The Jazz Age

The Great Depression

the worst economic downturn, lasting from 1929 to 1939 and characterized by severe consequences

President Hoover

31st U.S president famous for his humanitarian effort and his presidency dominated by the Great Depression

Stock Market Overspeculation

when investors buy assets often, borrowing money with the belief that prices will continue to rise rapidly, regardless of the underlying fundamental values of the asset

Black Tuesday (October 29,1929)

The day the stock market crashed

Buying on Margin

purchasing stocks by paying a small percentage of the prices and borrowing the rest from a broker

Bank Run

when many customers withdraw their money from a bank at once due to fears that the bank will fail

Overproduction

producing more goods than consumers can buy, creating a surplus that leads to falling pieces

“Easy Money”- Installment buying

a method that let consumers buy expensive goods with small down payments and regular, scheduled payments overtime

Uneven distribution of Wealth

when assets, income and resources aren’t shared fairly, concentrating wealth in a few hands while many have little

Tariffs

taxes imposed by one country on goods and services imported from another country

Economic Dislocation

severe disruption of established economic livelihoods, processes, or systems resulting in social consequences

Hoboes

a migrant who traveled by hopping freight trains seeking temporary jobs

“Hooverville”

makeshift shanty towns built by homeless and unemployed during the Great Depression

“Dust Bowl”

severe dust storms and drought that ravaged the Great Plains in the 1930s

“Okies”

impoverished migrant agricultural workers from Oklahoma who moved to Western states seeking work

John Steinbeck “The Grapes of Wrath”

is a novel that depicts the struggles of a family during the Great Depression, focusing on the hardships faced by "Okies" moving to California

Dorothea Lang

was a pioneering documentary photographer famous for her powerful images of hardship during the Great Depression

Public Works Projects

government funded projects for essential infrastructure benefiting the public

“Rugged Individualism”

a core American belief in self-reliance, personal responsibility, and minimal government intervention

National Credit Corporation

a short-lived U.S federal agency from 1931 created during the Great Depression to lend money to struggling banks

Reconstruction Finance Corporation

a U.S government agency created in 1932 during the Great Depression to provide emergency loans to banks, railroads and other businesses

“Bonus Army”

a group of about 20,000 WWI veterans, their families, and supporters who marched on Washington D.C to demand early payment of cash bonuses

“The New Deal”

was a series of programs and reforms to combat the Great Depression through Relief, Recovery, and Reform

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR)

was the 32nd U.S president, who led America through the Great Depression with his New Deal programs

Gold Standard

was a monetary system where the dollar’s value was fixed to a specific amount of gold

Bank Holidays

a nationwide closer of all banks to stop massive withdrawals, stabilize financial systems, and restore public confidence

Emergency Banking Relief Act

a crucial New Deal Law to stabilize the collapsing U.S banking system by authorizing a national “bank holiday”

“Fireside Chats”

informal radio addresses by F.D.R using simple language to explain policies and offer reassurance

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

a U.S government agency that maintained financial system stability by insuring bank deposits

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

created to regulate financial market, restore investor confidence, and prevent fraud through mandatory disclosure and oversight

Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)

paid farmers subsides to reduce crop surpluses, aiming to raise depressed agricultural prices

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

a U.S federal corporation managing the Tennessee River system for flood control, navigation, and recreation

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

was a New Deal program created to provide jobs for young unemployed men in conservation projects

Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)

a critical New Deal program to combat Great Depression suffering by providing federal funds to states for direct relief and work projects for unemployed individuals

Public Works Administration (PWA)

was a major New Deal agency created to combat the Great Depression by funding large scale public construction projects

Civil Works Administration (CWA)

was a short-term New Deal program to provide immediate employment for millions of Americans through public works.

Deficit Spending

occurs when a government’s expenditures exceed its revenues (primarily tax collections) during a specific fiscal period, requiring it to borrow money to cover the difference

Father Charles Coughlin

was a controversial Catholic priest and "Radio Priest" who became a powerful voice during the Great Depression, using radio to reach millions with populist economic messages, advocating for wealth redistribution and government control of banking, but later turning to virulent anti-Semitism, fascism, and conspiracy theories, leading to his silencing by the Catholic Church and the government.

Huey P. Long

known for his "Share Our Wealth" program during the Great Depression. He championed the poor against corporations, advocating wealth redistribution, while building a powerful,, and often controversial, political machine in Louisiana

Dr Francis Townsend

American physician and political activist in California. In 1933, he devised an old-age pension scheme to help alleviate the Great Depression.

Works Progress Administration (WPA)

was a major American New Deal agency created by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935 to combat high unemployment during the Great Depression

Wagner Act

part of FDR’s New Deal, is a landmark U.S. federal law that guaranteed private-sector employees the right to organize unions, engage in collective bargaining, and take collective action

Sit- Down Strikes

a form of industrial protest where workers stop working and occupy their workplace—such as a factory or assembly line—refusing to leave until their demands are met.

