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