Hoover's response to the Depression (T2) Flashcards
What was Hoover’s belief of voluntarism?
The notion that business and state government should solve the Great Depression through their own voluntary efforts. Hoover encouraged business and state governments to carry on as if no Depression.
How did Hoover’s experiences influence his attitudes towards relief?
- Hoover was a self-made success.
- He believed in hard work, not in free government handouts.
- He believed this would lead to a class of people who were overly dependant on government.
- This became his belief in self-help.
What did Hoover do to try to tackle problems in agriculture?
1929 Agricultural Marketing Act set up the Federal farm board with $500 million to deal with overproduction. They were to buy, store and eventually dispose of farm surpluses
Why did the agricultural methods not work?
Overproduction still happened, and the board just wasted lots of money paying high prices for the goods
What was the Smoot-Hawley tariff, and how did it have a negative effect?
Put tariffs up to 40%, led to European countries abandoning free trade and fewer US goods were exported
Between 1929-1930 value of international trade fell by $500 million, the following year $1.2 billion
What did Hoover do to European war debts and why did this have a negative effect?
Repudiated them. He did not act quickly enough to stop the collapse of European economies, so they could no longer pay back their debts.
What did Hoover do for unemployment relief?
Gave $500 million, inadequate amount to help agencies provide relief.
He would not abandon self help
What was the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and why was it ineffective?
January 1932, most radical measure. $2 billion to rescue banks. Most of the money went to help big banks, failed to stop small banks closing, and ignored the fact that so many individual Americans were in distress
What was the Bonus Army? And how did Hoover react to them?
War veterans who had been promised money for their service. The veterans wanted the money earlier than 1945, so marched on Washington. Hoover ordered their removal from the Hooverville they were camped in. this led to violence.
Why were people struggling to receive aid, even if there were relief bodies?
The relief bodies were running out of funds
Why were relief bodies running out of funds?
Charities suffered a decline in funds during the Depression - when the funds were most needed
How did unemployment affect states individually?
Less people were working, therefore they received less in taxes
How did states receiving less taxes affect the people of that state?
They had to cut spending on their services, where they should be expanding the services
Give an example of the spending cuts due to less taxes
In Arkansas schools were closed for 10 months in the year
Teachers in Chicago were unpaid during the winter of 1932-1933
How much of the necessary funds could charities supply in 1932?
Only 6%
In 1931 and 1932 how much was relief cut by in most states?
by half - this was when it was needed most as well
Give an example of the relief being cut in 1931 and 1932
Michigan reduced funds from $2 million in 1931 to $832,000 in 1932
What was the result of the relief cuts in 1931 and 1932?
Many people went hungry or were starving
What % of the population did fortune magazine estimate were receiving no income?
28% of the total population receiving no income
The estimate that fortune magazine made for the amount of the population with no income did not include what?
The 11 million farm workers, many of who were in acute difficulties
What happened to many of the farmer’s mortgages?
They were foreclosed when farmers could no longer pay them anymore
What happened at many of the auctions where the foreclosed farms were being sold?
They attracted lots of violence as farmers were not happy about their treatment
How would farmers sometimes get their farms back?
Farmers would agree to only bid a few cents and then return the farm to its former owner
What did two state governors say in the face of the intimidation from the farmers?
The payments on the mortgages could be postponed until circumstances improved
What was so tragic about all the people who were going hungry in the US?
The fact that it was one of the riches food-producing countries in the world
Why couldn’t farmers sell their crops for a profit?
Farm prices were so low that food could not be harvested for a profit
Give an example of where the low prices of food affected the production of food.
In Montana , the wheat was rotting in the fields as there would be no profit made from harvesting them
What happened to meat prices during this time?
They weren’t sufficient to warrant transporting animals to market
Give an example of the low meat prices affecting the production of food.
In Oregon, sheep were being slaughtered and left to the buzzards to eat
Give an example of the people in America starving
Women in Chicago had to scour rubbish dumps for anything edible as they had so little money and there was a huge lack of food
What were the total relief funds in Chicago?
$100,000 per day
Only $2.40 per adult and $1.50 per child per week
In 1931 how many single parent families lead by a woman were there?
3.8 million
How many single parent families headed by a woman received aid?
Just under 20,000
In popular history what are the Depression years usually viewed as?
An age of outlaw gangs who robbed banks throughout the south and midwest
Who was particularly blamed for the farmers struggles?
Banks for:
- Foreclosing on farm mortgages
- Refusing to lend money to see farmers through hard times
What were outlaws usually seen as?
Robin Hood figures
What is wrong with outlaws being seen as Robin Hood figures?
There is little evidence to suggest any shared their ill-gotten gains with the poor and dispossessed
Give an example of a gang during this time
- The Clyde Barrow gang
- -> They preferred to steal from general stores and gas stations
- -> because their proprietors were often better off than the farmers facing the depression
Who did the Clyde Barrow gang prey on?
- General stores and gas stations
The very people who may misguidedly have applauded them
Name 2 outlaws
Clyde Barrow and John Dillinger
How did gang leaders tend to start their careers?
They began being small-time crooks and then graduated ti more ambitious projects
Who was Dillinger?
He was a Navy deserter - he was sentenced to 10-20 years imprisonment for his first offence
What was Dillinger’s first offence?
He robbed a grocery store with an accomplice after escaping with $50
During his time in prison, what did Dillinger do?
He learned from other inmates how to plan perfect robberies
When was Dillinger released from prison?
May 1933
How many bank robberies was Dillinger responsible for once he’d left prison?
24
What was Dillinger well known as?
‘Public Enemy Number One’
What was Pretty Boy Floyd (an outlaw) first incarcerated for?
The theft of $3.50 from a post office
Why did outlaws tend to rob gas stations rather than banks/
They were easier to rob, however they earned less money robbing these
What sort of lives did people tend to think that outlaws lived?
Admirers thought they lived very glamorous lives - but the opposite was the case
How did outlaws really live?
They were always on the run - the FBI were usually chasing them
How much did Dillinger have on his head at most?
$10,000
How was the money stolen in raids by gangs usually used?
Spent on protection and bribes
Clyde Barrow gang stole $28 (clerk was killed) and spent most on bribes
How did Pretty boy Floyd die?
He was shot to death in an apple orchard
How did Bonnie and Clyde die?
In a Louisiana ambush in May 1934
How did Dillinger die?
He was most famously caught in an FBI trap outside a Chicago cinema in July 1934
Did many outlaws escape justice?
No - most faced long stretches in prison
When was Hoover president?
March 1929-1933
What were Hoover’s two core beliefs? How did these shape his policy in reaction to the Depression?
- Self-help and voluntarism
- He would not led Federal government give out free aid, as he did not want people to rely of the government to fix things
Give 3 ways Hoover didn’t do enough
- The Agricultural Marketing Act
- Gave $500 million in unemployment relief
- The Reconstruction Finance commission
How did The Agricultural Marketing Act show that Hoover did not do enough?
$500 million to deal with overproduction. They were to buy, store and eventually dispose of farm surpluses. Did not stop overproduction
How was Hoover giving $500 million in unemployment relief not enough?
It was an inadequate amount to help agencies provide relief
How did The Reconstruction Finance commission show that Hoover did not do enough?
Most radical measure
$2 billion to rescue banks - Most of the money went to help big banks, failed to stop small banks closing, and ignored the fact that so many individual Americans were in distress
