HIST 1025 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Psalm 23, Herbert Hoover
March 7
Song: Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?- Bing Crosby
Reminder: 2 lectures on 1920’s posted on D2L from last week.
The Crash and the New Deal
I. The Hoover Years (1929-1933)
1. Hoover’s response
2. Popular responses
II. Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal
1. The president and the people
2. Action now!
3. Assessment?
1932nd Psalm- Parody of the 23rd Psalm
People bought on margin-put up small percentage of total cost of stock
October 1929- prices dropped, panic selling, confidence evaporated, market crashed, America
could have made it through just the crash-
Agricultural depression, integrated industries, drought and dust bowl
Failure of consumption to keep up with production- construction and auto industry were tailing
off in the later 1920s, so layoffs. Coal and textiles were always shaky in the 1920s. Inequality-
workers couldn’t buy the products that they made. Supreme court is unsympathetic to workers
and shoots down minimum wage, allow yellow dog practices (sign not to join labor union).
Management doesn’t lose profits, child labor is steady, women make half what men make.
European war debts- European allies cannot repay debts to US. By 1932-worldwide depression
Unemployment rates- not super accurate, but estimated 2 mil unemployed in 1927, 1930-6 mil,
1932- 12 mil.
1933- worst year of Great Depression- 15 million unemployed- 25% of America was
unemployed.
Herbert Hoover:
Believed that government should not interfere in business.
Don’t bail out people- it will undermine their individualism and self-reliance
President’s Organization for Unemployment Relief (POUR)- Government agency run by
private businessmen, organization that coordinates private charitable donations.
Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)- provide relief to big businesses and banks,
make government loans to big businesses then the economy will be restored. Utter failure.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Song: brother, can you spare a dime?- bing crosby. Reminder: 2 lectures on 1920"s posted on d2l from last week. The hoover years (1929-1933: hoover"s response, popular responses. People bought on margin-put up small percentage of total cost of stock. October 1929- prices dropped, panic selling, confidence evaporated, market crashed, america could have made it through just the crash- Agricultural depression, integrated industries, drought and dust bowl. Failure of consumption to keep up with production- construction and auto industry were tailing off in the later 1920s, so layoffs. Coal and textiles were always shaky in the 1920s. Inequality- workers couldn"t buy the products that they made. Supreme court is unsympathetic to workers and shoots down minimum wage, allow yellow dog practices (sign not to join labor union). Management doesn"t lose profits, child labor is steady, women make half what men make. European war debts- european allies cannot repay debts to us.
