Depression And The New Deal 1929-38 Flashcards
By 1932, what percentage of the USAs workforce was unemployed
25
Why were the majority of Americans not directly affected by the 1929 WSC
Majority did not own shares
Between October and December 1929, how much did unemployment rise
From 500,000 to over 4 million
By the time Roosevelt became president in 1933, how many were unemployed
15 million
How much did real wages fall 1929-31
16%
How much did manufacturing decrease 1929-31
54%
Why was the government reluctant to intervene after the wsc
- Hoover believed the economic downturn would be short lived
- The republican administration and republican controlled congress were reluctant to change their policy of laissez faire which had brought unrivalled prosperity in the 1920s
Financially, why did the rise in unemployment cause so many problems
In 1929, the USA did not have old aged pensions or a national system of unemployment welfare, this was the responsibility of state governments
Where did the main help for unemployment come
Voluntary organisations which hoover encouraged
How many left home to search for work
1 million
In 1931, what did a survey in Colorado reveal
All schoolchildren were insufficiently fed leading to the spread of diseases such as typhus
How did the suicide rate rise in 1929-32
14%
How did the decline in economy lead to a rise in racial discrimination
Several employers adapted a preferential hiring system for whites
What happened in California for Spanish speaking Americans
Tens of thousands adversely affected by a dramatic drop in demand for agricultural products
How many Mexican citizens were forced to leave by 1933
500,000
How did states encourage Spanish speakers to “go home”
Banned non us citizens from public works programmes, some states willing to pay their rail fair
In 1932, what did customers in NYC do?
Boycotted Chinese laundries to try to drive them out
What did white workers in Milwaukee do at the wehr steel factory
Went on strike demanding all black workers be fired
Where was racial discrimination most extreme
Old south
What happened in Louisiana
White mobs attacked BA railway workers , killing 10
How many deaths by lynching by 1932
24
1929-32, how much did farm incomes fall
By two thirds
why had farm incomes decrease
Sharp fall in demand and therefore prices
How were farmers affected by the collapse of the banking sector
Most farmers had bank loans
What happened in Iowa
one in eight farms put up for auction 1929-32
What did veterans do
Marched on Washington
21,000 demanded that the bonuses they were due in 1945 be paid immediately
How did this protest end
1932 “battle of anacostia flats” the army forcibly evicted the bonus marchers using tanks, 2 dead
Where was the centre for illegal activities
Chicago,Illinois
Who was the most notorious gangster
Italian American al-Capone
what did Bonnie and Clyde do
Led a gang from a hideout, robbed banks, committed murder
What did machine gun Kelly do
Bank robbery
What fuelled the gangsters notoriety
The fbis decision from 1931 to label these criminals as public enemies
What did hoover’s 1928 presidential campaign slogan say
He wanted a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage
Why did having franklin d Roosevelt as his predecessor give hoover a disadvantage
FDR has come to be regarded as one of americas greatest presidents
Hoover looked indecisive and lacklustre in comparison
What was rugged individualism
Hoover’s belief that people should be self reliant and not be dependant on government financial support
Who did hoover need the support of
Both houses of congress, until November 1930, dominated by the Republican Party who supported laissez faire policies
Early in the depression, what did hoover believe
That the cause lay outside of the USA
After WW1, Germany expected to make reparation payments to the allied governments
Owed the USA tens of millions of pounds in war debts
How did hoover help to prevent the onset of a global economic depression
Negotiated a moratorium - temporary suspension of reparation payments in 1931 and the cancellation of payments in 1932
What was hoover’s aim in doing this
To encourage international trade by releasing more money directly into the economy
When was the smoot-hawkley tariff
1930
What did the smoot hawley tariff do
Raised import taxes to the highest level in US history, to protect USA economy from foreign competition
How much did average import taxes on agricultural and industrial goods rise
40%
What did this intend to do
Raise the o prices of foreign goods and ensure that domestic producers were protected from foreign competition
Who wanted hoover to veto the tariff
1,000 economist signed a petition for it to be vetoed
What did the smoot hawley tariff plead other countries to do
Raise their own tariff rates in retaliation
How many people lost they jobs under Hoover’s presidency
13 million
How did state governments fail to help unemployment
Failed to offer anything more than short term help which led to a rapid rise in homelessness
What words became fashionable
Hoover flags - pulled put empty pockets
Hoover blankets - newspapers people used to keep warm at night
Hoovervilles - shanty towns to house unemployed who had been evicted or on the road looking for work
When was the reconstruction finance corporation RFC
January 1932
Why was this a big U turn for Hooever
One of the first direct attempts by the federal government to get the country out of depression
What was the RFC given and wheat were the aims of this
2 billion in taxpayers money to directly assist banks and insurance companies that were in financial trouble - aim to revive the American banking system
How did the RFC help from february to ,march 1932
Helped 160 banks
60 railroads
18 mortgage companies
What did the RFC fail to do
Encourage banks to lend more to businesses that were facing severe financial problems