Social Security Act

refers to the federal social insurance program established by the Social Security Act of 1935, primarily to provide financial security for the elderly, unemployed, and disadvantaged, funded by payroll taxes and administered by the Social Security Administration

Court- Packing

refers to the political strategy of increasing the number of Supreme Court justices—set at nine since 1869—to alter its ideological balance.

Keynesianism

argues that government intervention, especially during downturns, is crucial to stabilize economies by boosting aggregate demand through spending and tax cuts, combating recessions, and reducing unemployment

Broker State

refers to the federal government, particularly after the New Deal, acting as a mediator or broker between competing economic interest groups to manage conflicts and distribute benefits, establishing a new role for government in economic regulation and social welfare

Safety Net

a collection of government programs and policies designed to protect individuals and households from economic hardship, poverty, and crises

What were the cause of the “Great Depression?”

• economic dislocation caused by WWI

• excessive borrowing and failure of the U.S government to regulate banks and the stock market

• inevitable as a result of the “business cycle”

• uneven distribution of income

• “Easy money” - installment buying

What was the “dust bowl?”

• a severe, decade-long ecological and agricultural disaster in the 1930s (roughly 1931–1939) caused by extreme drought and poor farming practices, which turned the Great Plains into a desert.

Who were the “Okies?”

• primarily poor, white, Southwestern agricultural families who migrated to California during the 1930s to escape the Dust Bowl and Great Depression

What were the causes of the “Stock Market Crash” of October 1929?

• problems with speculation and buying on margin

• over speculation

• “Black Tuesday” October 29,1929

What where President Hoover’s attempts to alleviate the problems of the “Great Depression?”

• “Rugged Individualism” and refusal to support Federal direct relief programs

• “Wait and See” attitude

• States were responsible to help, not the federal government

• Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act of 1930

• Voluntary cooperation with employers, labor unions, and private charities

• Limited Federal Public Works Programs

• Reconstruction Finance Corporation

What was the “Bonus March” of 1932?

• Patman Bill and refusal of the U.S Senate to pass the legislation and the President Hoover’s use of U.S Army forces to disperse marchers

How did many Americans find relief from their daily worries about the Great Depression?

millions

What was significant about the Election of 1932?

democrats win the Presidency and gain huge majorities in the House and the Senate

What was the 20th Amendment?

• shortened the time between federal elections and inauguration, moving presidential terms to Jan. 20 and Congress to Jan. 3 to reduce the influence of defeated officials

What was the 21st Amendment?

• repealed the 18th Amendment, officially ending nationwide Prohibition

What were the three goals of Franklin D. Roosevelt?

Relief, Reform, and Recovery

What were Franklin D. Roosevelt’s fireside chats?

Presidential use of radio to announce and gain political support for his “New Deal” programs

What were Franklin D. Roosevelt’s banking and financial policies?

• “Bank Holiday” March, 1933

• Glass-Stegall Banking Act of 1933- created FDIC to protect people’s savings in America’s banks

• Securities and Exchange Commission of 1934 (SEC)- Federal regulatory agency to oversee America’s stock exchange

What were Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Relief Programs?

• CCC, 1933- work relief for young, unemployed males in conservation projects

• CWA, 1933- provided $1 billion in work relief for over 4 million unemployed workers

• WPA, 1935- principal work relief program of the New Deal

What was FDR’s Agricultural Recovery Program?

• AAA, 1938- created an intensive Federal government program of surplus crop subsides quota laws, crop storage and commodity loans, price supports, and crop insurance programs

What is Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Industrial Recovery Program?

• NIRA, 1933- initiated a code of fair business practices to replace business competition with cooperation

• Section 7A, NIRA code- workers guarantee the right to bargain collectively and form unions

• U.S vs. Schechter, 1935- U.S Supreme Court declares the NIRA unconstitutional

What is Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Second “New Deal”?

• Wagner Act, 1935- guaranteed workers’ right to form unions and created the NLRB

• Social Security Act- A federal program to provide old-age pensions, and created a long-term legacy

What were the expansions of Labor Unions in the 1930s?

• FDR’s “New Deal legislation to aid unions

• Use of “sit-down” strikes

What is FDR’s U.S Supreme Court Reform Plan and Controversy?

• packing of the Supreme Court

What is the financing of the “New Deal?”

• Revenue Acts (increased personal and corporate income taxes, gifts, and estates taxes)

• Inflation (devaluation of currency)

• Budget Deficit- Deficit- spending (national debt increased from $16 billion to $40 billion by the end of 1930s)

What are some alternatives and criticisms to the New Deal?

• Criticisms: argued it was either an unconstitutional, socialist expansion of federal power that stifled free enterprise, or an insufficient attempt that failed to solve the Great Depression or aid the poor enough

• Alternatives: radical wealth redistribution to more conservative, market-driven approaches. 

What is the evaluation of the “New Deal” and Legacy?

• Pros: relief and employment, social safety net, financial regulation, infrastructure development, and strengthening labor

• Cons: failure to end depression, economic disruption, expanded bureaucracy, limited impact on inequality, and constitutional concerns

• Legacy: fundamentally shifting the U.S. government toward an active role in economic management and social welfare