Unit Eight The Great Depression and World War II

The Crash 1929 and the End of the Party

Deceptive Prosperity During the 1920s, Americans experienced a cultural revolution-- new fashions, new music, new technologies (like radio and film), as well as a new emphasis on consumerism changed the way most people in the United States lived their lives.

Easily available credit allowed average Americans to afford new items like refrigerators, gas ranges, radios, and automobiles.

"We in America today are nearer to the final triumph over poverty than ever before in the history of any land. The poorhouse is vanishing from among us. We have not yet reached the goal, but, given a chance to go forward with the policies of the last eight years, and we shall soon, with the help of God, be in sight of the day when poverty will be banished from this nation." Herbert Hoover, 1928 Inaugural Address

By The Numbers Rise in per capita income for top 1% of population, : 75% Rise in per capita income for nation as a whole: 9% Percentage of American Families with no savings: 80% Percentage Increase, Worker's incomes: 11% Real Earnings (for employed wage earners) 22% Minimum income deemed necessary for a decent family standard of living: $2500 Percentage of American families with incomes under $2500 in 1929: 71%

Easy Money During the 1920s, the gap between the extremely wealthy and the average American grew. Men like Charles Mitchell (National City Bank) and Michael J. Meehan became enormously wealthy by trading stock. Most Americans had no understanding of how the stock market worked-- just that it seemed like an easy and surefire way to make money.

In Over Our Heads In the late 1920s, average Americans began buying into the stock market in large numbers. Most Americans did not have the ready money to invest, and so began to buy on margin. Buying on margin: The practice of buying a stock on credit. For example, someone buying on margin could buy $10,000 dollars worth of stock by putting only $1,000 dollars down. They would then pay the other $9,000 dollars owed after their stock made money.

The Market Gets Nervous Throughout 1928, the stock market soared, and investors struck it rich. But during the summer months of 1929, there began to be some signs of distress from the market. In April and June of 1929, there were mini-crashes-- but each time, the market stabilized. Everything looked like it was going to be fine. On October 25, 1929, the Dow Jones suddenly began to plummet. Afraid of a collapse, several wealthy bankers pooled their resources and bought stocks at artificially high prices to stop the plunge. The plan seemed to work. On October 26, the market began to rebound and go back up.

Black Tuesday Investors, having had the weekend to worry about their stocks, opened the markets on October 28, 1929 by selling wildly. The Dow Jones lost 13% of its value in one day. Panicked at the collapse on Monday, investors sold over 16 million shares of stock on Tuesday, October 29th. This day, referred to as "Black Tuesday," resulted in $14 billion dollars being lost. In one week alone, the stock market lost more than $30 billion dollars. It would take until 1954 for stocks to reach the same level again.

The New Deal Expansion of Federal Powers

1930s Culture Art, Film, Music, and Literature

Art Deco Art deco was an artistic and design movement that was popular from about 1925 until the 1940s. It featured clean geometric shapes and was seen as elegant, functional, and extremely modern. Art deco design covering the elevator doors at the Chrysler Building in New York.

Gordon House, Frank Lloyd Wright.

American Art in the 1930s During the 1930s, American artists stopped relying so heavily on European trends and techniques. Instead, they began to focus on American subjects-- particularly the land and people in their regions. Famous for her detailed paintings of floral subjects, Georgia O'Keefe was also inspired by the landscape of the American southwest. Regional painter Grant Wood painted one of the iconic images of America during the Great Depression, capturing the no-nonsense attitude of the average American in his painting, American Gothic.

Deer Skull with Pedernal, Georgia O'Keefe

American Gothic, Grant Wood

The Golden Age of Hollywood After the advent of "talking pictures" in 1927, Hollywood experienced an incredible explosion of talent during the 1930s. Stars like Myrna Loy, Rita Hayworth, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Fred Astaire, and Ginger Rogers drew crowds to the cinemas in droves. One major reason for the popularity of movies was simply escapism-- during the hardship of the Great Depression, comic films by the Marx brothers and musicals like Top Hat were ways to escape the disappointments of daily life.

Radio Radio truly came into its own during the 1930s. Not only were there musical programs and news broadcasts-- there were also serial dramas, comedy shows, and kids' programming. Audiences tuned in nightly to hear the continuing adventures of the Lone Ranger, to listen to Dick Tracy solve another dastardly crime. Many Hollywood stars, like Orson Welles, got their start in radio.

John Steinbeck A writer of numerous short stories and novels, John Steinbeck grew famous during the 1930s for his depiction of the Dust Bowl and Great Depression in Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. Both books were enormously popular-- if controversial. Steinbeck did not shy away from describing what he saw as some of the downfalls of capitalism and the harsh realities of life, and many of his books were banned in certain states.

The Carter Family Composed of many members and generations, the Carter family became famous for their recordings of traditional Appalachian songs. Many of their recordings were variations of well-known hymns or gospel pieces. During the late 1930s, the Carter family performed regularly on a number of popular radio programs.

One of the most important figures in American folk music, Woody Guthrie learned to play story-telling songs and the blues during his travels across the Dust Bowl. Many of his songs describe life during the Great Depression, and champion the rights of the average American citizen.

This land is your land, this land is my land From California to the New York island; From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters This land was made for you and me. As I was walking that ribbon of highway, I saw above me that endless skyway: I saw below me that golden valley: This land was made for you and me. I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts; And all around me a voice was sounding: This land was made for you and me. As I went walking I saw a sign there And on the sign it said "No Trespassing." But on the other side it didn't say nothing, That side was made for you and me. In the shadow of the steeple I saw my people, By the relief office I seen my people; As they stood there hungry, I stood there asking Is this land made for you and me?