Living Through The Depression Flashcards
What did some rich people do? Give a specific example
Some wealthy people, such as Al Capone, set up soup kitchens. He set one up in Chicago and gave $300 a day to feed about 3500 unemployed people three meals a day
Apart from soup kitchen set up by rich people, what did people have to rely on?
People had to rely on relief provided by charities that collected money and set up a small soup kitchen shelters
Why did the government relief agencies set up in 1932 have to make harsh rules?
Because they were swamped with requests
What did Government social workers do?
they checked if people were really unemployed, and went into their homes to see if they had anything that they could sell before they were given government money. Sometimes children away to see if they were starving enough to be fed at government soup kitchens
Why did homeless people going to towns and cities? What was the outcome?
People went into urban areas looking for work and a place to live, however they were unsuccessful because cities were experiencing unemployment and homelessness too
What with the shantytowns called and why?
They were called Hoovervilles, named after the president who they felt was repeatedly letting them down by assuring them that the depression was a temporary problem 
What cause hardship for farmers, in relation to wheat prices?
Even when demand fell they continued to produce at a high rate
What was the price of wheat in 1927, 1929, 1931?
1927 – $1.19
1929 - $1.04
1931 - $0.39
What negative thing had happened to the land?
Some of the land that was converted from growing to grazing week has not really suitable. E.g. in the great Plains, use of ploughing and planting, with no rest for the soil or adding nutrients, had damaged it. During the 1920s it had rained more than usual over the Great Plains which had minimised the damage
Why were farmers suffering in relation to the soil?
There was a drop in demand and prices, and crops are grown less well in the soil.
When did the drought occur?
1931
What affected the drought have on farmers?
- the soil dried out and many farmer lost most of their crops
They had next to nothing to sell in order to survive winter and buy seeds for the next year
The drought continued, then windstorms came, whipping up the dusty soil and carrying it hundreds of miles. farmers lost the soil they needed to grow crops
Black blizzards - what did they do and how many were there
Dust storms - they reduced visibility and there were 14 in 1932 and 38 in 1933
Migrant workers
In many farming families, the men and teenage bid left home to find work so they could support their families. They joined an existing group of hobos who roamed the country looking for work.
How many hobos were there in the early 1930s?
1-2 million
