Lone Star: The Story of Texas

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Lone Star The Story of Texas
Chapter 17 Depression and War 1929 - 1950
Section 1 After the Crash
Section 2 The Dust Bowl
Section 3 The New Deal
Section 4 Texas Fight World War II
Section 5 The Home Front
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After the Crash

• What were the causes of the stock market crash of
  1929?
• How did the Great Depression affect American
  workers?
• Why was the Great Depression less severe in Texas
  than in other parts of the country?

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The Stock Market Crash
4
The Great Depression

• Causes of the Great Depression
• Wealth in the United States was spread out
  unevenly. A small group of rich people held most
  of the nations wealth.
• Most people did not have enough money to buy
  goods to keep businesses going.
• Farmers faced hard times during the 1920s.
• Foreign trade slowed in the late 1920s.

• Impact of the Great Depression
• One out of four workers was unemployed by 1932.
• President Hoover offered government loans to help
  business and agriculture. The loans were not
  enough to help the economy recover, however.
• Depression - a period of low economic activity
  and high unemployment.

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The Great Depression in Texas

• The Depression was not as severe in Texas as in
  other parts of the country.
• Few Texans owned stock. Few lost their savings
  in the crash.
• Texas had little industry. Few Texans lost their
  jobs when factories closed.
• Much of Texas had been rural and poor before the
  crash. Many people felt little change in their
  lives after the crash.
• An oil boom in East Texas in 1930 and 1931 helped
  that part of the state.
• About 400,000 Texans were out of work by 1932.
  Women, African Americans, and Hispanic Americans
  had the highest unemployment rates.

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The Great Depression in Texas

• Some people turned to crime to solve their
  problems.
• Bonnie and Clyde, two of Americas most famous
  criminals, came from Texas.
• Government leaders in Texas took steps to
  provide relief during the Depression.
• They created state jobs.
• They passed a law in 1935 to provide pensions for
  the elderly. A pension is a grant of money paid
  to someone who has retired.
• Throughout the 1930s, Texas governors tried a
  variety of programs designed to boost the
  economy. None had the power to pull Texas out of
  the Depression.

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After the Crash - Assessment

• Stock is a share of ownership in a ________
• (A) building.
• (B) town.
• (C) school.
• (D) company.
• Who were pensions designed to benefit?
• (A) Workers who were laid off from their jobs
• (B) Elderly people who had retired
• (C) College graduates who had trouble finding
  work
• (D) Minorities who had suffered from
  discrimination

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After the Crash - Assessment

• Stock is a share of ownership in a ________
• (A) building.
• (B) town.
• (C) school.
• (D) company.
• Who were pensions designed to benefit?
• (A) Workers who were laid off from their jobs
• (B) Elderly people who had retired
• (C) College graduates who had trouble finding
  work
• (D) Minorities who had suffered from
  discrimination

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The Dust Bowl

• How did human activity contribute to the creation
  of the Dust Bowl?
• How did the Dust Bowl affect Texas farmers?

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Origins of the Dust Bowl

• A series of great dust storms blew through the
  southern plains of Texas in the 1930s.
• The storms blew away topsoil (erosion).
• Dust filled the skies, making breathing
  difficult.
• Some storms lasted for more than three days.
• The worst storms could reduce visibility to zero.
  These storms were called black blizzards.
• This environmental disaster was known as the
  Dust Bowl.

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Causes of the Dust Bowl
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Impact of the Dust Bowl

• Destruction
• Storms destroyed crops and killed farm animals.
• Dirt and grit disabled car and tractor engines
  beyond repair.
• Many farmers lost everything.

• Human Toll
• Dust damaged peoples eyes and lungs.
• Farmers lost animals, crops, and equipment in the
  storms. They could not repay their bank loans, so
  banks foreclosed on the properties.
• Thousands of farmers left the state to look for
  work.

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The Dust Bowl - Assessment

• What natural causes contributed to the Dust
  Bowl?
• (A) High winds, cool temperatures, and erosion
• (B) Erosion, pollution, and drought
• (C) Drought, high temperatures, and high winds
• (D) High temperatures and high humidity
• The worst storms of the Dust Bowl were called
  _________
• (A) black tornadoes.
• (B) black hurricanes.
• (C) black death.
• (D) black blizzards.

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The Dust Bowl - Assessment

• What natural causes contributed to the Dust
  Bowl?
• (A) High winds, cool temperatures, and erosion
• (B) Erosion, pollution, and drought
• (C) Drought, high temperatures, and high winds
• (D) High temperatures and high humidity
• The worst storms of the Dust Bowl were called
  _________
• (A) black tornadoes.
• (B) black hurricanes.
• (C) black death.
• (D) black blizzards.

