By the 1930's the trade slump of 1929-31 had plunged the United States into a depression. Money was scarce and families valued the things that still made their lives happy. Adults gathered around radios to listen to sports, while the young people danced to the big bands. Board games were popular and movies were hot. Franklin Roosevelt encouraged Americans with his fireside chats. The 1930's decade truly was one of challenge and change.
Main Events.
When someone thinks about the 1930's, the first thing that may come to their mind is the Great Depression. "The age of the Great Depression began with the worst economic collapse in American History and ended with the most catastrophic war in modern world history."" (T.H. Watkins) America was once the land of opportunity, hope, and optimism. But during the depression it became the land of desperation and despair. (American History - 1930-1939).
Another big event was the Dust Bowl. It started when huge clouds of dust blew from the plains to the East Coast. "In Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas,"" the land was thought to be very suitable for farming. Many farmers came to the area and built up millions of acres of "grazing land into marginal farmland."" But soon, a huge drought came blowing away lots of soil. The dust reached up to a thousand miles away in Chicago, leaving it in a black out. (Donald Worster).
"The Dust Bowl was the darkest moment in the twentieth-century life of the southern plains."" (Donald Worster) Many people traveled from the Dust Bowl in the east to California for hope of a better life. They looked for work in Agricultural fields or cities.
The Depression and the Dust Bowl occurred around the same time, making America a country full of uncertainty and confusion. "Instead of advancement, survival became the keyword. Institutions, attitudes, and lifestyles changed in this decade, but democracy prevailed.""(American History - 1930-1939) .