HUSH2 Great Depression

Great Depression

Severe economic crisis beginning in 1929, marked by unemployment, poverty, and bank failures.

Stock Market Crash of 1929

Collapse of stock prices in October 1929 that helped trigger the Great Depression.

Black Tuesday

October 29, 1929, when massive stock selling caused the market to crash.

Buying on Margin

Buying stocks with borrowed money, increasing losses when prices fall.

Bank Failures

Banks closing after losing money or being unable to return depositors’ savings.

Hawley-Smoot Tariff

1930 law raising taxes on imports; other countries retaliated, reducing international trade.

Overproduction

Producing more goods than consumers can afford to buy.

Underconsumption

Consumers lacking enough money to purchase available goods.

Uneven Distribution of Wealth

Wealth concentrated among a small portion of the population.

Unemployment

Lack of available jobs; reached about 25% in 1933.

Breadlines / Soup Kitchens

Places providing free food to people experiencing poverty.

Hoovervilles

Makeshift homeless settlements named sarcastically after President Herbert Hoover.

Dust Bowl

Severe drought and dust storms in the 1930s that devastated Great Plains agriculture.

Okies

Dust Bowl migrants, especially Oklahomans, who moved west seeking work.

Bonus Army

WWI veterans who demanded early payment of their bonuses in 1932; Hoover ordered their removal.

Herbert Hoover

President from 1929–1933 who favored limited direct federal relief.

Rugged Individualism

Hoover’s belief in personal responsibility, self-reliance, and limited government assistance.

Volunteerism

Hoover’s approach encouraging businesses and charities to voluntarily help those in need.

Depression-era Migration

Movement of Americans, especially Dust Bowl farmers, westward seeking jobs.

Escapism (Radio, Film)

Using entertainment like radio and movies to temporarily escape Depression hardships.

Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR)

President from 1933–1945 who introduced the New Deal.

New Deal

FDR’s programs designed to provide relief, promote economic recovery, and reform the economy.

First Hundred Days

FDR’s first 100 days in office, when Congress rapidly passed major New Deal laws.

Fireside Chats

FDR’s radio broadcasts explaining his policies and reassuring Americans.

Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)

Paid farmers to reduce production to raise crop prices and farm incomes.

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

Employed young men in conservation projects like planting trees and building parks.

National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)

1933 law establishing industrial regulations and public works programs; later ruled unconstitutional.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Built dams and provided electricity, flood control, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

Insures eligible bank deposits to protect customers if banks fail.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Regulates the stock market and protects investors from fraud.

Social Security Act

1935 law establishing retirement pensions, unemployment insurance, and assistance for certain vulnerable groups.

Wagner Act

1935 law protecting workers’ rights to form unions and bargain collectively.

Huey Long

Louisiana politician who proposed redistributing wealth through his Share Our Wealth program.

Father Charles Coughlin

Radio priest who criticized FDR and promoted controversial economic and political views.

Dr. Francis Townsend

Proposed monthly pensions for Americans over 60 to stimulate the economy.

Court Packing Plan

FDR’s 1937 proposal to add Supreme Court justices, which Congress rejected.

Dust Bowl (Repeated Term)

Drought and poor farming practices caused severe soil erosion and forced many Great Plains families to migrate.

Black Cabinet

Informal group of African American advisers who influenced FDR’s policies on racial issues.

Indian Reorganization Act

1934 law that ended further Native American land allotment and encouraged tribal self-government.

Dorothea Lange

Photographer who documented Depression-era poverty, including the famous Migrant Mother photograph.

John Steinbeck

Author of The Grapes of Wrath, a novel about Dust Bowl migrants and their struggles in California.