the great depression

Question 1

Who were the candidates of the election of 1928?

Answer 1

Herbert Hoover vs Alfred Smith

Question 2

Who won the election of 1928?

Answer 2

Herbert Hoover

Question 3

What happened to the stock prices after Hoover won his election?

Answer 3

they soared even higher than what they were at before

Question 4

What is speculation?

Answer 4

the practice of making high-risk investments in hopes of getting a huge return

Question 5

What is buying on margin?

Answer 5

the practice of allowing investors to purchase a stock for only a fraction of its prices and borrow the rest at high interest rates

Question 6

What did brokers do when the stock prices started to fall?

Answer 6

they issued margin calls and demanded that people pay their loans

Question 7

When was Black Tuesday?

Answer 7

October 29, 1929

Question 8

What happened on Black Tuesday?

Answer 8

• sold their stocks for a tremendous loss
• shareholders quickly sold their stocks
• people lost most of their savings
• market lost 50% of its value over 10 weeks

Question 9

How did the stock market crash affect banks?

Answer 9

• money was lost from banks from people who had borrowed money
• some banks failed because of this

Question 10

What was a bank run?

Answer 10

because people were afraid that their bank would close, they would take out all their money at once

Question 11

By 1932, how many banks had failed?

Answer 11

about 1/4 or 25% of US banks had failed by 1932

Question 12

Was the Great Depression because of the stock market crash?

Answer 12

the stock market crash had a major role in the fall of the economy, but if other forces such as the government had responded differently, it would not have been long-lasting

Question 13

What were the roots of the Great Depression?

Answer 13

• stock market crash
• the way forces responded to the stock market crash
• the economy in the 1920s
• uneven distribution of money; the rich got richer
• big businesses ruled the industry
• too many people bought too many things on credit
• loss of export sales; Europe could not buy things because of the debt they were in and there were high tariffs
• mistake by the federal reserve; encouraged borrowing money by not raising interest rates and this led to risky loans

Question 14

How many businesses had gone out of business by the time the Great Depression had worsened in the early 1930s?

Answer 14

30,000 companies and 25% of the workforce was unemployed

Question 15

Where did homeless people live?

Answer 15

many people lost their home and built shantytowns named Hoovervilles

Question 16

What happened in the early 1930s when the Great Depression worsened?

Answer 16

• many immigrants went back to their native countries
• homeless people who rode railroads were called Hobos

Question 17

What led to the Dust Bowl?

Answer 17

• a severe drought
• farmers used outdated farming practices
• protective prairie grasses were removed

Question 18

What did families do during the Dust Bowl?

Answer 18

the terrible weather and low prices caused about 60% of families in the Dust Bowl to lose their farm and there was a mass immigration west

Question 19

What did Americans do to cope with the daily pressures of the Great Depression?

Answer 19

turned to entertainment such as movies, radio, music, literature

Question 20

What was Hoover’s response to the stock market crash?

Answer 20

• his first reaction was to inspire public confidence and not have the government interfere
• tried to keep the economy afloat by supporting public works projects and bank programs
• signed the Emergency Relief and Construction Act in 1932 to provide direct aid in the form of emergency loans

Question 21

What did people do because of the low efforts made by the government?

Answer 21

• people started to get angry at the government
• hunger marches in Washington D.C.
• farmers protested low milk and seed prices that made it hard for their farms to survive
• Bonus Army marched on Washington to gain support for a bill to get their early bonuses for World War I veterans; protests turned violent and Hoovers reputation was damaged