The+Great+Depression



**The Great Crash**

**THE INSIDE STORY**

//**How did Americans behave on the eve of disaster?**// For many people in the 1920s, investing in the stock market was one big joyride. Week after week, month after month, stock prices steadily rose. After a while, it seemed like making money on Wall Street was a sure thing.

With so many fortunes being made, it was easy to ignore the warning signs that began to appear in the fall of 1929. The economy had began to slump. Consumers weren’t buying as much. Products were piling up on factory floors. A handful of experts whispered that trouble lay in store for the stock market.

On Thursday, October 24, 1929, those whispers became reality. By the end of the day, the value of the stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange had plunged by 9 percent. Years of investment gains—billions of dollars—were wiped out in a few hours.

Major banks and stockbrokers tried to rally the market on Friday. They bought large numbers of stocks, hoping to keep prices from dropping still more. Over the anxious weekend of October 26 and 27, stockbrokers worked quietly to reassure investors. They made phone calls and wrote letters to major investors urging them to buy stocks when the markets reopened on Monday. But nothing could answer the questions on everyone’s minds. On Monday morning, which way would prices go—up or down? Were the good times about to come to an end? 1. What were the signs that the economy was weak? 2. Why did investors ignore the signs that the economy was slowing down? = Use the following link to complete the two column notes = [|Causes of Great Depression]

[|Graphic Organizer]

=People of the Depression=

Use the following stories to explain how the Depression affected people differently.

[|Family stories of the depression]

=Bank Run= 1. Who does this man represent? 2. Why is he getting economic advice from a squirrel? 3. What is the message of this cartoon?

=What caused banks to fail?=

Watch the video from A Wonderful Life and try to explain why people want their money,why George will not give it to them, and How Potter stays in business [|Explains why George is broke and Potter is not] media type="youtube" key="lbwjS9iJ2Sw" width="420" height="315"

=Hooverville=



Describe the conditions and people you see in this picture? Who are they and why are they here?



Use the following graphic organizer to explain what American were going through during the Great Depression.. [|Graphic Organizer]

=Hoover Dam= media type="youtube" key="SnmX4f6VBRw" width="420" height="315"

media type="youtube" key="dxPVyieptwA" width="560" height="315"

Jim Braddock Story media type="youtube" key="Bl6ER5pwOkU" width="420" height="315"