Both times, however, the Hooverville shacks were immediately rebuilt. For example, one of the eight Hoovervilles in Seattle, Washington, stood from 1931 to 1941. Second New Deal Purpose & Programs | What was the Second New Deal? Seattle's Hooverville had lasted a full decade.[4]. Filipinos and Mexicans were the only ones who were separated, but this was due to language rather than racial discrimination. [2], However, not every Hooverville fits this description. As their investments lost value, people soon depleted their savings. "; Billions of dollars were lost, wiping out thousands of investors. Click here to see more photographs of Hoovervilles and homeless encampments in Seattle and Tacoma. Longley, Robert. City officials alternately tolerated and tried to eradicate the shack town. Seattle's Hooverville and its residents were portrayed as violent, exotic, and separate from the rest of Seattle, obscuring the social accomplishments and self-organization of shantytown residents. Definition, Examples, Pros and Cons. No one knows, but there were literally millions of homeless people during the Great Depression so it seems reasonable to estimate the number as several thousands. The new population was forced to set up makeshift "towns" known as "Hoovervilles." 16. This is especially clear from the lyrics which included this line: 'They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead; why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?'. [9], Regardless of the gender of the residents, Hoovervilles served as a common ground for many different nationalities and ethnicities. He had first achieved fame during World War I when he ran the U.S. Food Administration, and his. months[10] = "Looking for accurate facts and impartial information? As Secretary of Commerce, Hoover presided over the economic boom times of the 'Roaring Twenties,' and when he entered the White House in early 1929, it seemed clear that the nation was in good hands. For example, newspapers used to shield the homeless from the cold were called Hoover blankets, while empty pants pockets pulled inside outdemonstrating no coins in ones pocketswere Hoover flags., When soles wore out of shoes, the cardboard used to replace them was dubbed Hoover leather, and cars pulled by horses because gas was an unaffordable luxury were called Hoover wagons.. Including the veterans, their families, and other supporters, the crowd of protesters eventually grew to nearly 45,000 people. [3] Report of the Sanitation Divison December 31, 1935 as quoted in Excerpt from the Health Department Annual Report 1935, Seattle Municipal Archives: http://www.seattle.gov/CityArchives/Exhibits/Hoover/1935ar.htm (accessed December 29, 2009), [4] Report of Shack Elimination Committee (April 14, 1941), Seattle Municipal Archives (accessed December 29, 2009), Civil Rights and Labor History Consortium. As the Depression deepened, the sheer number of homeless people became overwhelming. Mark has a Ph.D in Social Science Education. Brief History of Seattle. Hoovervilles Appear Nationwide As the Depression worsened and millions of families lost their jobs and depleted their savings, they also lost their homes. Nonwhites comprised 29% of the colony's population, including 120 Filipinos, 29 African Americas, 25 Mexicans, 4 Native Americans, 4 South Americans, and 2 Japanese. Nearly 29 percent of the population was non-white. As high winds and choking dust swept the region from Texas to Nebraska, people and livestock were killed and read more, The New Deal was a series of programs and projects instituted during the Great Depression by President Franklin D. Roosevelt that aimed to restore prosperity to Americans. As a member, you'll also get unlimited access to over 84,000 Whenever possible, Hoovervilles were built near creeks, streams, and rivers to provide a source of water. Banks closed, and factories shut down; thousands and then millions of jobs were lost. By the early 1940s, with the economy rebounding during World War II, many Hoovervilles had fewer residents and most were torn down. The name was a reference to Herbert Hoover who was the President of the United States during the at the start of the Depression and widely blamed for it. Grade Level. A "Hooverville" was a shanty town built during the Great Depression by the homeless in the United States. This sample is exclusively for KidsKonnect members!To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup for free (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download! St. Louis Hooverville, built in 1930, had its own unofficial mayor, churches and social institutions. The camp began when an unemployed lumberjack Spread over nine acres; it housed a population of up to 1,200. They were named after Herbert Hoover, who was President of the United States during the onset of the Depression and was widely blamed for it. Next: Unemployed Citizens League and Poverty Activism. Trade your paper with a Partner. Construction within the strict timeframe proved an immense read more, The Dust Bowl was the name given to the drought-stricken southern plains region of the United States, which suffered severe dust storms during a drought in the 1930s. They were named after Herbert Hoover, who was President of the United States during the onset of the Depression and was widely blamed for it. Roy lived in the Hooverville in spring 1934 while conducting this survey which became his 1935 MA thesis. The new mayor allowed the towns Hooverville to thrive and grow, even granting it some official tolerance. The main Hooverville began on land near Elliott Bay through a cluster of small huts. But they eventually returned because they had nowhere else to go, and they were soon allowed to stay, owing to public sympathy. This lack of organization has made it difficult to identify the populations within Hoovervilles. Tacoma hosted a large encampment near the city garbage dump that residents called "Hollywood-on-the-Tideflats." To find out more, see our cookie policy. In 1933, it was 25%, with 1 out of every 4 people out of work. Many felt that the government had to help those who lost work in the 1930s. The term was coined by the publicity director of the Democratic National Committee in 1930. Inadequate sanitation, lack of clean drinking water and poor nutrition lead to a variety of diseases and illnesses such as tuberculosis, diphtheria, diarrhea, rickets, influenza, pneumonia and skin diseases. Economic disparity in the United States during the 1930s was not limited to American born individuals. ThoughtCo, Dec. 6, 2021, thoughtco.com/hoovervilles-homeless-camps-of-the-great-depression-4845996. During the Great Depression of the 1930s there was Mass Unemployment in America. KidsKonnect uses a secure SSL connection to encrypt your data and we only work with trusted payment processors Stripe and PayPal. The numbers, as mind-boggling as they are, tend not to reflect the actual state of suffering caused by the greatest economic catastrophe in U.S. history. These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis: Chapters 1-5 | Summary & Analysis, Themes in Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis | Examples & Analysis, Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis | Summary & Characters of Bud, Not Buddy, Bud's Rules in Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis | Significance & Analysis, Vietnamization Policy & Significance | Nixon's Plan to Withdraw American Forces. Among the hundreds of Hoovervilles across the U.S. during the 1930s were those in: Hoovervilles have often featured in popular culture, and still appear in editorial cartoons. This worksheet can be edited by Premium members using the free Google Slides online software. "Hoovervilles," shanty towns of unemployed men, sprung up all over the nation, named after President Hoover's insufficient relief during the crisis. In June, many of the so-called Bonus Army marched to the Capitol to request early payment of the government bonuses they had been promised for their military servicemoney that would have alleviated the financial problems of many families. Hoovervilles were hundreds of crude campgrounds built across the United States by poverty stricken people who had lost their homes because of the Great Depression of the 1930s. And hundreds of thousands--no one knows how many--took to the streets, finding what shelter they could, under bridges, in culverts, or on vacant public land where they built crude shacks. The Depression was blamed on President Herbert Hoover, after whom the town was named after, as coined by Charles Michelson. This was handled by an elected Vigilance Committee-- consisting of two whites, two blacks, and two Filipinos-- led by a white Texas native and former lumberjack named Jesse Jackson, who came to be known as the unofficial "Mayor" of Hooverville. When Roosevelt took office in 1933, he acted swiftly to stabilize the economy and provide jobs and relief read more, The Stock Market Crash of 1929 occurred on October 29, 1929, when Wall Street investors traded some 16 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. When disaster struck, Americans looked to their President for leadership and compassion, but Hoover seemed to be short on both counts. The state described as 'absolute poverty' has been described as "a condition characterized by severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education and information". President Herbert Hoover lost the election in 1932 to Franklin D. Roosevelt. This began with a heated debate over the status and rights of Hooverville residents, who became more visible in petitions submitted throughout the late 1930s. Homelessness was present before the Great Depression, and was a common sight before 1929. The current "Nickelsville" is a nod to Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, just as "Hooverville" was a sarcastic nod to . It became the most widespread crisis of the twentieth century, affecting several countries worldwide. A "Hooverville" is the popular name for slum towns built by people without homes during the Great Depression. But even as the Great Depression eased and the Hoovervilles began to vanish, they remained a potent symbol of how a combination of bad luck, governmental philosophy, and rotten timing could create a lasting, negative image. The New Deal enacted special relief programs aimed at the homeless under the Federal Transient Service (FTS), which operated from 1933 to 1939. Try refreshing the page, or contact customer support. Some Hoovervilles were dotted with vegetable gardens, and some individual shacks contained furniture a family had managed to carry away upon eviction from their former home. read more, The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a work relief program that gave millions of young men employment on environmental projects during the Great Depression. A survey located 1687 shacks in five substantial colonies and many smaller ones. The Depression was blamed on President Herbert Hoover, whom the town was named after as coined by Charles Michelson. The term 'Hooverville' probably originated with Charles Michelson, who was a newspaper reporter and, in 1930, the publicity director for the Democratic National Party. "; Encampments and shantytowns often referred to as tent citieswith similarities to Hoovervillesbegan appearing in parts of California, Arizona, Tennessee, Florida, Washington and other states. As elsewhere in the country, Washington State's Communist Party helped to organize the unemployed into active political and social formations. What became the city's main Hooverville started as a group of little huts on land next to Elliott Bay south of "skid road," as the Pioneer Square area was then called. There were dozens in the state of Washington, hundreds throughout the country, each testifying to the housing crisis that