1.
The Great Depression

2. Dorothea Lange Lange was a photographer
She took photos of migrant farm workers who came to California from the Dust Bowl
Her photos helped people understand the plight of the poor

8. Learning from a photo
Look at the following photo carefully, what do you notice?
What do you think the photographer was trying to say with this image?

10. Stock Market Crash
The period of 1920’s prosperity ended with the stock market crash of 1929
The stock crash led to the Great Depression of the 1930’s

11. Business Failures
Businesses in the 1920’s made so many goods not all were purchased.
The US put a tariff (tax) on European goods and many countries stopped buying US products.
In 1932 over 30,000 business failed

12. Bank Closures
Banks that loaned money to people who bought stock were not paid back
People feared banks would close and took their money out of banks.
Many banks failed, and people lost the money deposited in the banks.

13. Unemployment Soars
Millions of Americans were thrown out of work as businesses failed
Workers’ wages were cut
By million Americans were unemployed, 25% of the workforce

14. Homelessness and “Hoovervilles”
Unemployed workers lost their homes
The homeless poor moved to shanty towns, with shelters made of cardboard
The homeless camps were nicknamed Hoovervilles, by people who blamed President Hoover
Poor hobos road the rails from town to town

15. The Bonus March
World War 1 veterans asked the government to pay their bonuses early
WW 1 veterans marched in Washington D.C.
Congress refused the “Bonus Army” their payments
US troops turned water hoses on WW 1 Vets.

16. The Dust Bowl
In 1932 and 1937 there was a drought in the Great Plains, which destroyed farmers
There was no rain for farmers in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas
Winds blew the topsoil away creating a “Dust Bowl”
Farmers could not pay their mortgages to banks

17. Migration to California
These penniless farmers traveled to California in search of jobs and land
They traveled Route 66 in their jalopies
Californians looked down on these “Okies”, as migrants flooded west.

18. Woody Guthrie - Folk Music
Woody Guthrie sang folk music about the experiences of poor people during the Great Depression
“Do-Re-Mi” was a song about the migrants traveling to California
His most famous song, “This Land is Your Land, is still known today.