1. After WWI and the Great Depression
Inter-War Years (first 2 minutes)
After WWI and the Great Depression

2. What was going on in the U.S. after WWI?
Warren G. Harding was president. He wanted life to go back to normal, hence his “return to normalcy” slogan. However, his presidency was short lived as he died in office and President Calvin Coolidge took office.
“Cool Coolidge” thought that if the government stepped back a little and didn’t get so involved, businesses would prosper.

3. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
The Roaring 20’s!!!!!!!!!
Cars are in!!!
Mass production came about (which is large-scale product manufacturing, usually done by machinery, created more supply and reduced consumer costs.
The assembly line also came about…this divided operations into simple tasks that unskilled workers could do and cut unnecessary motion to a minimum.

4. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
Henry Ford came up with the assembly-line product: the Model T (car)
Life was changing BIG TIME!!!
We had electric razors, frozen foods, household cleaning supplies and labor saving appliances.
We had aviation as a major mode of transportation. By 1928, there were 48 airlines serving 355 American cities.

5. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
People had higher wages and shorter work days.
Americans came up with idea that they could buy a lot and pay it back later (credit).
Welfare capitalism is where employees were able to purchase stock, participate in profit sharing, and receive benefits.

6. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
Farmers were NOT doing well in the 1920s. There was a huge farm crisis because the farmers didn’t experience an economic boom. In fact, farmers had to pay more for their equipment and received less for their goods.

7. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
Also, during WWI, farmers were told to produce a lot of food. Farmers borrowed $ to buy new land and new machinery, but when the war ended, inflation stepped in, and the farmers couldn’t sell goods over seas because tariffs increased and European countries couldn’t afford to buy American goods.

8. What was the economy like in the U.S. in the 1920s???
In the 1920s, Americans owned about 40% of the world’s wealth.
The Allies owed the U.S. billions of dollars in war debts.
However, other countries felt the U.S. should help with the war’s financial debt. The U.S. government disagreed, arguing that the Allies had gained new territory and received reparations, or huge cash payments that Germany paid as punishment for starting the war. (These reparations killed Germany’s economy)

9. So what’s this stock market crash all about????
The stock market was established as a system for buying and selling shares of companies.
A long period of rising stock prices is known as a bull market.
The economy was very prosperous during the 20s, so people were investing heavily on the stock market.

10. So what’s this stock market crash all about????
As the bull market continued to go up…many investors bought stocks on margin (making a small cash down payment). This was okay as long as stock prices continued to rise. If the stock began to fall, the broker could issue a margin cal demanding that the investor repay the loan in full, immediately.
In the late 1920s, new investors bid prices up without looking at a company’s earnings and profits.

11. So what’s this stock market crash all about????
By late 1929, a lack of new investors in the stock market caused stock prices to drop and the bull market to end.
Stock prices fell drastically on October 29, 1929, which is referred to as Black Tuesday. This resulted in a $10 to $15 billion loss in value.
The stock market crash weakened the nation’s banks. Banks lost money on their investments and people defaulted (couldn’t pay) their loans.

12. So what’s this stock market crash all about????
At this time, the government didn’t insure banks. So, if a bank closed or went bankrupt, you lost your money.

13. Okay, so the stock market crashed
Okay, so the stock market crashed. How did this cause the Great Depression?
Efficient machinery led to overproduction, and Americans could not afford to buy all the goods produced.
Workers wages did not increase fast enough to keep up with the quick production of goods. As sales decreased, workers were laid off, resulting in a chain reaction that further hurt the economy.

14. Okay, so the stock market crashed
Okay, so the stock market crashed. How did this cause the Great Depression?
Many Americans were buying on the installment plan (making a down payment and paying the rest in monthly installments)…aka CREDIT
High taxes on imported goods also hurt American’s bank accounts.
Banks closed and millions of Americans were unemployed.

15. What was the Great Depression like. http://www. youtube. com/watch
Americans were unable to pay their mortgage or rent and lost their homes. Those unable or unwilling to move had a court-ordered eviction notice delivered by a court officer or bailiff who forced nonpaying tenants out onto the street.
Many of the homeless built shacks in shantytowns, which they referred to as “Hoovervilles” because they blamed the president for their financial problems.

16. What was the Great Depression like?
Homeless people also wrapped themselves in used newspapers they called “Hoover blankets” to keep themselves warm.
Some wore their empty pockets inside out and called them “Hoover flags.”
Does it sound like President Hoover had a lot of fans???

17. What was the Great Depression like?
Hobos or homeless Americans who wandered around hitching rides on railroad cars, searched for work and a better life.
As crop prices dropped in the 1920s, many American farmers left their fields uncultivated.
Many farmers lost their farms and faced poverty and homelessness.
(Just an FYI: the movie “Annie” takes place in the Great Depression)

18. Video on Stock Market Crash and Great Depression