The Great Depression

Many of us have heard first hand accounts about the great depression from our parents and grandparents. These stories often come about when children want something they feel they should be able to have. Many people that suffered through the Great Depression feel people today don’t appreciate all that they have. There were some world wide effects caused by this event though.

There were signs of economic trouble in many countries including the United States in 1928. The big fall came in October of 1929 when the stock market came crashing down. This date is often referred to as Black Tuesday. The trickle down effect of the money not coming in affected everyone. Companies closed down production as people weren’t able to buy their goods. Stores had to shut their doors locally as well. People all over were out of work and barely able to keep food on the table.

Farmers struggled to make ends meet even though they were still growing crops. They were only about to sell them though for less than what they were used to. As a result many of them lost their land. Those that kept it farmed less land as they couldn’t afford to continue getting the supplies. In many instances they choose only to grow enough to feed their own families for survival.

The effects of the Great Depression continued to become more desperate. It didn’t seem like the world would ever be able to rebound from it. Ironically, it was the amount of jobs created by the emergence of World War II that helped people to get back on their feet. While war is seldom considered to be good economically, this was one time when it was. People were able to have money again and they started to buy things like they once did.

For many that lived though the era of the Great Depression though they never forgot the impact. They continued to put money away and to expect such a fall to occur again. Many of them saved their money in jars or under bed mattresses. They didn’t want to trust the banks and then not be able to get their money if things in the economy didn’t survive once again.