droughts of the early 1930s deepened, the farmers kept plowing and planting and nothing would grow. Layers of top soil blown away, leaving dunes of grit and sand. Wheat replaces grass—tractors make it much easier High winds 1939, the rain comes, finally bringing an end to the drought.

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27 a family in a “lean-to” tent

28 Another mother & child living in a lean-to tent

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31 a family trying to escape the dust bowl

32 This sets the scene for Of Mice and Men