Unit 9 # 1 (c)

Black Tuesday

Black Tuesday

October 29th, 1929;

• the worst stock market crash that ever occurred in the United States.

• The industrial index dropped by 43% within the week.

• This occurrence helped cause a 4 year long depression in the United States.

War Debt

European nations had debts to pay off to a variety of other countries from World War I which made the nations start to only buy products locally in order to save money.

• This caused American exports to sharply decline which helped increase the severity of the Great Depression because America no longer had a substantial foreign market.

• It also spread an economic depression across Europe.

Breadlines

Lines extending from soup kitchens and poverty support systems like Red Cross and Salvation Army kitchens that would provide meager amounts of food to the extremely poor and homeless.

Dust Bowl

A severe drought period in the Great Plains that prevented many farmers from being able to grow crops.

• Rainfall became extremely scarce, heat waves became prevalent, insects devoured crops, and dust storms increased in severity.

Okies

Farmers that left areas effected by the Dust Bowl in order to find work in more populated areas.

• They usually were paid extremely low wages at farms by harvesting crops and found conditions in these areas not much better than their conditions in the Dust Bowl.

Shantytowns

Unplanned and unorganized slum developments that were created by the millions of homeless in America during the Great Depression.

• These developments were created from garbage and spare parts.

Scottsboro Case

Nine African American teenagers were accused of raping two white women in Alabama.

• There was substantial proof that neither of the women were raped, but the boys' court case was conducted by an all white jury who sentenced all but one of them to death.

• This trial shows the intensity of racism throughout the United States during this time period.

Dale Carnegie

The author of "How to Win Friends and Influence People" that told people that the key to success is personal initiative and in order to get ahead in life, a person needs to fit in and make others feel good about themselves.

Orson Wells

The director of "War of Worlds" which was a radio broadcast that created a massive panic within the American population.

• This broadcast was a radio adaptation of the novel "War of Worlds" which is about an alien invasion of New Jersey.

• The nation believed the incident was real and ongoing and much of the public became terrified.

Marx Brothers

A group of siblings that provided comedic films to the American public in order to distract the population from the events of the Great Depression.

• Most of the films were about the unsuccessful attempts of Americans to get rich quick.

Frank Capra

Director of films like "It's a Wonderful Life", "It Happened One Night", and Mr. Deeds Goes To Town".

• He expressed how the simple values of life were the most important and that greed and desire are worth nothing if family and friends are lost.

• He, along with Walt Disney and the government, also influenced soldiers in World War II to fight for the right cause.

Walt Disney

An American filmmaker that dominated the cartoon and child entertainment industry with his new an creative characters like Mickey Mouse and Snow White.

Spanish Civil War

Fascists led by Francisco Franco that were supported by Hitler and Mussolini were trying to overthrow the Spanish Republic.

• This war was seen by Americans as a war worth fighting for in order to help the Republic and destroy fascism.

• Many American supporters of the war were liberals.

Life Magazine

A photographic magazine that focused heavily on sports, natural scenery, and urban life rather than politics.

• It was seen as an escape for Americans from the Great Depression.

John Steinbeck

Author of "The Grapes of Wrath" that portrayed the difficulties many Americans have gone through during the Dust Bowl and Great Depression.

• This book emphasized on the importance of endurance through hard times and the importance of community.

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

A government agency created by Herbert Hoover that was responsible for providing federal loans to struggling banks, railroads, and other important businesses.

• it also made funds for public works programs.

The Bonus March

A large group of World War I veterans that marched into Washington D.C. in order to receive their checks for fighting in the war.

• The government did not have their checks and President Hoover ordered the veterans to be removed by the military.

• The military then intimidated the veterans and ran them out of the capitol which spelled the end of President Hoover's reputation.

Election of 1932

Election between Democrat Franklin D Roosevelt and Republican Herbert Hoover; Roosevelt's previous involvement as New York governor was perceived as positive while Hoover's reputation was basically in shambles.

• Roosevelt easily won and became the 32nd President of the United States.