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THE GREAT
DEPRESSION
BEGINS

Photos by photographer Dorothea Lange
THE NATION’S SICK ECONOMY
1920s  serious problems threatened the economy while
Important industries struggled

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Agriculture
Railroads
Textiles
Steel
Mining
Lumber
Automobiles
Housing
Consumer goods
FARMERS STRUGGLE

Photo by Dorothea Lange

• No industry suffered as
much as agriculture
• WWI  European
demand for American
crops soared
• After the war demand
plummeted
• Farmers increased
production sending
prices further
downward
CONSUMER SPENDING
DOWN
• Late 1920s  American
consumers were buying less
– Rising prices
– stagnant wages
– overbuying on credit

• Most people did not have the
money to buy the flood of
goods factories produced
GAP BETWEEN RICH & POOR
• The gap between rich
and poor widened
• The wealthiest 1%
saw their income rise
75%
• The rest of the
population saw an
increase of only 9%
Photo by Dorothea Lange
HOOVER WINS
1928 ELECTION
• Republican Herbert Hoover
ran against Democrat
Alfred E. Smith in the 1928
election
• Hoover emphasized years
of prosperity under
Republicans
• Hoover won an
overwhelming victory
Causes of Great Depression
THE STOCK MARKET
• By 1929, many Americans were
invested in the Stock Market
• The Stock Market had become
the most visible symbol of a
prosperous American economy
STOCK PRICES RISE
THROUGH THE 1920s
• Through most of the 1920s,
stock prices rose steadily
• The Dow reached a high in
1929
• By 1929, 4 million
Americans owned stocks

New York Stock Exchange
SEEDS OF TROUBLE

The Stock Market’s bubble was
about to break

• Late 1920s  problems with
the economy emerged
• Speculation: buying stocks
& bonds hoping for a quick
profit
• “Buying on Margin”: paying
a small % of a stock’s price
as a down payment and
borrowing the rest
THE 1929 CRASH
•
•
•
•
•

In September the Stock Market
had some unusual up & down
movements
On October 24, the market took
a plunge . . .the worst was yet
to come
On October 29, now known as
Black Tuesday, the bottom fell
Tuesday
out
16.4 million shares were sold
that day – prices plummeted
People who had bought on
margin (credit) were stuck with
huge debts
By mid-November, investors
had lost about $30 billion
THE GREAT DEPRESSION
• The Stock Market crash
signaled the beginning of
the Great Depression
• The Great Depression is
generally defined as:
– period from 1929 – 1940
– economy plummeted
– unemployment skyrocketed

Alabama family, 1938 Photo by
Walter Evans

• The crash alone did not
cause the Great Depression
• But it accelerated its arrival
FINANCIAL COLLAPSE
• After the crash many
Americans panicked
and withdrew their
money from banks
• Banks had invested in
the Stock Market and
lost money
• In 1929- 600 banks fail
• By 1933 – 11,000 of the
25,000 banks
nationwide had
collapsed

Bank run 1929, Los Angeles
GNP DROPS,
UNEMPLOYMENT SOARS
• Between 1928-1932, the
U.S. Gross National
Product (GNP) – the total
output of a nation’s
goods & services – fell
nearly 50% from $104
billion to $59 billion
• 90,000 businesses went
bankrupt
• Unemployment leaped
from 3% in 1929 to 25% in
1933
HAWLEY-SMOOT TARIFF
• The U.S. was not the only country gripped by the
Great Depression
• Much of Europe suffered throughout the 1920s
• In 1930, Congress passed the toughest tariff in
U.S. history called the Hawley- Smoot Tariff
• Meant to protect U.S. industry
• Had the opposite effect
• Other countries enacted their own tariffs and soon
world trade fell 40%
CAUSES OF THE GREAT
DEPRESSION
1. Tariffs & war debt policies
2. U.S. demand low, despite
factories producing more
3. Farm sector crisis
4. Easy credit
5. Unequal distribution of
income

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Causes of Great Depression

  • 1. THE GREAT DEPRESSION BEGINS Photos by photographer Dorothea Lange
  • 2. THE NATION’S SICK ECONOMY 1920s  serious problems threatened the economy while Important industries struggled • • • • • • • • • Agriculture Railroads Textiles Steel Mining Lumber Automobiles Housing Consumer goods
  • 3. FARMERS STRUGGLE Photo by Dorothea Lange • No industry suffered as much as agriculture • WWI  European demand for American crops soared • After the war demand plummeted • Farmers increased production sending prices further downward
  • 4. CONSUMER SPENDING DOWN • Late 1920s  American consumers were buying less – Rising prices – stagnant wages – overbuying on credit • Most people did not have the money to buy the flood of goods factories produced
  • 5. GAP BETWEEN RICH & POOR • The gap between rich and poor widened • The wealthiest 1% saw their income rise 75% • The rest of the population saw an increase of only 9% Photo by Dorothea Lange
  • 6. HOOVER WINS 1928 ELECTION • Republican Herbert Hoover ran against Democrat Alfred E. Smith in the 1928 election • Hoover emphasized years of prosperity under Republicans • Hoover won an overwhelming victory
  • 8. THE STOCK MARKET • By 1929, many Americans were invested in the Stock Market • The Stock Market had become the most visible symbol of a prosperous American economy
  • 9. STOCK PRICES RISE THROUGH THE 1920s • Through most of the 1920s, stock prices rose steadily • The Dow reached a high in 1929 • By 1929, 4 million Americans owned stocks New York Stock Exchange
  • 10. SEEDS OF TROUBLE The Stock Market’s bubble was about to break • Late 1920s  problems with the economy emerged • Speculation: buying stocks & bonds hoping for a quick profit • “Buying on Margin”: paying a small % of a stock’s price as a down payment and borrowing the rest
  • 11. THE 1929 CRASH • • • • • In September the Stock Market had some unusual up & down movements On October 24, the market took a plunge . . .the worst was yet to come On October 29, now known as Black Tuesday, the bottom fell Tuesday out 16.4 million shares were sold that day – prices plummeted People who had bought on margin (credit) were stuck with huge debts
  • 12. By mid-November, investors had lost about $30 billion
  • 13. THE GREAT DEPRESSION • The Stock Market crash signaled the beginning of the Great Depression • The Great Depression is generally defined as: – period from 1929 – 1940 – economy plummeted – unemployment skyrocketed Alabama family, 1938 Photo by Walter Evans • The crash alone did not cause the Great Depression • But it accelerated its arrival
  • 14. FINANCIAL COLLAPSE • After the crash many Americans panicked and withdrew their money from banks • Banks had invested in the Stock Market and lost money • In 1929- 600 banks fail • By 1933 – 11,000 of the 25,000 banks nationwide had collapsed Bank run 1929, Los Angeles
  • 15. GNP DROPS, UNEMPLOYMENT SOARS • Between 1928-1932, the U.S. Gross National Product (GNP) – the total output of a nation’s goods & services – fell nearly 50% from $104 billion to $59 billion • 90,000 businesses went bankrupt • Unemployment leaped from 3% in 1929 to 25% in 1933
  • 16. HAWLEY-SMOOT TARIFF • The U.S. was not the only country gripped by the Great Depression • Much of Europe suffered throughout the 1920s • In 1930, Congress passed the toughest tariff in U.S. history called the Hawley- Smoot Tariff • Meant to protect U.S. industry • Had the opposite effect • Other countries enacted their own tariffs and soon world trade fell 40%
  • 17. CAUSES OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION 1. Tariffs & war debt policies 2. U.S. demand low, despite factories producing more 3. Farm sector crisis 4. Easy credit 5. Unequal distribution of income