In 1929 the United States had entered an economic slump known as the Great Depression. The Great Depression was the longest financial decline in American history. The sudden, devastating collapse of US stock market prices on October 29, 1929, known as Black Tuesday, was just the beginning of this economic decline. The Great Depression changed society, socially and economically in many ways, including: family life, crime rates, and businesses. One of the major impacts that the Great Depression had on many families was salary income. The economic collapse of the 1930’s was overwhelming in the way that it was affecting the citizens. “Unemployment jumped from less than 3 million in 1929 to 4 million in 1930, 8 million in 1931, and 12.5 million in 1932.” In just one year, a quarter of the nation’s families did not have any salaries entering their household, and during the first three years, an average of 100,000 workers was fired each week. When it became too difficult for the men to find work it became more popular for women and children to enter the work force. The women began to find it easier to find jobs working ask: clerks, maids, and other simple jobs to bring some sort of income into their home. There was a huge decline of food prices, but many families did without things like milk and meat and unless they could grow their food they would not buy it. In order to save the little money that they had many families started ignoring medical care, began growing and producing their own food, canning the food that they grew, and buying used bread. Although the women were able to bring a small amount of money home with them, something was better than nothing in this case. The average family income had tumbled to 40 percent, from $2,3... ... middle of paper ... ...y. Lincoln: U of Nebraska, 1984. Print. 2. Article a. Federico, Giovanni. "Not Guilty? Agriculture in the 1920s and the Great Depression." The Journal of Economic History 65.4 (Dec 2005): 949-976. History Study Center. Web. 5 May 2014. 3. Books a. .Gerdes, Louise I. The Crash of 1929. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 2002. Print. b. Nardo, Don. The Great Depression. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 2000. Print. c. d.Nishi, Dennis. The Great Depression. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven, 2001. Print. 4. Other Sources a. "The Great Depression." The Great Depression. Web. 04 Mar. 2014. b. "American Experience: TV's Most-watched History Series." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014. c. "Digital History." Digital History. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Mar. 2014. d. "Farmers Grow Angry and Desperate." The Great Depression Hits Farms and Cities in the 1930s « Iowa Pathways. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Mar. 2014.
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Show MoreThe young, recently married farmers living in the Great Plains during the 1930s had a terrible life. First off, being married meant having multiple people to provide for. This is more responsibility, and leads to dividing up the food between family members. Then, the country was also in an economic downturn, so the price of food and crops were low. Farmers already had debt because of new machines and land that was purchased during World War I to keep up with the demand during the war. Then the depression caused banks to fail, so farmers lost all their money that was in the bank. Everyday life was treacherous, and there were few amenities in the home, with no plumbing or electricity. Life was awful for a farmer during the Great Depression.
Hard Times’ ‘The Dirty 30s’ ‘The Great Depression’ (Ganzel n. pag.)This quote describes so much about 1930’s especially farming. Farming was hard because there was a really bad drought. Was out they rain no crops could grow. And the crops can't hold the soil together and not blow away. Which was really bad for the soil to blow away. Also the farmers didn't know that the equipment they were using would tear up the soil too much and it would blow away. The farming in the 1930s was bad because of the dust bowl and the price of everything was low.
The Roaring Twenties approached and the citizens in Colorado were facing rough times. In 1920, many people such as farm owners, manufacturers, and even miners were having a hard time making a living due to an economic downfall. The farmers especially, where facing the toughest of times. The price of various farm-grown goods like wheat, sugar beets, and even cattle was dropping because their goods were no longer needed by the public. Wheat had dropped in price from $2.02 in 1918 to $0.76 by the time 1921 came around. Sadly, the land that they were using to grow wheat became dry and many farmers had to learn to grow through “dryland farming” which became very popular in the eastern plains from 1910 to 1930 (Hard Times: 1920 - 1940). Apple trees began to die due to the lack of desire for apples, poor land, and decreased prices. Over the course of World War I, the prices of farm goods began to increase slowly. Farmers were not the only one facing this economic hardship while others in big cities were enjoying the Roaring Twenties.
The Great Depression began in October of 1929 when the stock values in the United States dropped rapidly. Thousands of stockholders lost large sums of money-or were even wiped out. Many people had to depend on the government or charity for food. Many of the stories about the Depression have been told about the large cities and their struggles to live a life of poverty after being used to the luxurious lifestyle. However, those accounts do not reflect the true damage caused by this economic plunge. The many "country folk" that inhabit the area around Tennessee had a somewhat different recollection of this time period. The stories told by the people who had lost all of their money in the stock market are stories of doom and despair, but those told by the people who didn't have anything to begin with are filled with memories of family and friends helping one another in a time of need. In a personal interview with my grandmother, Vergie Matherly (eighty-seven years old) whom I call "Nanny", I learned first-hand what the Depression was like in a small community located in a very isolated area. Her accounts of family struggle seem to dwarf those accounts of the rich tycoons who lost it all in the stock market. A book entitled Stories and Recipes of the Great Depression of the 1930's contains several pages of anecdotes written by various people who lived in small towns during this time. This book goes hand in hand with the memories of my Nanny.