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The New Deal

• How did President Hoover respond to the
  Depression?
• How did President Roosevelt give people hope
  during the Great Depression?
• How did Texas leaders promote the New
  Deal?

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Early Relief Efforts

• President Herbert Hoover did not believe that the
  federal government should give money to people in
  need. He believed it would cause them to stop
  looking for work.
• Hoover wanted private charities and local
  government to provide relief to those in need.
• The economy worsened and unemployment grew.
  Private charities ran out of money. Growing
  numbers of homeless people lived in camps of
  cardboard shanties. Americans blamed Hoover for
  the economic ruin, and they called these camps
  Hoovervilles.
• Texans joined the dark joke and nicknamed
  armadillos Hoover Hogs.

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FDR and the New Deal

• A More Active Government
• Under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, government
  took a more active role in fighting the
  Depression.
• Roosevelt temporarily closed the banks to prevent
  a collapse of the banking industry.
• Congress created new rules to make banks more
  stable.
• In his radio messages, called Fireside Chats,
  Roosevelt encouraged people to have hope.
• The New Deal
• Roosevelt created a government program to reform
  the economy. His program was called the New Deal.

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Major New Deal Agencies
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The New Deal in Texas
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Criticism of New Deal Policies

• During Roosevelts second term, many Americans
  felt that he had grown too powerful.
• He alarmed many people when he tried to pack
  the Supreme Court with justices who would support
  his New Deal programs.
• Critics also believed that the government did too
  much to help the needy. They felt that the
  federal government had grown too large.
• Many Texas critics resented the interference of
  the federal government in Texas.

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The New Deal - Assessment

• Who did President Hoover believe should provide
  relief to those in need?
• (A) The federal government
• (B) Private charities and local governments
• (C) Rich individuals
• (D) Religious and civic groups
• What was the name of President Roosevelts plan
  to heal the economy?
• (A) The New Reform
• (B) The New Plan
• (C) The New Program
• (D) The New Deal

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The New Deal - Assessment

• Who did President Hoover believe should provide
  relief to those in need?
• (A) The federal government
• (B) Private charities and local governments
• (C) Rich individuals
• (D) Religious and civic groups
• What was the name of President Roosevelts plan
  to heal the economy?
• (A) The New Reform
• (B) The New Plan
• (C) The New Program
• (D) The New Deal

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Texans Fight World War II

• When did the United States enter World War II?
• How did Texas serve as a training ground during
  the war?
• Which Texans made notable contributions to the
  war effort?

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The Causes of World War II

• Dictators and Empires Hitler became dictator of
  the Nazi Party in Germany. Mussolini created a
  Fascist Party in Italy. In Japan, military
  leaders took over the government.
• These countries sought to gain power by building
  empires.
• Dictator - a ruler who has complete power over a
  country
• Fascism - a system in which the government has
  complete control
• Empire - a group of countries under the control
  of one ruler
• The people of the United States supported the
  policy of isolationism in the 1930s. They wanted
  to stay out of the affairs of other countries.
  However, when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on
  December 7, 1941, the United States was drawn
  into World War II.

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Texas and Texans in the War

• Texas was the largest training ground for the
  United States Army.
• Texas became a military aviation center.
• More than 750,000 Texans served in World War II,
  including 12,000 women.
• More than 23,000 Texans died in the war.
• The U.S.S. Texas became the only battleship that
  still survives today that served in both world
  wars.
• More than 30 prisoner-of-war camps in Texas held
  about 80,000 captured troops.
• Aliens spent parts of the war years in Texas
  internment camps.
• aliens - foreign-born residents of a country who
  have not yet become citizens
• internment - confinement, especially during
  wartime

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Texas Leaders and Heroes

• Leaders
• Chester Nimitz - commander in chief of the
  Pacific Fleet. Led the Allies to victory in the
  Battles of Coral Sea and Midway. Received
  Distinguished Service Medals from both the army
  and navy.
• Dwight D. Eisenhower - became the supreme
  commander of Allied forces in Europe. Led the
  Allies in their successful D-Day attack.
• Oveta Culp Hobby - first commander of the Womens
  Army Corps. She received the Distinguished
  Service Medal.