When was the emergency relief and construction act
July 1932
What was special about the ERCA
First massive relief programme
What did the ERCA have the power to do
Give 1.5 billion to state governments to fund public works for the unemployed
How did state governments qualify for for funding
They had to prove they were running out of money for unemployment relief
Why was ERCA criticised
By 1932, the depression was so deep - business and public confidence was so low that a dramatic change would be required for the economic crisis to end
In the November 1932 election, how many votes did FDR get compared to Hoover
FDR - 22.8M
Hoover - 15.8M
Why did whites in the old south dislike the democrats (FDR)
Because they had won the US civil war and had improved political racial equality on the old south
why were Jews and catholics attracted to the republicans and disliked the democrats
Liked FDRs social and economic policies
Disliked that the democrats were dominated by WASPs
How did Black Americans beginning to switch their votes to Democratic (FDR) IN 1932 affectthe vote
Ensured Roosevelt won again in 1936, 40 and 44
During the ‘lame duck’ period, how did FDR and hoover work together
Hoover offered to work with FDR to relieve the misery of the depression but FDR refused - did not want Hoover to gain any credit
What were the ‘hundred days’
Hundred days of activity in congress, FDR passed the legislation that formed the basis of the first new deal
When was the Tennessee valley authority
May1933
What was the Tennessee valley area notorious for
Flooding, poor infrastructure and low standard of living
How many people lived in the Tennessee valley area
2 million
What did the Tennessee valley authority do
Established a network of dams to control the flow of river and create hydro electric power
Compare 1933 and 1945 to farms with electricity in the Tennessee valley authority
1933- 2%
1945 - 75%
When was the national recovery administration
June 1933
What did the national recovery administration do
Issue codes of practice to each industry to ensure fair competition, wages and hours of work
What happened under the NRA codes
Child labour was banned below the age of 16
What happened under section 7a of the nra
Allowed unions to collectively bargain for wage rates for their members
If a company or industry adopted the NRAcodes,what did they reveive
The NRA blue eagle sign, recognisable symbol of the new deal
Why did many companies, such as ford motor company, refuse to participate in the codes of NRA
Many of the codes proved unworkable and it was declared unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court in 1935
What were wages like under the NRA
Low and most workers did not experience any improvement in their working conditions, even if their company displayed the blue eagle
How many did the NRA put back to work
2 million
When was the civilian conservation corps
March 1933
Who was the CCC programmes supervised by
The army
Who did the CCC offer work to and for how long
Mostly manual labour to young men aged 18-25 for a minimum of six months up to 2 years
How many were taken of the unemployed list in rural areas in cities due to the CCC
250,000
Of the 30 dollars they earns a month how much was sent back to families
25
Until 1945 when it ended, how many men took part
3 million
How many roads, bridges and trees were planted under the CCC
Roads, 125,000 miles
Bridges , 47,000
Trees , 3 billion
When was the federal emergency relief administration created
May1933
Who was in charge of FERA
Harry Hopkins
What was FERAs budget and what did they spend it on
500 million - provided work that resulted in the building of over 5,000 buildings and organised relief for the unemployed
how did Hopkins get reluctant states, such as Georgia, to join
Through threat of withdrawal of federal funding
When was the civil works administration
November 1933
What was the CWA
A TEMPORARY administration created to meet the problems caused by the winter of 1933-34
How many workers did Hopkins employ in four months
4.2 million
How many airports and miles of road were built
Airports - 400
Miles of road - 255,000
When was the public works administration
June1933
Who was the head of the PWA
Harold Ickes
What did the PWA aim to do
Aimed at a.more long term programme of stimulating economic growth
How was this different to Harry Hopkins CCC employment
Harry Hopkins was only emergency unemployment work described as ‘boondoggle jobs’ that had no real purpose
How many schools and miles of road were built iunder the PWA
Schools - 13,000
Miles of road - 50,000
What was Ickes accused of
Spending federal money too slowly
Spent only 110 million dollars of its 3.3 billion dollar budget in six months
How did Hopkins spending compare to this
Spent 5 million dollars in a few hours
By 1934, how much of the American workforce had FERA, PWA and CWA put to work
20%
When was the agricultural adjustment administration
1933
What had the mcnary haugen bills of 1920s been an attempt to
Stabilise farm prices through the government purchase of agricultural surpluses
What had caused agricultural products to go down in price
Overproduction
Why had sales of farm products fallen
Due to the depression and foreign tariffs on American food exports
How did Henry Wallace, under the AAA, set about stabilising farm product prices
Allotment plan - to prevent agricultural surpluses, farmers would reduce the acreage under cultivation, or reduce their production
Why was this an unusual method
At a time of malnutrition in many towns and cities, the sigh of farmers killing piglets, burning crops or pouring away excess milk, was hard to comprehend
By 1935, how many acres of land had been removed from cultivation
35 million acres
How did farm incomes rise from 1933-35
From 4.5 billion to 6.9 billion
Which farmers did not benefit from this scheme
Black American sharecroppers in the old south still lived in abject poverty
