The+Great+Depression

The Great Depression **
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 * By Henry **

The Great Depression was a sad time in U.S. history. The Great Depression affected the American economy very much! This is why.

The Great Depression was caused because of World War I and the stock market crash in 1929. After World War I, rapid growth in technology increased production of goods in America and other countries. People had a lot of money at the time and wanted to enjoy their lives with it, so instead of saving their money, they spent it all. Then they couldn’t pay for anything and they lost their jobs. Also, Great Britain was the world leader of the economy and had policies that encouraged lending money to other countries when times were bad and spending it when times were good. The U.S., like most countries, was interested in taking care of its own economy after the war. The U.S. wasn’t interested in other countries economies. The governments failed to realize how greatly their economies now affected one another. That’s was caused the Great Depression.

During the Great Depression, some people lived by searching through barrels of garbage for food. Also, millions of people all over the U.S. stood in food lines, waiting hours for food. Some people stole food off of shelves at grocery stores. Children lived by working everyday. 16 and 17 year olds dropped out of school to start working, 14 year old boys worked in coal mines, 12 year old girls were in knitting factories, children as young as 5 and 6 worked in fields from sunup to sun down. People needed money.

The Great Depression ended in 1939. In fact, Franklin Delano Roosevelt started “New Deal,” in 1933 to provide life for the needy, created hundreds of thousands of jobs for the unemployed and economic reforms that have become a lasting part of American life. Some foundations are still around today to stop another economic crisis.

Woks Cited Freedman, Russell. __Children of the Great Depression__. New York: Clarion Books, 2005. Gedney, Mona K. __Story of the Great Depression__. Hockessin, DE: Mitchell Lane, 2005. Wroble, Lisa A. __Kids during the Great Depression__. New York: PowerKids P, 1999.