• Heroes
• Audie Murphy - single-handedly stopped a German
  tank attack
• Samuel Dealey - commanded a submarine that sank
  16 enemy ships
• Doris Miller - the first African American hero of
  World War II
• Macario Garcia - destroyed two German machine gun
  nests
• Cleto Rodriguez - one of only six Hispanic
  Americans to win the Medal of Honor

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Texans Fight World War II-Assessment

• Under fascism, a country is completely
  controlled by __________
• (A) the military.
• (B) one religious leader.
• (C) one ruler.
• (D) the government.
• Which of the following is a true statement?
• (A) Texas was the largest training ground for the
  United States Army.
• (B) Texas was the only state with no camps for
  prisoners of war.
• (C) Texas soldiers stayed in internment camps
  before heading to the war front.
• (D) The U.S.S. Houston was the only battleship to
  serve in both world wars.

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Texans Fight World War II-Assessment

• Under fascism, a country is completely
  controlled by __________
• (A) the military.
• (B) one religious leader.
• (C) one ruler.
• (D) the government.
• Which of the following is a true statement?
• (A) Texas was the largest training ground for the
  United States Army.
• (B) Texas was the only state with no camps for
  prisoners of war.
• (C) Texas soldiers stayed in internment camps
  before heading to the war front.
• (D) The U.S.S. Houston was the only battleship to
  serve in both world wars.

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The Home Front

• What sacrifices did Texans make to help the war
  effort?
• Why did Texans move to the cities during World
  War II?
• How did the war improve the Texas economy?
• How did World War II change Texas society?

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Hard Times on the Home Front

• Sacrificing for Victory
• Rationing made everyday items available in
  limited amounts.
• Texans served in the Red Cross, planted victory
  gardens, and collected scrap metal to be
  converted into war materials.
• Texans bought war bonds to help the war effort.
• A bond is a certificate, issued by a corporation
  or government, which promises to repay with
  interest the amount it borrowed from the buyer.
• Texan towns set up civil defense units, and
  coastal cities strengthened their defenses. For a
  short time, Galveston tried blackouts. During a
  blackout, a city keeps its lights out at night.

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The Wars Political Impact on Texas

• By World War II, the Texas Democratic Party had
  split into two wingsliberals and conservatives.
  Conservative Democrats felt the New Deal was too
  liberal.
• During the war, more than half a million Texans
  moved from rural areas to the cities. In cities,
  industry was strong and jobs were available.
• Texas cities became more diverse during the war.
  Diversity added to the urban culture. It also led
  to racial tensions as people from different races
  competed for jobs and housing.

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The Wars Economic Impact on Texas

• War Production
• Shipyards expanded in the coastal areas.
• Businesses provided services for the military
  bases in Texas.
• Texas industrial plants produced rubber,
  ammunition, steel, paper, and tin.
• Texas produced gas and oil.
• Texas farmers produced more food during the war.

• Recovery and Growth
• The war helped Texas recover from the Depression.
  
• The Gulf Coast became a leading petrochemical
  center.
• The diverse wartime economy created thousands of
  new jobs in Texas.
• Skilled labor was in great demand, so workers
  wages increased.
• Unemployment in Texas dropped sharply.

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The Wars Social Impact on Texas

• Racial Issues
• During the war, African Americans trained at
  segregated bases. After fighting in the war,
  African Americans still could not vote in
  primaries. They also received lower pay than
  white Texans did.
• The American G.I. Forum was an organization that
  fought the unfair treatment that Mexican
  Americans soldiers and veterans often faced.
• Gender Issues
• To help with the war effort, women worked on
  farms, on ranches, and in factories. When the war
  ended, women lost those jobs to the returning
  soldiers and other men.
• Under Texas law, women could be paid less than
  men. They could not serve on juries or even buy a
  car without their husbands signature.

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The Home Front - Assessment

• Rationing made everyday items available
  ___________
• (A) in great supply.
• (B) only to soldiers.
• (C) in only limited amounts.
• (D) only to white males.
• What happens during a wartime blackout?
• (A) War correspondence is cut off.
• (B) Cities keep their lights off at night.
• (C) Certain rationed items are stockpiled and
  then sold at inflated prices.
• (D) The public is kept in the dark about military
  plans.

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The Home Front - Assessment

• Rationing made everyday items available
  ___________
• (A) in great supply.
• (B) only to soldiers.
• (C) in only limited amounts.
• (D) only to white males.
• What happens during a wartime blackout?
• (A) War correspondence is cut off.
• (B) Cities keep their lights off at night.
• (C) Certain rationed items are stockpiled and
  then sold at inflated prices.
• (D) The public is kept in the dark about military
  plans.