January 26-30

Background of Hoover and 1928 election

Background
- born in West Branch, Iowa
- raised by aunt and uncle in Oregon after parents died
World War I
- saved lives
- victory gardens
Election 1928
- got nominated and ran for republican president
- ran against Catholic democrat, Al Smith
Platform
- Efficiency in government
  - Don't spend, save money
- Republican record of prosperity
  - Republicans were last 2 presidents, times were good, why change
- Pro-business
- Promised to improve conditions for farmers
- Reform immigration laws
- Maintain America's isolationist foreign policy
- Supported Prohibition- an "experiment noble in purpose"

Herbert Hoover Administrations/Fight against Great Depression

Generally believed to have done nothing - not true
Encouraged people to be patient
Federal Farm Board
- stabilize prices and to promote the sale of agricultural products
Norris-La Guardia Act
- strengthened labor unions
Hoover Moratorium
- one year halt on German war payments to France
- one year halt on war payments from Great Britain and France to the US
Mexican Repatriation
- Mexican immigrants were encouraged/forced to go back to Mexico
Revenue Act of 1932
- Increased taxes so US government had money
Hawley-Smoot Tariff
- Raised tariffs to record levels

Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)-1932

Gave loans to banks , state and local govt and business' to create projects/jobs for people
Gave states loans for emergency relief needs
Started under hoover
Not as successful as Hoover has hoped
Dissolved in 1946 after WWI
Example of RFC: Hayden Planetarium

FDR'S New Deal Program

Born from a rich family
Married his distant cousin Eleanor Roosevelt who was the niece of Teddy Roosevelt
Went to great college
First political position as senator of New York
WWI he was assistant secretary for the navy(didnt fight)
After WWI he ran for vice president
His career was lost because he got polio (disease) and he was handicap
He was governor 3 years before being president and defeated Hoover
He ran 3 full terms and died on his 4th year

Impact on peoples lives

Hooverviles
- Nicknamed after Hoover
- Covered with newspapers and no money
- People lost homes and went to hoover-vile
Jobs would be cut and people would loose everything
1 out of 4 people were unemployed
Businesses did share time and your income was going down
Breadlines
- People stand in line for bread
- men brought home the bread
- Lots of women were too embarrassed to stand in line
Soup kitchens
- homeless go to for survival
Hobos Hopping Freight Trains
- went out looking for jobs
- went from town to town
Buying and selling apples made some money for that day
Dust Bowl
Movies and sports became very big
Men left their wives out of embarrassment

Unemployed

Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
Passed in 1933 during the "One hundred days"
CCC members worked 40 hour a week and were paid $30 a month with the requirement that $25 of that would be sent home to the family
Members lived in camps, wore uniforms, and lived under military discipline, for poor families
The US army operated the camps
The CCC was limited to young men age 18 to 25 whose fathers were on relief
The planted trees, fought forest fires, stopped soil erosion
Helped construct military bases during WWII
Funding stopped in 1942
The slogan of CCC was "we can take it"

National Youth Administration (NYA)

Established in 1935 and was a part of the WPA
Pushed heavily by Eleanor Roosevelt(ER)
Served 327,000 high school and college youth, who were paid 6-40$ a month for "work study" projects at their school
It allowed thousands of young people to stay in school
Another 155,000 boys and girls relief families were paid 10-25 $ a month for part time work that included job training
Unlike the CCC it included young women
THe youth normally lived at home and worked on construction or repair projects

Federal Emergency Relief Act(FERA)

Enacted in 1933
Main function was to create the FERA
FERA distributes more than 20 million dollars in direct aid to the unemployment
Tis in tirn would help unemployed to find new jobs
FERA had three primary objectives
- direct relief measures
- peovide work for employable people
- provide many different types of relief programs

Public Works Administrations (PWA)

Established in 1933
Created as many jobs as possible in many different variate
great example of FDR's "priming the pump"
Between July 1933 and March 1933 the PWA funded the construction of more than 34,000 projects including airports, dams, aircraft, carriers, and bridges
Was responsible for 70% of the new schools and 33% of the hospitals built between 1933-1939
Look at PWA Overhead

Civil Works Administration (CWA)

Established in 1933 to create jobs for millions
Created construction jobs
In one year CWA cost government over $800,000,000 and was cancelled
So much was spent on administration because it hired 4 million and payed higher wages

Works Progress Administration

Farmers and Factory Work (AAA)

Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act (SCDAA)

Rural Electrical Administration (REA)

Farm Security Administration (FSA)

gave money to small farmers to purchase farms
dust bowl forced farmers off their farms
Many farmers bought tractors with AAA money thus forcing tenant farmers off the land
wanted to document struggles the farmers had to show people how hard it actually was to farm

Home Owner's Loan Corporation (HOLC)

people were loosing their homes and went to hoovervilles
hard for people to have nice homes
made it easier for people and middle class people to buy homes
extended loans from shorter expensive payments of 15 years to the lover payments of the 30 year loans

Federal Housing Administration (FHA)

get people to borrow money to build homes
goals to improve housing standards to make them better (fire hazards, basement windows)

United States Housing Authority (USHA)

Social Security Administration (SSA)

Forum