Great Depression Study Guide



Great Depression Study Guide Name___Key________

Ch. 25 American History

Use your Thinking Maps to help you answer the following questions OR answer them thoroughly in complete sentences ON A SEPARATE PIECE OF PAPER.

Section 1 – Economic Collapse ( pp.776-781)

1. Give sufficient and related details how the 1920’s prosperity affected different social groups in the U.S.

The 1920’s prosperity affected basic industries and they had improved efficiency and produced more goods. Incomes of the middle class & poor were not rising to be able to purchase the products. They piled up in the warehouses and went unsold – hurting businesses. Farmers were in debt & affected by low food prices. African Americans had high jobless rates and many people bought things on credit, including investors buying stocks on speculation. If stock prices went down, people would not be able to pay their loans and this affected all including those who were rich.

2. What were the causes and effects of crash of 1929 and the Great Depression? (chart p. 779)

The signs were: that key industries struggled and products went unsold, farmers faced growing debts, and Americans used credit to make purchases beyond their means.

Then, a massive financial panic led to Black Tuesday (October 29, 1929) resulted from people selling their stocks when prices dropped sharply. The economy worsened, when during the two-month period in September and October 1929, stocks went from being worth a fortune to worthless. Investors panicked and sold or tried to sell before going bankrupt. The worst day was “Black Tuesday” when many lost their life savings. In the following 5 months, banks closed - they had run out of cash due to masses of people trying to withdraw savings and ran out of money. People could not afford to buy products, and businesses laid off or fired millions of workers, who were now unemployed.

3. Identify the reasons Herbert Hoover become unpopular as President.

People felt Hoover should have done more to help during the Depression and halt the effects through social and economic reform, but he believed in limiting the government’s role in controlling the economy. He urged churches and private charities to help. He did create some public works projects, but it was too little, too late. Also, he lost favor with the attacks on the Bonus Army-WWI vets asking for early payments of bonuses for wartime service. It was voted down, and McArthur’s troops attacked the Bonus Army with tear gas and bayonets. Hoover was blamed.

Section 2 - Roosevelt and the New Deal (pp. 784-791)

4. List and elaborate the three goals of the New Deal.

The goals of FDR’s 1st New Deal were to create programs that provided relief to the needy, recovery for agriculture & industry, and reform for the economy.

5. Identify the purpose of the Twentieth Amendment.

The purpose of the 20th Amendment was to move the Presidential inauguration date from March to Jan. 20 (or so). Presidents no longer had to wait 4 months to take office.

6. Give sufficient and related details regarding the following New Deal Programs: TVA, CCC, and WPA.

TVA- 1933, 29 hydroelectric dams created in Tennessee Valley to provide cheap electricity to millions of customers, control floods with TVA dams & reservoirs and provided water for reforestation. It also created thousands of jobs.

CCC- Civilian Conservation Corps – hired young men to work on other

conservation projects such as planting trees

WPA- Works Progress Administration – Established national works

programs to create jobs.

7. List and elaborate on how the Social Security Act reflected the goals of FDR’s Second New Deal.

The Social Security Act focused on social and economic reform to provide aid to the elderly, unemployed, and disabled. It offered workers unemployment insurance & retirement benefits. As people worked – small amounts of each paycheck go into a fund and the employer matches it. When people retire they receive a pension from the government. It also helped the disabled, low-income elderly and families with dependent children. The act also gave a small monthly payment to the unemployed while they looked for work.

8. Define the reasons that led to the slowdown of the Second New Deal.

In 1935 the Supreme Court struck down laws saying they gave too much power to the federal government by controlling the economy. Their actions threatened the New Deal, so FDR tried to pack the Supreme Court (this means add more justices – raise the number from 9 to 15) with his supporters. Congress voted this down, but caused FDR to loose supporters because of his tactics. By 1937 FDR became concerned about the use deficit spending or using borrowed money to spend on government programs. In 1937, he thought he could cut back on programs to reduce the deficit. He was wrong and the economy took another downturn and would not recover until WWII.

Section 3 – Effects of the Depression and New Deal (pp. 792-799)

9. Define the hardships the Great Depression brought to Americans.

The hardships people endure during the Great Depression included high unemployment, loss of homes, not being able to afford food, children leaving school to go to work, women giving up jobs to men and taking lower paying ones that no one wanted, and others leaving families behind to find work. In the central part of the U.S., due to farming & grazing practices, the land was damaged by destroying natural grasses whose roots anchored the soil. Winds picked up the dirt in KS, OK, TX, CO & NM and created dust storms that damaged the farms. This area was known as the Dust Bowl. Farmers loaded belongings drove west to find work. Heard CA farms needed workers. By 1940 2.5 million went to CA & Pacific coast states.

10. Give sufficient and related details concerning the legacies of Roosevelt’s New Deal.

A. The New Deal made the president and federal government more powerful.

B. Started disputes between liberals and conservatives regarding the role of government.

C. The New Deal also created many programs that still exist today such as Social Security: considered one of the most important laws of the Second New Deal. SS helps poor, and aged. The FDIC (insures bank deposits up to $250,000(today) and replaces deposits if banks fail) .

D. The SEC: makes sure companies and individuals follow fair practices for buying and selling stock.

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