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The Great Depression was a time of significant economic distress in the United States and many other areas of the world. Lasting from 1929 until 1939, the Depression caused many necessities to become incredibly scarce.
Money
The Great Depression is said to have begun with a collapse of the stock market at the end of 1929. By 1933, 11,000 banks in the United States had failed, leading to a severely reduced level of money available and circulating.
Jobs
Because money was so scarce, businesses quickly failed and a substantial number of employees were laid off from their jobs. When the Great Depression started in 1930, almost 9 percent of the population was unemployed. By 1933, the unemployment rate had risen drastically to over 25 percent of the workforce.
Food
As the country continued to experience financial difficulties, it became increasingly difficult to purchase food. According to KeyIngredients.org, some families cut down to only two meals per day, while other families only ate on alternate days.
Medical Care
As money and food became scarce, malnutrition and other disease became an increasingly significant problem. Unfortunately, due to lack of finances and staff, medical care was extremely scarce, resulting in several deaths.
Education
During the Depression, parents were often unable to afford the clothes and supplies they needed to attend school. School taxes often went unpaid, causing many schools to close or significantly shorten their terms.
Source:
University of Illinois Department of English: About the Great Depression
Lonestar College: American Cultural History
Key Ingredients: 500 Years of American Food
More Information:
Travel & History: The Depression in the United States
Memorial University of Newfoundland: Great Depression - Impacts on the Working Class
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Money. But many who lived on farms never really felt a lack. Or so I'm told.
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Smartphones. You look back at those old pictures and you hardly see any of them because everyone was so poor.
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rich people. they were very hard to find during the depression.
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Homelessness.. More people rathered committing suicide than becoming homeless..
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