Great Depression, 1929-1932 – Study Guide Flashcards

These 30 Question-and-Answer flashcards cover the causes, events, key figures, social impacts, and cultural reflections of the Great Depression and President Hoover’s response, as detailed in the provided lecture notes.

What economic climate of the 1920s set the stage for the 1929 crash?

Easy credit, unequal income distribution, and a culture of speculation and risk-taking that encouraged Americans to buy stocks on margin.

What does buying stock "on margin" mean?

Purchasing shares with a small down payment and borrowed money, hoping rising prices will let the buyer sell before the loan comes due.

What happened on Black Tuesday (October 29, 1929)?

More than 16 million shares were traded and over $14 billion in paper wealth vanished in a single day.

Roughly what percentage of market value disappeared in the month following the crash?

About 40 percent of the stock market’s value was lost.

How did the crash affect banks and borrowers?

Banks demanded repayment of loans; borrowers who could not pay saw their stocks sold and savings wiped out, yet their debts remained.

Define a "bank run."

A large number of depositors withdraw money simultaneously for fear the bank will fail, which actually increases the chance of that failure.

Which two key industries’ slowdown deepened the Depression?

Automobiles and construction.

Name one social change that reflected economic hardship after 1929.

Marriage and birth rates declined as families faced uncertainty and poverty.

About how many children became vagrants during the Depression?

An estimated 200,000 children roamed the country as vagrants.

What philosophy made President Hoover resist direct federal relief?

His belief in American individualism—the idea that hard work and personal initiative, not government aid, should solve problems.

What was the purpose of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) created under Hoover?

To lend federal money to banks and other financial institutions to boost public confidence and stabilize the economy.

Why did the Emergency Relief and Construction Act (1932) provide little help to most Americans?

Hoover limited RFC funds to self-paying public works requiring skilled labor, so few unemployed workers benefited.

What were "Hoovervilles"?

Shantytowns of the homeless named sarcastically after President Hoover.

What were "Hoover blankets" and a "Hoover flag"?

Newspapers used for warmth were "Hoover blankets"; an empty pants pocket turned inside-out was a "Hoover flag."

Who made up the Bonus Army and what did they want?

About 15,000 World War I veterans who marched on Washington in 1932 to demand early payment of their service bonuses.

Which U.S. general led the forced removal of the Bonus Army?

General Douglas MacArthur, assisted by Dwight Eisenhower and George Patton.

What environmental disaster struck the Great Plains in the 1930s?

An eight-year drought and severe dust storms known as the Dust Bowl.

What nickname was given to many Dust Bowl migrants?

"Okies," regardless of whether they actually came from Oklahoma.

How much topsoil was blown away in 1935 alone?

More than 850 million tons of topsoil.

By 1932, what share of African Americans were unemployed?

Roughly one-half of all Black Americans had no job.

How did lynching statistics change between 1932 and 1933?

Documented lynchings rose from eight in 1932 to twenty-eight in 1933.

Which novel and later 1940 film depicted a Dust Bowl family’s trek to California?

John Steinbeck’s "The Grapes of Wrath," filmed by John Ford.

What central lesson about society does "The Grapes of Wrath" convey?

The strength of community and collective action in overcoming individual adversity.

Which director’s movies championed the common man against powerful interests during the Depression?

Frank Capra, in films such as "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939).

What familiar crisis does Capra’s "It’s a Wonderful Life" dramatize?

A bank run threatening a family-owned savings and loan, echoing 1929–1930 panics.

Why did Hoover’s popularity collapse by the 1932 election?

Voters viewed his refusal to provide direct federal aid as indifference to widespread suffering.

How long did the Dust Bowl drought last?

Approximately eight years, beginning in 1931.

What agricultural practices worsened Dust Bowl conditions?

Over-cultivation, abandonment of crop rotation, and failure to let land lie fallow, which stripped the soil of protective vegetation.

What social activity offered many Americans cheap escapism during the Depression?

Going to motion pictures (movies).

In hindsight, why is Hoover’s presidency often criticized despite some achievements?

He failed to act quickly and decisively with large-scale federal relief when the economy collapsed, overshadowing his minor domestic and foreign policy successes.