Hoover

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Hoovers Failure with the Depression
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Essential Questions

• 1.)What was Hoovers initial response to the
  Great Depression?

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2.) What actions did Hoover take to help the
economy and the hardship suffered by Americans?
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3.) What was the Bonus Army and how did Hoover
respond to it?
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Hoover tries to reassure Americans

• Remain optimistic
• Business as usual
• Government could play a limited role in helping
  to solve the problems.

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Hoover Philosophy

• Power of Reason
• Humanitarian
• Gov. should facilitate not control
• Rugged Individualism

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Hoovers Philosophy II

• No Handouts!
• No vast Federal Bureaucracy
• Use State and Local Government
• Charitable Organizations

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Hoover Takes Cautious Steps

• Called key economic and business leaders to the
  White House
• He asked for promises of no more layoffs or cut
  wages.
• Helped Private Charities generate contributions.

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More Action Needed

• Economy Shrinking
• Unemployment rising
• Increased Bankruptcy
• General Misery
• Soup Kitchens
• Shantytowns
• Hoboes

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Boulder Dam Project I

• Approved in 1928
• Construction began in 1930 and ended in 1936.
• Boulder City , NV Housed the workers.
• Hoover financed the construction by using future
  profits of electricity

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Boulder Dam Project

• 700 million dollar public works project
• 726ft. High and 1,244 ft. long
• Provided electricity and flood control. (CO river
  basin)
• Provided thousands of jobs
• Water source for LA and LV

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Americans Frustrated by 1930

• Democrats win more seats in Congress
• Farmers burned crops and dumped milk
• Farm Holidays
• Farmers block Food
• Blame it on Hoover!

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Mellon pulled the whistleHoover Rang the
bellWall Street gave the signalAnd the country
went to hell.
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Hoover Takes Action

• Federal Farm Board It would buy crops to keep
  them off the market. (Farm Cooperatives)
• National Credit Corporation Big banks loaned
  to smaller banks.

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Hoover Direct Intervention

• Federal Home Loan Bank Act
• Lowered mortgage rates for homeowners
• Allowed farms to refinance their loans to avoid
  foreclosure.

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Hoovers Direct Action II

• Reconstruction Finance Corp
• 2 billion in emergency finance
• Banks
• Life Insurance Co.
• Railroads
• Large Businesses

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Critics Of RFC

• It would not trickle down
• Benefited corporations
• Poor still needed direct relief
• Too little too late.

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The Bonus Army

• Spring of 1932
• 10,000 -20,000 WWI Vets and Families
• Arrived in Washington DC
• Came to support the Patman Bill
• 500 bonus to vets

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Bonus Army II

• The bill was defeated
• The marchers set up camps
• Hoover thought they were communists
• Some food was provided

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Disbanding the Bonus Army

• 2,000 marchers refused to leave
• Hoover became nervous
• What if the angry group became violent?
• Hoover calls out the US Army

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Violence in DC

• 1,000 soldiers under MacArthur and Eisenhower are
  called out.
• 1,000 people gassed
• Two people shot, one blinded
• Camp was burned down

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Impact on Hoover

• MacArthur did not respond to orders
• Americans were outraged and stunned
• Hoovers image suffered
• Hoover took the blame
• Hoover vs FDR in 1932