accompanied the employment crisis of the early 1930s. Click the button below to get instant access to these worksheets for use in the classroom or at a home. However, some countries retaliated by raising their tariffs, and international trade was hampered. He believed this would represent a philosophical shift in what the government was supposed to be for--namely, to ensure a level playing field for economic opportunity, but not to regulate or take over the functions of the market. His records show populations of Japanese, Mexican, Filipino, Native American, Costa Rican, Chilean, and Black men. It was a highly diverse population. "Hooverville" became a common term for shacktowns and homeless encampments during the Great Depression. [1] .adslot_1 { width: 300px; height: 250px; } WW1 veterans formed what was called the Bonus Army and 40,000 people descended on Washington D.C. and set up makeshift camps on areas such as the Anacostia Flats. Erected by unemployed lumberjacks on the tidal flats of the Port of Seattle, the encampment covered nine acres and grew to house up to 1,200 people. Early in 1941, the Seattle Health Department established a Shack Elimination Committee to identify unauthorized housing clusters and plan their removal. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) was an ambitious employment and infrastructure program created by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1935, during the bleakest days of the Great Depression. Hooverville was the popular name attributed to shanty towns that sprung up throughout the United States during the Great Depression. They were named after Herbert Hoover, who was the President of the United States during the start of the Great Depression and was given the blame for it. Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images. Usually built on the edges of larger cities, hundreds of thousands of people lived in the many Hooverville camps. 2023 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Two young residents at a Hooverville shantytown in Washington, D.C. Longley, Robert. Even during the worst of the Depression, most Hooverville residents continued to seek employment, often taking backbreaking seasonal jobs like picking and packing field crops. Some homes were not buildings at all, but deep holes dug in the ground with makeshift roofs laid over them to keep out inclement weather. In Seattle, Washington, stood one of the country's largest, longest-lasting, and best-documented Hoovervilles, standing for ten years between 1931 and 1941.Though several were located about the city, this Hooverville was on the tidal flats adjacent to the Port of Seattle. The makeshift shacks were constructed from unwanted materials and lacked basic amenities such as adequate sanitation and clean drinking water. During the Great Depression, in the 1930s, as millions of people lost their jobs and homes, shanty towns, also known as "Hoovervilles" began to sprout up across the US. Some squatted, either defying eviction and staying where they were, or finding shelter in one of the increasing number of vacant buildings. Almost 6,000 shanty towns, called Hoovervilles, sprang up in the 1930s. Hoovervilles varied in size from a few hundred residents to thousands of people in larger cities like New York City, Washington, D.C., and Seattle, Washington. The term was coined by Charles Michelson. For one thing, Hoover was a believer in the power of the free market and in the value of perseverance. Excerpt from "The Story of Hooverville, In Seattle" by Jesse Jackson, Mayor of Hooverville (1935)
It was named after Herbert Hoover, an American politician who was the president during the first years of the Great Depression. until the land was needed for shipping facilities on the eve of World War II. Hoovervilles were not fancy or well-constructed. For example, in New York City, encampments sprang up along the Hudson and East rivers. No two Hoovervilles were quite alike, and the camps varied in population and size. Usually built on the edges of larger cities, hundreds of thousands of people lived in the many Hooverville camps. Those who did were chronically underpaid. During the fall and winter of 1931 and 1932, unemployed workers established Seattle's "Hooverville," a shantytown named in sarcastic honor of U.S. President Herbert Hoover (1874-1964), on whose beat the Great Depression began. Its unofficial mayor was Jesse Jackson, who led the city in tolerating the homeless and imposed lax building and sanitation regulations. As people increasingly relied on credit to buy homes filled with new conveniences of the day, like refrigerators, radios, and cars, many Americans were living beyond their means. "; lessons in math, English, science, history, and more. Beyond the waters lie two rugged mountain ranges, the Olympics to the west and the Cascades to the east. I highly recommend you use this site! Herbert Hoover was a rising star of American politics when he won the presidential election of 1928. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. A request from the city was that women and children would not be allowed to live in the shantytown. The rectangular reservoir north of Belvedere Castle was taken out of service when the stock market crashed in 1929. Excerpt from "Seattle's Hooverville" by Leslie D. Erb (1935), [1] Donald Francis Roy, "Hooverville: A Study of a Community of Homeless Men in Seattle," (M.A. In this lesson, look at the Great Depression, some historical background, and the definition of and facts about Hoovervilles. Many Americans in need believed the resolution to their problems lay in government assistance, but Hoover resisted such a response throughout his presidency. Hoovervilles were racially integrated. Despite being some of the hardest hit victims of the Great Depression, the encampments residents remained upbeat, naming their neighborhoods Hoover Heights, Merryland, and Happyland. They elected a mayor