The great depression and the New Deal

Hoover’s reaction to the crash

Believed the economy would fix itself; limited government help, relied on volunteerism.

Causes of the stock market crash

Over-speculation, bring on margin, uneven wealth, overproduction, weak banks.

Black Thursday

October 24, 1929; massive stock sell-off begins the crash

Dow Jones Industrial Average

Index measuring stock prices of major U.S. companies.

GNP

 Gross National Product; total value of goods and services produced by a country.

CCC

 Civilian Conservation Corps; gave young men jobs in environmental projects.

TVA

Tennessee Valley Authority; provided electricity, flood control, and jobs in the South.

WPA

Works Progress Administration; created jobs building roads, schools, and public buildings.

AAA

Agricultural Adjustment Act; paid farmers to reduce production to raise prices.

FERA

Federal Emergency Relief Administration; gave direct aid to states for the unemployed.

NRA

National Recovery Administration; set codes for wages, prices, and working conditions.

Brain trust

Group of FDR’s advisors who helped design New Deal programs.

American Federation of Labor

Labor union for skilled workers

court packing

 FDR’s plan to add Supreme Court justices to support New Deal laws.

Deficit spending

 Government spends more than it collects to stimulate the economy.

Eleanor Roosevelt

First Lady; active advocate for civil rights and the poor.

Mary McLeod Bethune

African American educator; adviser to FDR on minority issues.

Harold Ickes

Secretary of the Interior; managed public works projects.

Charles Coughlin

 Radio priest who criticized FDR and demanded economic reforms.

Huey Long

Senator who proposed the “Share Our Wealth” plan.

Frances Perkins

Secretary of Labor; helped create Social Security and labor reforms.

Harry Hopkins

New Deal administrator; ran relief programs like the WPA.

Frances Townsend

Proposed pensions for the elderly funded by a sales tax.

Alfred Landon

Republican candidate who lost to FDR in 1936.

“Hundred Days”

First 100 days of FDR’s presidency; major New Deal legislation passed.

Glass-Steagall Act

Separated commercial and investment banking; created FDIC.

Dust Bowl

Severe drought and dust storms that ruined Great Plains farms.

George W. Norris

Senator who supported New Deal reforms and the TVA.

Fireside chats

FDR’s radio talks to reassure and inform the public.

20th Amendment

Shortened the time between election and inauguration from March to January

Securities and Exchange Commission

Regulated the stock market to prevent fraud.

Social Security

Program providing pensions for the elderly and unemployed.

American Liberty League

conservative group opposed to the New Deal.

Justice Roberts

Supreme Court justice who helped uphold New Deal laws later on.

Schechter case

Supreme Court case that struck down the NRA.

The Grapes of Wrath

Novel by John Steinbeck about Dust Bowl migrant families.