In 1935, most rural parts of the USA were without electricity
Climate changes and poor agricultural methods resulted in dustbowl centred on oaklohoma and Arkansas
When was the emergency banking act
March 1933
2 days after his inauguration, FDR ordered a national bank holiday from when
6-9march
During this bank holiday period, what did FDR do
Persuaded congress to pass this act, which it did in seven hours
- the USA treasury investigated all banks threatened with collapse and only those approved by the treasury were allowed to open for business on 10th march
How long did it take for FDR to restore confidence in the bank industry
Within a week
When was the glass steagall banking act
June 1933
What did the glass steagall banking act do
Separated commercial from investment banking
Created a federal deposit insurance corporation which guaranteed all bank deposits to the value of 5000 dollars
What happened in 1936
For the first time in 60 years,no USA bank closures for business
When was the federal securities act
May1933
What did the federal securities act do
negotiate the whole system of buy in and sellling shares
All new shares had to be registered in the federal trade commission
What was the June 1934 securities and exchange commission
Regulated all share transactions and stock exchanges
When was the gold reserve act
January1934
What did the gold reserve act do
Devalued the US dollar against the rate of gold in hope to make us exports cheaper
When was raw silver purchase act
June 1934
What did the silver purchase act do
Hoped to raise prices by increasing the amount of silver in us coinage to encourage more economic activity
Why were both eh gold reserve and silver purchase acts unsuccessful in their aims
Due to FDRs belief that the causes of the economic crisis were domestic and non international
What happened at the London economic conference in 1933
Other nations wanted to stabilise the value of currencies in order to stimulate international trade
FDR simply wanted to work on his own
In the midterm elections of November 1934, in numbers, how did the democrats achieve success
Gained 9 seats in senate, giving them a majority of 45
In their house their majority rose to 219
When was the American liberty league formed and what did it pledge
Summer 1934
Pledged to uphold the constitution, to foster the right of work, earn and save property
Who financially backed the American liberty league
The whos who of business, including the du pont family who owned the usas largest chemical company and Alfred Sloan of General Motors
What did the American liberty league believe
That FDR was planning to change the country in a fundamental way that was alien to business culture that made the USA great
Why didn’t the American liberty league get very far
They tended to support the republican candidate, Alfred landon, who received 11 million less votes than FDR
What were FDRs fireside chats
FDR directly addressing the American people through radio to explain his policies
Who was father coughlin
A Roman Catholic priest who had 35 million listeners for his weekly radio show, the golden hour of the little flower
What were coughlin’s beliefs in 1930
He backed the underlying aims of the new deal and blamed bankers for the economic catastrophe
What were coughlin’s beliefs in 1934
He created the national union of social justice as an alternative to the new deal - he wanted monetary reform such as more silver coinage and a policy that encouraged inflation
Who was Francis Townsend and what did he believe
Retired doctor
Supported the idea of federal funded old aged pensions as a way of stimulating demand in the economy - everyone over 60 receive $200 a month
By 1935, how many had joined townsend clubs
500,000
Why were coughlin and Townsend unsuccessful
They both backed William lenke in the election who only got 892,000 votes
Who was Huey P Long and what dud he do
Governor of Louisiana, member of FDRs own party
Launched his own share our wealth campaign against the first new deal
What did Long believe
Economic recovery would be stimulated if every American family received a minimum annual income of $2000 and a homestead allowance of $5000
Cost of this would be funded by raising taxes on the rich
By early 1935, how many share our wealth clubs had long created
27,000
Why was the us supreme court the most serious opposition to the first new deal
The nine justices were political opponents and the majority had been nominated by republican presidents
The court had the power to declare acts of congress, actions by the president or state laws unconstitutional
What was the Schechter sick chicken case
The court declared that the federal government had exceeded its powers by trying to regulate commerce within New York
What was US vs Butler
The court declared the AAA illegal on similar grounds to the sick chicken cas
In all, how many new deal laws did the Supreme Court declare illegal
11 because they were deemed contrary to the us constitution
When was the Wagner act
June 1935
What was the Wagner act regarded as
A milestone in giving trade unions basic rights
What was the major national labour organisation up until 1935
The American federation of labour
Mostly had members in craft occupations
What was the congress of industrial organisations
A new, more militant organisation, organised members of the steel, car, textile, coal and rubber industries
Why were trade ubuins major supporters of the democratic parry
Initially section 7a of the national industrial recovery act had given trade unions the right to collectively bargain for better pay and conditions on behalf of their members
What happened to this,and what did the Wagner act do about tit
The us Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional- the Wagner act gave the right to collectively bargain back to the unions - individual workplaces were fuven the right to join trade unions, following a secret ballot of their members