and a liaison to represent the camp in negotiations with St. Louis authorities. A Brief Look at the U.S. Department of Labor. New York City: Depression shacks "Hoover Village" in the old Central Park reservoir. President Herbert Hoover did not do much to alleviate the crisis: Patience and self-reliance, he argued, were all Americans read more, The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library. A "Hoover flag" was an empty pocket turned inside out and "Hoover leather" was cardboard used to line a shoe when the sole wore through. According to Roy, there was tolerance and friendship among ethnic groups and nationalities because racial barriers did not exist. New York City saw the emergence of many Hoovervilles during the 1930s: During the Great Depression of the 1930s author John Steinbeck wrote "The Grapes of Wrath" about the lives of the people living in the Prairies states and the devastating effects of the Dust Bowl. Create your account, 29 chapters | They posed health risks to their inhabitants as well as to those living nearby, but there was little that local governments or health agencies could do. There is a sorrow here that weeping cannot symbolize.. The Great Depression saw the collapse of the United States' economy, rampant unemployment and a broad sense of hopelessness. Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. Black and white Americans and immigrants from all over the world shared the camp sites. The photograph dates from about 1932 to 1937. which contrasted the prosperity of the previous decade with the current crisis. President Herbert Hoover, however, refused to propose any assistance programs, saying instead that Americans should help each other. https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/hoovervilles. 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Jackson was also the chairperson of the Vigilance Committee. Hoovervilles and Homelessness. The suffering in the Great Depression, from 1929 to 1941, is hard for modern Americans to wrap their minds around. When the government failed to provide relief, President Herbert Hoover was blamed for the intolerable economic and social conditions, so the shantytowns that cropped up became known as Hoovervilles. Although a common factor among Hooverville residents was unemployment, inhabitants took any work that became available, often laboring at such backbreaking, sporadic jobs as fruit picking or packing. In 1932, Hooverville was established in Anacostia, District of Columbia, to house a group of. However, understanding that the campers had nowhere else to go, and fearing that they might still fall victim to the Great Depression themselves, most more affluent people were willing to tolerate the Hoovervilles and their impoverished residents. months[3] = "Check out the interesting and diverse websites produced and created by the international publisher in the Siteseen network. Included are photographs, city documents, a 1934 sociological survey of residents, a short memoir written by the former "mayor" of Hooverville, and more. The economic depression began in September 1929 and was immediately followed by the October 24 Wall Street stock market crash. "Nobody Paid any Attention": The Economic Marginalization of Seattle's Hooverville, Seattles Hooverville: The Failure of Effective Unemployment Relief in the Early 1930s, Hooverville: A Study of a Community of Homeless Men in Seattle, Seattle Municipal Archives Hooverville Documents, Unemployed Citizens League and Poverty Activism, Self-Help Activists: The Seattle Branches of the Unemployed Citizens League, Organizing the Unemployed: The Early 1930s, Civil Rights and Labor History Consortium | University of Washington. Police officers doused the little structures with kerosene and lit them as spectators watched. [17] Movies such as My Man Godfrey (1936) and Sullivan's Travels (1941) sometimes sentimentalized Hooverville life.[18]. Most shanties, however, were distinctly less ambitious: Cardboard-box homes did not last long, and most dwellings were in a constant state of being rebuilt. months[1] = "Find information about the instructive websites produced by international publisher Siteseen Ltd. "; Roy documents a unique spirit of tolerance and amiability between ethnic groups. Back to History for Kids. On two occasions, the Seattle Health Department ordered the residents to leave and burned their shanties when they refused. Hoovervilles were large groups of simple, makeshift houses built by people who had nowhere else to live during the Great Depression. This site uses cookies to improve your experience. In his Pulitzer Prize-winning 1939 novel, The Grapes of Wrath, writer John Steinbeck, vividly described his hardships as a young farmworker in the Weedpatch Hooverville near Bakersfield, California. Unemployed masons used cast-off stone and bricks and in some cases built structures that stood 20 feet high. City of Seattle.Americans React to the Great Depression. These camps came to be called Hoovervilles, after the president. However, prosperity was soon replaced by poverty and optimism by desperation following the stock market crash of October 1929 and the general failure of the nations banking system. Hoover also didn't think it would work and that a crisis such as this one would have to blow over on its own. Hoovervilles of the Great Depression Daily Dose Documentary 6.73K subscribers Subscribe 223 Share 42K views 2 years ago For more episodes, please visit http://dailydosenow.com Today's Daily Dose. Ultimately, they were a bitterly ironic symbol of the suffering inherent in the worst economic crisis in U.S. History. Hoovervilles were quite alike, and his the New mayor allowed the towns Hooverville to thrive and,! Began when an unemployed lumberjack Spread over nine acres ; it housed a population up! Was 25 %, with the economy rebounding during World War II many! 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