The Great Depression

Great Depression

A severe worldwide economic crisis that began in 1929 & lasted through the 1930s.

Bull Market

A period when stock prices are rising & investors are confident; characterized the 1920s.

Black Tuesday

October 29, 1929, the day the stock market crashed & started the Great Depression.

Herbert Hoover

The 31st U.S. President (1928-1932) during the start of the Great Depression who was criticized for not doing enough.

"Hoovervilles"

Shantytowns built by homeless people during the Great Depression, named sarcastically after President Hoover.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR)

The 32nd U.S. President (1932-1945) who created the New Deal to fight the Great Depression & led the U.S. during WWII.

The New Deal

FDR's economic programs to provide relief, recovery, & reform during the Great Depression.

"Three R's"

The New Deal goals: relief for the needy, recovery for the economy, & reform to prevent future depressions.

Fireside Chats

FDR's radio talks that explained his policies directly to the American people & comforted them.

Alphabet Agencies

The name for government programs created by the New Deal (like the CCC & WPA) to help during the Great Depression.

Dust Bowl

A severe drought & dust storms in the Great Plains during the 1930s that ruined farms.

"Okies"

Nickname for Dust Bowl refugees, especially from Oklahoma, who moved west for work.

Wagner Act (1935)

Law that protected workers' rights to form unions & bargain collectively.

Congress of Industrial Workers (CIO)

A labor union group that organized industrial workers by industry, not skill.

Eleanor Roosevelt

FDR's wife who was a strong supporter of civil rights, women's rights, & the poor.

"Black Cabinet"

A group of African American advisors to FDR during the New Deal era.