Dust Bowl Research Paper

Great depression in the United States started in 1929. It was a severe depression that led to massive unemployment, economic instability, insecurity and closings of banks, and stock market crash. The time of great depression finally ended in 1939, when World War II kicked American industry into high gear. Franklin D. Roosevelt played an important role in great depression and helped lessen the effects. This worst nightmare of United States starts when stock market crashes on October 24, 1929. Most of the United States economy was represented by stocks, businessmen invested large amount of money in the stocks. “The stocks were bought and sold on stock exchanges, of which the most important was the New York Stock Exchange located

It was the most persistent drought in the history. First this dust bowl was limited to Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, but eventually it took its grip on the entire nation and affected them. “In 1932, 14 dust storms were recorded on the Plains” . It was not yet over when “in 1933, there were 38 storms.” Farmers feared their financial status, and in order to make living, they left their farms and flee to westward region of the country as migrant laborers. “By 1934, it was estimated that 100 million acres of farmland had lost all or most of the topsoil to the winds.” John Steinbeck’s book, ‘The Grapes of Wrath’, described the effects of dust bowl on farming families: “They streamed over the mountains, hungry and restless- restless as ants, scurrying to find work to do- to lift, to push, to pick, to cut-anything, any burden to bear, for food. The kids are hungry. We got no place to live. Like ants scurrying for work, for food, and most of all for

He met businessmen and asked them to keep the wages high so that when people will start earning money, they will spend money on buying their products. But this failed because the cost of productivity was high and “output prices were falling.” Due to his believe in Laissez-faire, his action were very damaging during the time great depression. After two years of his presidency, Hoover signed the Davis-Bacon Act, which intended “that all federally funded or assisted construction projects pay the ‘prevailing wage’.” He intervened the immigration of foreigners, because he thought that if less people immigrate to the United States, all the jobs will be available to Americans. He passes an executive order in September 1930, due to which “Immigration fell to a mere 10 to 15% of the allowable quota of visas for the five-month period ending February 28, 1931.” Failed to accomplish his goals, Hoover offered new proposals to improve countrywide economical situation. He proposed “The Hoover New Deal”, which also intended to give funds and loan to industrial sector and banks, but it did not control the regulation of