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AMSCO AP US History Chapter 24 Flashcards

AMSCO United States History 2015 Edition, Chapter 24 The Great Depression and the New Deal, 1929-1939

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9037905633stock market crashA boom stock market of 1928 led to a sell off starting in October 1929. Within three years the stock market would decline to one-ninth of its peak. This event is typically what marks the beginning of the Great Depression, although it was not the main cause. (p. 497)0
9037905634Black TuesdayOn October 29, 1929, millions of panicky investors sold their stocks, as the bottom fell out of the stock market. (p. 497)1
9037905635buying on the marginThis purchase method allowed people to borrow most of the cost of the stock, making down payments as low as 10 percent. Investors depended on the price of the stock increasing so they could repay their loans. (p. 497)2
9037905636uneven income distributionWages had risen relatively little compared to the large increases in productivity and corporate profits. Economic success was not shared by all, as the top 5 percent of the richest Americans received over 33 percent of all income. (p. 497)3
9037905637excessive debtConsumers and businesses believed the economic boom was permanent so they increased borrowing, which later led to loan defaults and bank failures. (p. 498)4
9037905638overproductionBusiness growth, aided by increased productivity and use of credit, led businesses to continue to produce goods that had no buyers. Workers with stagnant wages could not continue to purchase these goods, leading to decreased prices which led to decreased profits for businesses. (p. 498)5
9037905639Federal ReserveDuring the Great Depression, this group followed a tight money policy. Instead of trying to stabilize banks, the money supply and prices, they tried to preserve the gold standard. (p. 498)6
9037905640debts and high tariffsLeading up to the Great Depression, the United States insisted on full World War I loan repayments and high tariffs on imports. This weakened Europe and contributed to the worldwide depression. (p. 498)7
9037905641Gross Domestic ProductThe value of all the goods and services produced by a nation in one year. In 1929, the United States GDP was $104 billion, but it dropped to $56 billion in 1932. (p. 498)8
9037905642unemploymentBy 1933 25% of the workforce, not including farmers, did not have employment. (p. 498)9
9037905643bank failureWhen banks were forced to close due to bank panics, in which people who had deposited their money pulled out all their funds. During the Great Depression 20 percent of all banks failed. (p. 498)10
9037905644Herbert HooverHe was President of the United States at the time of the stock market crash. He thought that prosperity would soon return. He was slow to call for legislative action and he thought public relief should come from the state and local governments, not the federal government. (p. 500)11
9037905646Hawley-Smoot TariffIn June 1930, President Hoover signed into law the highest tariff rates on European imports in history, ranging from 31 to 49 percent. In retaliation, European countries enacted their own tariffs on American goods. This reduced trade for all nations and worsened the worldwide depression. (p. 500)12
9037905648Farm BoardIt was authorized to help farmers stabilize prices by temporarily holding surplus grain and cotton in storage. (p. 500)13
9037905649Reconstruction Finance CorporationIn 1932, Congress funded this government-owned corporation as a measure for propping up faltering railroads, banks, life insurance companies, and other financial institutions. President Hoover thought that emergency loans would stabilize key business and the benefits would "trickle down" to smaller businesses and ultimately bring recovery. (p. 501)14
9037905650Twentieth AmendmentAlso known as the lame-duck amendment, this amendment shortened the period between the presidential election and inauguration. The new president's term would start on January 20. (p. 502)15
9037905651bonus marchThousands of unemployed World War I veterans marched to Washington, D.C. and set up encampments to demand immediately payment of the bonuses promised to them at a later date. The Army, led by General Douglas MacArthur broke up the encampment. (p. 501)16
9037905652Franklin D. RooseveltThis Democratic candidate won the 1932 presidential election. As a candidate, he promised a "new deal" for the American people, the repeal of Prohibition, aid for the unemployed, and cuts in government spending. (p. 502)17
9037905653Eleanor RooseveltShe was the most active first lady in history, writing a newspaper column, giving speeches, and traveling the country. She served as the president's social conscience and influenced him to support minorities. (p. 502)18
9037905654New DealFranklin D. Roosevelt's plan to help people at the bottom of the economic pyramid. (p. 503)19
9037905655relief, recovery, reformThe New Deal included the three R's: immediate help people out of work, longer term assistance for business and the economy, and changes of American economic institutions to prevent another Depression from happening. (p. 503)20
9037905656Frances PerkinsRoosevelt's secretary of labor, she was the first woman to serve in a president's cabinet. (p. 503)21
