Great Depression Quiz (22.1 - 22.2)

What was the practice of purchasing stocks with borrowed money called, and why was it risky?

Margin buying. It was risky because if the value of stocks decreased then the people who brought stocks on margin would have no way to pay off the loan.

In what year did the Great Depression officially begin?

1929

What was the nickname given to the day when the stock market collapsed in October 1929?

Black Tuesday

What do we call the practice of buying stocks in hopes of quick profit without thinking about the risks?

Speculation

What name was given to the shantytowns where many homeless families lived during the Depression?

Hoovervilles

Name and briefly explain one major cause of the Great Depression.

Easy Credit/ Buying on Margin. It allowed people to buy goods and stocks using borrowed money (credit/ margin). Those who used it had to eventually pay back their debts to the bank. A lot of people couldn't pay back, impacting the banks to fail.

What challenges did farmers face in the 1920s that led to an agricultural crisis?

As farmers' main income is driven from the sales of food, there was less of demand for food meaning they weren't able to earn any income. By not earning income, they would lose their land as they couldn't pay for it.

Why did the Hawley-Smoot Tariff end up making the Depression worse instead of better?

It aimed to increase demand for US products however it made the Depression worse when foreign countries retaliated by placing tariffs on U.S. imports.

Which region of the United States was hit hardest by the Dust Bowl, and what made life so difficult there?

The Great Plains. Life became difficult as there were dust storms which would have impacted agriculture meaning less food as well as evictions were happening

What states suffered the greatest impact during the Dust Bowl?

Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Colorado.

During the Depression, what percentage of African Americans were unemployed, and how did this compare to white workers?

50% of African Americans were unemployed whilst 25% of White workers were unemployed.

About how many people of Mexican descent were sent back to Mexico (or "repatriated") during the 1930s?

Hundreds of thousands of people were repatriated during the 1930s.

What was the name of the stock market index that investors watched closely to measure economic health?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average

Many farm families lost their land during the Depression — where did a lot of them move in hopes of finding new work?

California

What major global event finally pulled the United States out of the Great Depression?

World War 2

In what ways did the Great Depression change family life and daily routines for Americans?

One way was social and psychological effects . For example, the suicide rate rose by 30% from 1928 to 1932. This could be because they lost their resilience to survive. Additionally, many Americans had to make sacrifices as young people had to work instead of going to college due to the economic problems of the Great Depression.

Explain two causes of the Dust Bowl and how it affected people living in the Great Plains.

Two causes of the Dust Bowl were extended droughts and poor farming. For droughts in the early 1930s, little amounts of grass and few trees were left to hold the soil used for agriculture. For poor farming , farmers had removed the thick protective layer of prairie grasses which then made grasslands unsuitable for farming as they had exhausted the land due to an over-exhaustion of crops.

Describe one way Congress tried to help farmers during the Great Depression, and explain why it did or did not succeed.

Establishing price supports for key products like wheat. The Government would buy surplus crops at guaranteed prices and sell them on the world market. This succeeded as it ensured that they would receive some sort of income.

Why was Herbert Hoover in a stronger position than Alfred Smith during the 1928 presidential election?

appealed to many groups such as women voters, conservative and rural Americans and veterans. He also utilized the radio which helped as many Americans owned one reaching millions of Americans directly in their homes. Also Alfred Smith appealed to immigrants who wouldn't be able to vote due to not having citizenship in the US.

In what year did Black Sunday take place and why is this event significant to the Dust Bowl?

1935. It is significant because it was a part of the Dust Bowl which had darkened the sky in many states such as New York City and Washington DC.

Why did many businesses refuse to hire married women and what did this say about societal expectations of the time?

Many businesses refused to hire married women because they believed they had no right to work when there were unemployed men . This suggests that they adhered to societal norms, where men were expected to provide for the family and women were expected to stay home and be a housewife.