Hardship and Suffering

Depression = Devastation  Many people became homeless  Soup kitchens and Bread lines fed the starving citizens

Hoover Hotel

Bankrupt Family

Bread Line

The Dust Bowl  Great Plains = over-farming  No trees or grass – open soil  Drought + Wind = Dust Storms  All top soil was scattered, land became useless

Effects on the American Families  Made Do  Stayed Home  Families fell apart – men left  Women saved and worked as best they could – men became resentful  No federal assistance programs existed  Women often died of starvation – didn’t want to beg

Effects on the American Families  Children: lack of food – malnutrition  No School – worked in sweatshops  year-olds crossed the country  Many children died, or were killed

Psychological Effects  Suicide Rates increased by 30%  More people admitted to mental hospitals  People quit going to doctors and dentists  focused on saving money