Term
The Great Depression:
Main Idea
|
|
Definition
Great Depression: Main Idea
On October 29, 1929 the stock market crashed signaling the beginning of what becomes the Great Depression.
From 1929 until the 1940s the USA went through an economic depression where millions of dollars were lost, businesses closed, as did thousands of banks. 1 out of 4 Americans was unemployed.
Herbert Hoover was President at the beginning, but Franklin D. Roosevelt served as President for most of the depression.
Under President FDR the government took an active role in getting the US
out of the depression. Programs such as the FDIC and Social Security were started, but it took the massive spending of World War II to help end the Great Depression. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
President Herbert Hoover
USA's President when the stock market crashed.
Hoover felt that the government should not be in the business of giving DIRECT RELIEF (money & food) to those in need.
Hoover was unpopular with the American public. Shantytowns that sprang up were nicknamed Hoovervilles as disrespect to the President.
One accomplishment of Hoover's was the construction of Hoover Dam. It put thousands to work, created flood control, and provided hydroelectricity for western cities.
By the 1932 presidential election people had tired of Hoover & FDR was elected President. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Stock Market Crash/Black Tuesday: October 29,1929
The crash did not cause the Great Depression,
but it was a strong signal that we were headed into one.
Because of overspeculation and easy credit
people bought stocks that were over-valued. When they tried to
sell them they found out there were no buyers.
The bottom fell out and millions of dollars were lost. |
|
|
Term
Agriculture in the Great Depression |
|
Definition
Agriculture in the Great Depression
At the turn of the century improved farm equipment had given farmers the ability to produce more food.
Farmers moved to the West, bought land, and plowed up the virgin grasslands to grow wheat and corn.
During World War I the demand for food increased and the government had encouraged western farmers to produce as much as possible.
When the war end the demand for food dropped and farmers first began losing money, then their farms. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The Bonus Army
At the end of World War I, the government had promised
its veterans a bonus for their service.
When the Depression hit these vets went to the White House to collect their bonus. But the government didn't have the money to give them any bonus.
President Hoover used the Army to force the Bonus Army to leave the White House, and the American public became angry at Hoover for this action. |
|
|
Term
President Franklin D. Roosevelt |
|
Definition
President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Elected in 1932, he was often known as FDR.
Crippled by polio he was the only President to serve 4 terms.
FDR led the USA through the Great Depression and through WWII.
Under FDR the government increased the amount of money spent
and the power it had. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The New Deal
FDR's economic policy was called the New Deal. Under the New Deal, FDR wanted the government to spend massive amounts of money to get the USA out of the Great Depression.
Under FDR's New Deal programs the government offered:
Relief - help for those in need
Recovery - help the economy recover
Reform - create laws to prevent it from happening again
The New Deal also called for creation of many different programs
to put the American people to work, to get businesses back in business, and stabilize the banks.
As a group, these laws became known as the Alphabet Soup Laws because of their initials. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Alphabet Soup Laws
A wide variety of New Deal laws that put people to work.
These are only just a few examples:
CCC - Civilian Conservation Corp. (put young men to work)
TVA - Tennessee Valley Authority (built dams)
WPA - Works Progress Administration (built roads, parks, art works) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
FDIC & Social Security
There are two programs that still remain active and useful from the New Deal era.
FDIC
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Alphabet Soup law designed to restore publics' confidence in the banks.
It guarantees the safety of money depositors put in a bank.
Social Security
Provides pensions for elderly, unemployed insurance, aid for poor with children,
and some people with disabilities. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Dust Bowl
Farmers in the west suffered an even bigger blow to their struggles when a severe drought
hit the region. Crops failed to grow in the lands that had been plowed up.
Then the winds began to blow and continued for years, causing the soil to be blown away.
Many died from dust pneumonia, lost their farms, or simply migrated.
Many of those that moved away came out of the panhandle region of Oklahoma & Texas.
As a group they were called "Okies".
Most of these Okies headed farther west to the Pacific Coast & California. |
|
|
Term
What was responsible for helping
to bring the US out
of the Great Depression?
|
|
Definition
The massive spending for World War II
was responsible for helping
to bring the USA out of the Great Depression. |
|
|
