History Matters reprints a 1929 newspaper article by journalist Tom Kromer, who contended that the beggar was a con man in the beginning of the Great Depression. It seems that Mr. Kromer became unemployed himself within the year, so...

Resource focuses on family life during the Great Depression.

This article "Freedom: A History of US: Webisode 10, Segment 6: Hard Times," from Thirteen WNET New York, gives the reader an informative snapshot of the cause and impact of the Gilded Age depression of 1893. Students and teachers will...

From a book, The Great Depression, by David Shannon, you can read an interview administered by the Works Progress Administration detailing the struggle of an Iowa family through the trying times of the Great Depression.

How did a country with such a booming economy in the 1920s sink into economic disaster in the 1930s? Prosperity was just an illusion. See the many causes of the Great Depression, and find out how all the signs were missed or disregarded.

One can trace the cynicism and despair at the beginning of the Great Depression to a more optimistic point of view by the end of the New Deal by looking at the movies produced by Hollywood. Read about the subject matter of the movies...

A multi-page site that focuses on the effects of the Great Depression primarily in rural America in the early days before the election of Franklin Roosevelt. Find videos interviews with those who lived through the trying times.

The bank runs and bank failures of the 1930s are described here, as well as personal interviews with people who experienced the Great Depression.

By examining primary sources, including songs, newspapers, interviews, and photographs of migrant farm workers in California during the Great Depression, students create a scrapbook from the point of view of a migrant worker, providing...

This account by Communist activist Anna Taffler details her activities working with the Communist-led Unemployment Councils of the 1930s. These organizations worked in hundreds of local communities to demand jobs and better treatment...

Although not the only cause for the Great Depression, the stock market crash in October 1929, showed the weakness of the American economy in a concrete way. Read about how the stock market values were run up by speculation, and how it...

Read a brief overview of the causes of the Great Depression. See that there were several reasons which fed on each other to plunge the country into economic chaos.

A great description of the tension in popular culture during the Great Depression with a focus on tradition abutting modernism in the arts and architecture. Read about the new comic book and radio superheroes, and commonality in American...

This hands-on lesson combines social studies, language arts, and technology. Fourth grade students begin by researching and collecting information from a variety of sources. Students develop an appreciation of the difficulties endured by...

Audio and text version of interview with a woman recalling her experience helping hoboes during the 1930s.

President Herbert Hoover spent his life in public service, and was a very intelligent man, but he was not able to see the problems caused by the Great Depression. Read about his comments and presidential actions in dealing with this...

A good look at how the Great Depression affected Pennsylvania. See how New Deal legislation brought relief to the unemployed in Pennsylvania after 1936.

From the extensive and very approachable series, Freedom: A History of US, based on the books by Joy Hakim, read about the stock market crash in 1929 and its ramifications.

Read about the response of Herbert Hoover to the suffering of those who were hurting during the Great Depression. From the PBS series, Freedom: A History of US, based on the books by Joy Hakim.

Read about the creeping descent into depression in the United States upon the crash of the stock market. Find out how the economy collapsed, and how that affected employment and the lives of millions.

This article relates the history of African Americans in the union movement during the Great Depression. Read about the importance of black membership in the CIO, the ILA, and the steel industry.

Franklin Roosevelt had to deal with the Great Depression quickly when he became president in 1932. Read about the early New Deal legislation, how the money was spent, and who administered the programs. Find out about the Works Progress...

A lesson plan from the producers of the 16-episode PBS series "Freedom: A History of US" designed to help learners understand the stock market crash of 1929. They will examine how people got rich in the 1920s (by buying stocks on margin)...

Find photographs, brief videos, and commentary about what loans from the Farm Security Administration meant to poor farmers during the Great Depression.