The period between 1880 and 1900 was a boom time for American Politics. The country was finally free of the threat of war, and many of its citizens were living comfortably. However, as these two decades went by, the American farmer found it harder and harder to live comfortably. Crops such as cotton and wheat, once the sustenance of the agriculture industry, were selling at prices so low that it was nearly impossible for farmers to make a profit off them. Furthermore, improvement in transportation allowed foreign competition to materialize, making it harder for American farmers to dispose of surplus crop. Mother Nature was also showing no mercy with grasshoppers, floods, and major droughts that led to a downward spiral of business that devastated many of the nation’s farmers. As a result of the agricultural depression, numerous farms groups, most notably the Populist Party, arose to fight what the farmers saw as the reasons for the decline in agriculture. During the final twenty years of the nineteenth century, many farmers in the United States saw monopolies and trusts, railroads, and money shortages and the loss in value of silver as threats to their way of life, all of which could be recognized as valid complaints.
During The Great Depression, people had to find ways to save money on even the bare necessities. One example of this was the widespread use of vacant lots, and land provided bythe cities to grow food. Americans now had to live in the manner of their ancestors, making their own clothing, growing their own food, and agai...
What do you think water soup with a few potatoes in it tastes like? Or can you imagine living in a world without toilet paper? Well, this was life during the great depression. It began at the end of the 1920s, the entire nation suffered the most dramatic economic disaster during the period 1929–1933. Unemployment rose from a shocking 5 million in 1930 to an almost unbelievable 13 million by the end of 1932. It would be rural America that would suffer the greatest. Unemployed fathers saw children hired for substandard wages. In 1930, 2.25 million boys and girls ages 10–18 worked in factories, canneries, mines, and on farms. Children left school to support their families. Life for the people through the great depression was devastating and restricting.
The Great Depression was the longest lasting economic downturn; lasting from 1929-1939. Not long after the stock market crash of October 1929 the Great Depression followed, this sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. Consumer spending and investment dropped dramatically over the next few years. This caused steep declines in industrial output and rising levels of unemployment as failing companies laid off workers. By March 1930, more than 3.2 million people are unemployed. By November 1930 New York City streets were crowded with unemployed people trying to make money by selling apples for five cents a piece, called Apple-Sellers. According to American Experience, the inequality of the rich vs. the poor, merged with the non-stop production of goods and the rising personal debt of many citizens, things could no longer be supported. President at the time, Herbert Hoover, underestimated how serious the situation actually was and called it, “a passing incident in our national lives.” and was certain that this would pass within the next 6...
The Great Depression is known to be the most worldwide depression of the entire twentieth century. It is well known and still studied today in history. The Great Depression was cause when the stock market crashed in the late 1920s. Before the Great Depression everything appeared to be going well and poverty was at a high in the twenties in which was referred to the roaring twenties. The Great Depression started on October 29, 1929, which is the day the stock market collapsed. This day is referred to as Black Tuesday. To the horrors of many people, this Depression lasted a full decade shocking everyone on how a once stabile economy can go from prosperity to nothing overnight. People have attributed the Great Depression as
Gorman, Carol. "The Farmer: No Stranger to Hard Times." America's Farm Crisis. New York: F. Watts, 1987. 18-26. Print.
The Great Depression was a long-lasting economic tailspin that began on a day forever known as Black Tuesday (“The Great Depression”). On October 29, 1929, the Great Depression had begun after the country’s stock market, which had been rising rapidly, suddenly crashed (“New Deal.” History). This long depression officially lasted ten years, from 1929-1939 (“The Great Depression”). Many Americans believed it was wiser to to act than do
Most of the reasons concerning agrarian discontent in the late nineteenth century stem from supposed threats posed by monopolies and trusts, railroads, money shortages and the demonetization of silver, though in many cases their complaints were not valid. The American farmer at this time already had his fair share of problems, perhaps even perceived as unfair in regards to the success industrialized businessmen were experiencing. Nevertheless, crops such as cotton and wheat, which were once the staples of an agricultural society, were selling at such low prices that it was nearly impossible for farmers to make a profit off them, especially since some had invested a great deal of money in modern equipment that would allow them to produce twice as many goods. Furthermore, improvements in transportation allowed foreign competition to emerge, making it harder for American Farmers to not only dispose of surplus crop, but to transport crops period. Finally, years of drought in the Midwest and the degeneration of business in the 1890's devastated many of the nation's farmers, and as a result of this agricultural depression' many farm groups, most notably the Populist Party, arose to fight what farmers saw as the reasons for the decline of agriculture.
The 1930’s brought about economic disaster for the United States. Unemployment levels soared to 25%. (SSA) Suddenly there were all types of people who were unable to meet their own needs. People could no longer justify economic failure as moral defects. Economic disaster became so widespread during the Great Depression th...
The Great Depression was hard on all who lived in that time. This paper is based on 3 different events that happened during or after the depression. This article will talk about the life of a child in the city, a child of a farmer, and a political view of the Great Depression. The Depression started in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s. The stock market crashed and families were plunged into debt. Families that couldn’t pay off debt were put in a crisis as they had to pay off the debt or lose their home and property. The first character I will tell you about is about a young boy in a city, with the Great Depression raging all around him.
The Great Depression was the deepest and longest-lasting economic downfall in the history of the United Sates. No event has yet to rival The Great Depression to the present day today although we have had recessions in the past, and some economic panics, fears. Thankfully the United States of America has had its shares of experiences from the foundation of this country and throughout its growth many economic crises have occurred. In the United States, the Great Depression began soon after the stock market crash of October 1929, which sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors ("The Great Depression."). In turn from this single tragic event, numerous amounts of chain reactions occurred.