9037905657Hundred DaysOn March 4, 1933, Franklin Roosevelt started his term and called Congress into a one hundred day session. They passed into law all of Roosevelt's legislation. (p. 503)22
9037905659fireside chatsPresident Franklin Roosevelt would hold these casual-format talks on the radio addressing the America public and explaining new government policies. Intended to increase public confidence in the economy and government. (p. 504)23
9037905660Federal Deposit Insurance CorporationThis agency guaranteed individual bank deposits up to a certain amount. Intended to increase public confidence in banks and making deposits in banks again. (p. 504)24
9037905661Public Works AdministrationDirected by Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes, it allotted money to state and local governments for building roads, bridges, dams, and other public works. (p. 504)25
9037905662Civilian Conservation CorpThis organization employed young men for projects on federal lands and paid their families small monthly sums. Red Rocks Amphitheater was built thanks to the CCC in the 1930s. (p. 504)26
9037905663Tennessee Valley AuthorityA government corporation that hired thousands of people in the Tennessee Valley, to build dams, operate electric power plants, control flooding, and erosion, and manufacture fertilizer. (p. 505)27
9037905664National Recovery AdministrationDirected by Hugh Johnson, this agency attempted to guarantee reasonable profits for business and fair wages and hours for labor. The complex program operated with limited success for two years before the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional. (p. 505)28
9037905666Securities and Exchange CommissionThis agency was created to regulate the stock market and to place strict limits on the kind of speculative practices that led to the 1929 stock crash. (p. 505)29
9037905667Federal Housing AdministrationIt insured bank loans for building new houses and repairing old ones. (p. 505)30
9037905668Works Progress AdministrationThis agency created in 1935, part of the Second New Deal, it was much more ambitious than earlier efforts. Between 1935 and 1940 up to 3.4 million people were hired to construct bridges, roads, airports, and public buildings. Artists, writers, actors, and photographers were also employed. (p. 506)31
9037905669Wagner ActA 1935 act that guaranteed a worker's right to join a union and a union's right to bargain collectively. It outlawed business practices that were unfair to labor. (p. 507)32
9037905670Social Security ActIn 1935, this act created a federal insurance program based on the automatic collection of taxes from employees and employers throughout people's working careers. This act was created to assist the poor, unemployed, children, and handicapped. (p. 507)33
9037905672recession of 1937In the winter of 1937 the economy went into recession again. The new Social Security tax had reduced consumer spending and at the same time Roosevelt had cut back government spending in hopes of balancing the budget. (p. 511)34
9037905673Father Charles CoughlinA Catholic priest who founded the National Union for Social Justice, which called for issuing inflated currency and nationalizing all banks. His radio program attacks on the New Deal were anti-Semitic and Fascist. (p. 508)35
9037905675Huey LongHe proposed a "Share Our Wealth" program that promised a minimum annual income of $5000 for every American family to be paid for by taxing the wealthy. In 1935 he challenged Roosevelt's leadership of the Democratic party by becoming a candidate for president but was soon assassinated. (p. 509)36
9037905676Supreme CourtIn the 1930s, this organization was controlled by Republicans who opposed the New Deal. In 1935, they declared two of President Roosevelt's recovery programs unconstitutional. (p. 509)37
9037905677court packing planPresident Franklin Roosevelt proposed a plan that allowed the president to appoint a new Supreme Court justice for each current justice over the age of 70. Congress refused to pass this legislation. This "court packing plan" would have allowed Roosevelt to appoint new Democratic justices. (p. 509)38
9037905681Fair Labor Standards ActIn 1938 this act established a minimum wage, a maximum standard workweek with extra pay for overtime, and child labor restrictions. (p. 511)39
9037905682minimum wageEstablish minimum pay for workers, initially set at 40 cents per hour. (p. 511)40
9037905683Dust BowlA severe drought in the early 1930s and poor farming practices led to this environmental disaster. High winds away large amounts of topsoil. Took place in the Great Plains areas including Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, parts of Colorado and Texas. (p. 512)41
9037905684OkiesDerogatory term used to describe the poor farmers who left their farms in the great plains and moved westward into California.42
9037905685John SteinbeckA novelist that wrote about hardships in his classic study of economic heartbreak in 1939, "The Grapes of Wrath". (p. 512)43
9037905689Bracero ProgramMade in agreement with Mexico in 1942, this program encouraged Mexican workers to move to the United States in exchange for a living wage, good working conditions, and a guarantee of non-discrimination. Led to a dependency on Mexican workers in the west and ultimately an increase in undocumented workers due to the demand from businesses to hire Mexican workers.44

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