{"id":496,"date":"2017-07-14T10:30:31","date_gmt":"2017-07-14T10:30:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/?page_id=496"},"modified":"2026-07-03T10:50:56","modified_gmt":"2026-07-03T10:50:56","slug":"the-great-depression","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/world-history\/america-c1920-1941\/the-great-depression\/","title":{"rendered":"The Great Depression"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Great Depression is the term used to describe the period of economic problems following the Wall Street Crash<\/a>. The Depression saw America, then the rest of the world, suffer from high levels of unemployment, low industrial investment and a lack of confidence in the financial sector. For ordinary people the period was one of great uncertainty and for many, great suffering or hardship.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Great Depression<\/h2>\n

The Wall Street Crash of 1929 marked the start of the great depression which hit America first and then the rest of the world during the 1930’s. The Cycle of Prosperity turned into a Spiral of Depression as consumer spending fell by almost half and companies found it difficult to sell their products. By 1932 the entire banking system was close to collapse. The highest cost of all was the human misery and despair. People had suffered the depression for over two years with no sign of improvement. Unemployment had risen to over 12 million and there was widespread poverty and homelessness. President Hoover believed in \u2018Rugged Individualism\u2019 and that the government should not interfere. He was determined to balance the budget and refused to spend government money to help the unemployed. Hoover believed in \u2018rugged individualism\u2019, which meant that people should look after themselves He thought things would improve if people worked hard and that the government should not interfere. Many Americans thought Hoover did not care and that he would do nothing to improve things. This lack of action led to people blaming him for their problems.<\/p>\n