How did the federal government ensure trade unions and employers were treated correctly
Established the national labour relations board
What act prohibited child labour
198 fair labour standards act
What act prohibited child labour
198 fair labour standards act
How can the Wagner act be criticised
It excluded agricultural and service workers, public employees and those employed outside interstate commerce due to opposition with congress
Therefore, many black Americans, Hispanic Americans and women received very little from the act
When was the social security act
June1935
How was social security to be funded
By equal contributions from employers and workers
What would the social security system provide
Minimal payments to unemployed workers, the elderly and dependants on deceased breadwinners
How were pensions and unemployment benefits to be paid out
Pensions - a rate of between 10 and 85 dollars a week
Unemployment benefits - maximum of 18 dollars per week for 16 weeks only
Why was this seen as such a major breakthrough
Until 1935, unemployment was seen as a state government responsibility
How could the social security act be criticised
It excluded those workers who needed it most - farm workers, domestic servants and the self employed
When was the revenue act
August 1935
Why was the revenue act passed
To help fund the schemes of the first and second new deal
What did the revenue act do
Increased the rate of income tax from 63 to 79 % on incomes over 5 million which raised an additional 250 million dollars a year - still a tiny sum compared to how much the federal government had spent
Increased taxes on property and introduced an undistributed profits tax to force large companies back into the stock market to raise more money for more investment in the economy
How can the revenue act be criticised
More of a showpiece than a fundamental change in tax system
It was a move to thwart the share our wealth campaign by Huey p long
Huge criticisms from the rich - annoyed that FDR also came from a wealthy background and called him a class traitor
What did the resettlement administration of 1935 do
Helped relocate 45,000 farming families from the areas in oaklohoma, Texas and Kansas most badly affected by the dustbowl
What did the rural electrification administration do
Gave low interest loans to rural cooperatives to allow them to provide electricity
By 1945, 40% of farms had electricity compared to 10% in 1930
From 1935, until its demise, how many workers did thr WPA employ
8 million, one fifth of americas workforce
What did the WPA do
Thousands of hospitals, schools, parks and rural roads were constructed
Helped groups such as women, black Americans, artists and musicians
Set up the CCC style camps for young women
What did the federal writers project do
Aided writers, especially black Americans
The theatre projects employed 12,000 performers and production companies
What did the national youth administration do
Encouraged education and partitme work for students
The negro division headed by Mary McLeod Bethune ensured that black Americans benefited from the WPA and NYA programmes
What did the national youth administration do
Encouraged education and partitme work for students
The negro division headed by Mary McLeod Bethune ensured that black Americans benefited from the WPA and NYA programmes
Why did socialists and communists not like FDR
FDR wanted to reform the American economic system, these groups wanted to destroy it and replace it with an economic system they regarded as more fair
The American system of ecconomics allowed wealth and economic power to be concentrated with a small number of individuals such as Henry ford
The gap between the rich and poor was immense
Why did socialists and communists not like FDR
FDR wanted to reform the American economic system, these groups wanted to destroy it and replace it with an economic system they regarded as more fair
The American system of ecconomics allowed wealth and economic power to be concentrated with a small number of individuals such as Henry ford
The gap between the rich and poor was immense
In his second inaugural address what did FDR declare
That one third of America was still poor
What did socialists and communists want the American economy to belike
Replace private ownership of industry, agriculture and business with government ownership - they hoped that the government would share out the USAs wealth more equally
Communists looked to the ussr as the model economy to follow
Did socialists and Communists really make an impact
No - in 1936, the communist presidential candidate, earl browder recieved a mere 79,000 votes
Norman Thomas, the socialist candidate, got only 187,000
Explain the unrest amongst trade unions
Led by CIO unions, such as the united automobile workers union , organised strikes. May of the union leaders were socialist or communists
In December 1936, in flint, Michigan, what happened
Auto workers occupied the factory owned by Cleveland fisher company. A monthlong sit in by workers prevented their factory from running
How many strikes happened in 1937
4,470 involving 1.9 million workers
What was the Roosevelt recession 1937-38
Fdr ordered substantial cuts to federal government spending
On 10 October 1937, another stock crash occurred when 17 million shares were offloaded by investors
During he Roosevelt recession, how was manufacturing and gnp affected
Manufacturing fell by 23%
GNP dropped by 13%
What was FDR’s court packing plan 1937
He submitted a bill to congress with the aim of forcing all justices over 70 to retire. If passed, this would have allowed FDR to appoint six new justices, transforming the political balance of the Supreme Court
He also wanted to increase the nimbler of justices from nine to 15 which would have given FDR immense power
REJECTED
