Herbert Hoover
Election of 1928
• Hoover• Mining engineer from Iowa who had never run for public
office • Quiet and reserved
• Smith• Career Politician who had served four terms as gov. of New
York• Good at Public Speaking
Hoovers Message
• “We in America are nearer to the final triumph over poverty then ever before
• America believed this message and were tired of Republican Leadership
Hoover and the Depression
• Tried to reassure Americans that the nations economy o.k.
• “important thing to remember is Americans need to remain optimistic and go about their business as usual• Believed that depressions were a normal part of the business
cycle • Many experts believed, was to do nothing and let the
economy fix itself.• Hoover felt the government should play a slight role in
helping solve the problem
Hoovers Philosophy
• Engineer and put great faith in reason• Humanitarian • One of the government’s main functions was to foster
cooperation between competing groups and interests to society
• Americans also valued Individualism
Individualism
• People should succeed though their own efforts, they should take care of themselves and their families rather then depend on the government to bail them out. • Hoover opposed any federal welfare or direct relief to the
needy • Answer to the needy was individual charities, and local
organizations should help
Hoovers Beliefs/Actions
• Depression hits and many Americans become frustrated with Hoovers ideals on Individualism
• After stock market crash called together leaders in the fields of business, banking, and labor. Wanted them to work together to find solutions • Asked employers to not cut wages or lay off workers• Labors not to demand higher wages or go on strike • Created special organization to generate contributions to the
poor.
A Year Later
• Steps created no change• Economy was still shrinking and unemployment was
rising • More and more companies went out of business • Soup Kitchens were rising • Shantytowns• Hoboes
Boulder Dam
• One project that Hoover approved that did make a difference was the Boulder Dam
• Construction of a Dam on the Colorado River was proposed by Hoover when he served as secretary of commerce
• Proposed to fund the river by profits from sales of electric power that the dam would generate
Growing Problems
• Farmers begin to burn crops and dumped milk on highways rather then sell them at a loss
• Hoped food shortage would make prices rise • Used force to prevent authorities from foreclosing on
farms • 1930’s people begin calling shantytowns hoovervilles • Newspapers used to wrap as warmth- Hoover Blankets • Empty Pockets turned inside out hoover flags
Hoover Takes Action
• Hoover begins to soften policy on government intervention on the economy, took a more activist approach
• Backed the Federal Farm Board- tried to help raise crop prices
Direct Intervention
• Election coming soon • Federal Home Loan Bank Act– lowered mortgage rates for
home owners and and allowed farmers to refinance their farm loans to avoid foreclosure
• Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)– authorized up to 2 billion for emergency financing for banks, life insurance companies, railroads and other large businesses • Money would trickle down to the average citizen though job
growth and higher wages • Unprecedented example of federal involvement during
peacetime but was to little to late
Gassing the Bonus Army
• 1932 incident to make matters worse for Hoover • 10,000 to 20,000 World War I Veterans and their families
arrived in Washington D.C. from various parts of the country Bonus Expeditionary Force, or Bonus Army (Patman Bill)
• Organized march to send message that they wanted to be compensated immediately for their service
• Hoover thought they were communist and persons with criminal records
• Gassed more then 1000 people 11 month old baby who died, and an 8 year old boy who was blinded
Assignment
• Describe two different projects that Hoover completed or proposed and describe them in detail, then relate them to another project or proposal that you know about or have researched about.
• Do you think Hoover is to blame for the economy dropping lower?• USE OUR RESOURCES-- BOOK, PHONE, iOS Device,
Ect. Make sure to use factual websites