The Plight of Ordinary People during the Great Depression

969 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: american farmers during the great depression free essays

The Great Depression touched people at every race and income level. It seemed no one was exempt from the emotional and economic toll of the downturn. Lives were turned upside down, and many did not know how to cope. With the financial collapse, kids lost their college funds, and families lost their homes. Families had to resort to making shelter any way they could. Communities were erected in almost every state that consisted of shelters made of crates and metal sheets; these communities were known as “Hoovervilles” (Leuchtenburg, pg. 251). Others would seek refuge in caves, subways, and under bridges (Leuchtenburg, pg. 252). The life savings of many were lost before anyone could comprehend what was happening.

Many businesses also felt the impact of the depression, as funding dried up businesses closed their doors (Kennedy, pg. 163). Iron and Steel production slowed to levels never before seen (Kennedy, pg. 163). Industries like construction and automobile were hit hard, as well as the companies that supplied them (Kennedy, pg. 163). Farmers in rural America were displaced by drought and falling crop prices. Things were so difficult that the only alternative was to pack up their belongings and move to other states in search for work (FDR and the Depression video).

Men and women suffered from unemployment and reduced wages (Kennedy, pg. 163). The average demographic of the person on relief were white males in their thirties usually unskilled and uneducated (Kennedy, pg. 166). Job loss for many lasted for two years or more, which resulted in emotional stress and a loss of self-respect (Kennedy, pg. 166). They felt their wives and children did not revere them as they once did as they loss their place as provider an...

... middle of paper ...

... to colored people and does not hate them. You know as well as I do that a lot of the white people hate the colored people, so I couldn't ask just anybody like a white girl could…”

("Letters: Requests for Money ").

The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 was the New Deal for the Indian nation. The new policy was intended to ease the injustices that the Indians suffered at the hands of government. It was intended to stop the practice of forcing Indians to assimilate into western society (erasing their Indian identity and culture), as well as forcing them to live on reservations that were too small to sustain them (Kennedy, pg. 379).

Human suffering penetrated every part of society and affected the lives of millions either directly or indirectly. The depression grew deeper and lasted longer than anyone could have predicted.

Show More
Related

  • Loss of Identity Throughout the Great Depression

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    McElvaine, Robert S., ed. 1983. Down & out in the great depression: Letters from the forgotten man. Twenty-fifth Anniversary ed. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

    Read More

  • America, the Great Depression, and The Cinderella Man

    1787 Words  | 4 Pages

    "Social and Cultural Effects of the Depression." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, n.d. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.

    Read More

  • Down And Out In The Great Depression

    1337 Words  | 3 Pages

    McElvaine, Robert S, ed. Down and Out in the Great Depression: Letters from the Forgotten Man. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1983.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of The Great Depression And Hoovervilles

    1010 Words  | 3 Pages

    The ten year span of the Great Depression showed families how to live without a stable home or even going to bed without dinner some nights. First off, many people living in the 1930’s were unemployed and homeless, causing them to live in Hoovervilles. The citizens living in Hoovervilles lived unsanitary lives and often faced hunger. In fact, Hoovervilles were built out of unwanted material and provided little shelter. Many put all the blame on the then president, Herbert Hoover, when he refused to help his people through this life changing event. The comparison of Hoover and his poor decisions often got compared to the poor situations that his people had to live in. Hoover should no support during his presidency. Therefore, life during the

    Read More

  • Grandama's Memories of the Great Depression

    1176 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Farmers During The Great Depression

    977 Words  | 2 Pages

    Farmers were greatly affected by The Great Depression. In the early 1930’s prices dropped so low that many farmers went bankrupt and lost their farms (“The Great Depression hits farms and cities in the 1930’s”). The stock market crash prevented the farmers from being able to sell their produce (McCabe). Through the depression farmers were still producing more food than consumers were buy, and now the consumers could buy even less. Farm produce prices fell even lower (“The Depression for Farmers”). Some farm families started burning corn rather than coal in their stoves because the corn was cheaper (“The Great Depression hits farms and cities in the 1930s”). Non-farmers had also been hit hard by the depression. With the banks failing and businesses closing, over fifteen million people became unemployed (“The Great Depression”). The unemployment rate skyrocketed from three percent to nearly twenty five percent (McCabe). The Great Depression brought a rapid rise in the crime rate as many unemployed workers restored to petty theft to put food on the table. Suicide rates rose greatly as did recorded cases of malnutrition (“Social and Cultural Effects of the Depression”). More and more people were found standing in bread lines, hungry and homeless (McCabe). The depression affected people and businesses but many programs later America pulled out of their

