On October 24, 1929 the stock market crashed.

More than 3.2 Americans we're unemployed.

Approximately 500 banks failed.

By Alex

Works Progress Administration
The Library of Congress

The Great Depression was one of the greatest tragedies in United States history. The stock market crashed in 1929, lasting for years, and finally ended in 1933. Many children were sent to work and people lost their homes. Did you know that until President Theodore Roosevelt took office, the government did nothing at all to help its citizens? World War II (WWII) was a enormous stride to end the disaster.

A horrific effect of the stock market crash was that many people struggled financially. Before the crash, many people invested in stocks and took loans from the bank as investment. Unfortunately “Black Thursday,” or October 24, 1929, caused many families who hoped to make big profits lose items they owned. Many citizens still had to pay off loans. A lot of people ended up in debt, so the depression grew more severe. Approximately thirty billion dollars worth of shares of wealth vanished because of the horrible crash.

This event affected both adults and children. More than 3.2 million Americans were unemployed. That is about 1.5 million compared to the amounts of unemployed people before the stock market crashed. Many people were forced to sleep in parks or under bridges because they had lost their homes. Some even moved in with other families. Roughly five hundred banks failed because they were not being used and  people could not pay off their loans.  Due to the closing of banks, bankers lost their jobs and many people lost their savings. Parents forced children to work.  The working conditions were atrocious. Since children worked in horrible conditions, the government decided to create child labor laws. Child labor laws controlled working conditions for everyone under the age of sixteen making it a safe environment for kids.

While all these people were suffering, the government did not do much to help. President Herbert Hoover decided that this horrible era was a natural part of the economy. In 1932, the citizens elected Franklin D. Roosevelt as the thirty-second President of the United States, because he had a plan to end the depression. One of Roosevelt’s plans was to send government agencies to help farmers. Also he helped banks rebuild once again. These agencies were named by initials such as the N.R.A. and the A.A.A, but most Americans soon knew them as the F.D.R because of Roosevelt’s powerful influence. These plans were not the only thing that ended the great crisis. 

Roosevelt won re-election for his second term in 1936 but America was still having troubled times. World War II began in 1939 which ended the depression. The Great Depression ended because the war supplied many military jobs. When the Great Depression ended and WWII was erupting, Roosevelt decided to run for third and forth term as President. Roosevelt was a excellent president during both crises. It is amazing that his presidency lasted for four terms.

As you can see, many people borrowed money to invest in stock, but when the stock market crashed many faced financial problems. The effect of this was that numerous families lost their homes, forcing them to sleep in horrible places. Fortunately, when Roosevelt was elected he helped put an end to the depressed period of the United States. In addition, WWII supplied jobs for many people. Finally the United States moved on. Today is a new day where the stock market is up and successful, and many people are employed.

For more information:

http://www.amatecon.com/greatdepression.html

http://www.bergen.org/AAST/Projects/depression/

http://www.gusmorino.com/pag3/greatdepression/

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