    Read More

  • Essay On Films During The Great Depression

    528 Words  | 2 Pages

    Watching films from the Great Depression era today, we can see how people survived and made a living during the crisis. Everyone’s common goal was to find work and would do whatever they could to be able to provide for their families and themselves. Work could be very demanding when trying to make a pretty penny. Some ways people made a living was by working in a factory, as shown in Chaplin’s Modern Times, or in a more dangerous way of the ...

    Read More

  • Great Depression On American People Essay

    1200 Words  | 3 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • The Impact of the Great Depression on Black Americans

    1152 Words  | 3 Pages

    People, especially blacks, were being put out of work everywhere; the wave of depression had hit the entire country. Banks were failing, and the cities, in a desperate attempt to provide relief, were running out of money. Because President Hoover was confident that business conditions would soon improve, federal funds were not used to provide relief; relief was the responsibility of private charities. City allowances soon ran out, and there was no money left. Pennies were used to buy food and fuel. Many people went without food in order to p...

    Read More

  • A 360 View on Life During the Great Depression

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Homeless People During The Great Depression

    549 Words  | 2 Pages

    Unemployment hit half the population like a train and they couldn’t do anything but sit and wait. Slowly jobs were getting hard to find, people started to lose the little that they had. Lines of men filled the streets for an opportunity to fill out papers for any job. They didn’t care what it was the time was bad and a job was a job to help the family that they had. With everything that started happening the economy was just not getting any better. The impact of the depression had been just 25% of the population without jobs or any money coming on, that was so much and affect more than anyone can think of. This created so many global problems and people knew it. Many people strongly think that unemployment was one of the biggest impacts of that era and by the looks of it certainly

    Read More

  • The Golden Era of Labor

    1530 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Depression Era was a period of major strife brought about by speculation and largely unregulated business practices. Almost everyone in the United States was affected, even many citizens of other countries around the world, but the working poor were disproportionately affected. Both Farmers and Workers experienced anti-union sentiment since before the turn of the century, and were subject to extremely hazardous working conditions, low wages, and in the case of farmers, many accumulated mass debt to decreasing prices of produce. While the Great Depression led to the unnecessary suffering of the working poor, it also led to many great successes by the work of the labor movement, which went on to benefit future generations and begin a legacy that continues today.

    Read More

  • The Great Depression´s Impact on Gender Roles

    1474 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Great Depression caused a great deal of impacts on society but by far the workforce took the hardest hit. Through this economic downturn, there was a drastic shift, the traditional aspects that were once reflected in society were now slowly fading away. Male dominated jobs were decreasing because of the emergence of industrialization. Many workers were now out of a job, because companies could now make more money using machinery and cutting back on workers (Saskatchewan History, 211). The stress of not being able to find work forced men to abandon their families. Many lived the life of a “hobo”, missioning around Canada to find work and having a heavy reliance on refuge camps and soup kitche...

    Read More

  • History Of Welfare Essay

    1155 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States has provided food, shelter and education for the past 75 years. When the Great Depression hit many families suffered. It was estimated that one-fourth of the labor workforce was unemployed during the hardest time of the depression. Many families were living in poverty and needed assistance in order to live through the hard time many were faced...

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Jack Kerouac's On The Road

    1591 Words  | 4 Pages

    Having this Second World War behind them, Americans now had different worries pestering at their lives. For one thing, even though it was almost a decade behind them, memories and thoughts of the Great Depression still lingered in the minds of many Americans. Scared of...

    Read More

More about The Plight of Ordinary People during the Great Depression

Open Document