The Great Depression & WWII In NC

The Great Depression & WWII In NC

The Great Depression

Businesses in the United States and North Carolina grew quickly in the early 1900s. As businesses grew, they hired more workers.

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During this time, many people bought stocks. A stock is a share of ownership in a company.

As a business makes money, the price of its stock goes up. However, if a business loses money, the price of its stock goes down.

Multiple Choice

What is a stock?

• goods or merchandise

• something regularly used

• A share of ownership in a company

• well kept

Many people believed that stock prices would never fall. Some even borrowed money to buy stock. However, in October 1929 stock prices did fall. As people rushed to sell their shares, the prices fell even more. By the end of October, stock prices had crashed. The prices of many stocks fell so low that they were worthless.

Multiple Choice

Why did people rush to sell their stocks when the market crashed?

• To try to get their money back since the stocks were worthless

• Because they were worth more money now and could make a profit

The stock market crash led to the Great Depression. A depression is a time when there are few jobs and people have little money. In

North Carolina, many businesses and banks closed. Unemployment, or the number of people without jobs, was high. Many people could not afford homes, cars, or other goods.

Multiple Choice

Which happens during a depression?

• People buy stock

• People lose their jobs

• Businesses grow

• Stock prices rise

Open Ended

Describe some of the effects of The Great Depression in North Carolina.

The New Deal

In 1932, Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President of the United States. He came up with a plan to help the country deal with the Great

Depression. The plan was called the New Deal.

Multiple Choice

What was the name of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s plan to help provide jobs?

• the Great Depression

• Pearl Harbor

• war bonds

• The New Deal

Under the New Deal, the government set up programs to provide jobs for people. One pro-

gram was the Tennessee Valley Authority, or TVA. The TVA built dams on the Tennessee River and its tributaries to control flooding and produce electricity. The highest dam built by the TVA is Fontana Dam, in North Carolina.

Multiple Choice

Which government program built Fontana Dam in the North Carolina mountains?

• the Works Progress Administration

• the Tennessee Valley Authority

• the Civilian Conservation Corps

• the Blue Ridge Parkway

New Deal programs helped many Americans.

The Civilian Conservation Corps, or CCC, paved roads, planted trees, and built water and sewage systems. In North Carolina, the CCC built the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Works Progress Administration, or WPA, hired workers to build airports, post offices, and other public buildings. It also hired artists and writers. Artists for the WPA painted murals in many public buildings in North Carolina.

Open Ended

List some of the ways The New Deal provided jobs in North Carolina.

World War II

World War II began in 1939. In this war, the Allied Powers—Britain, France, and the Soviet Union—fought against Germany, Italy, and Japan. The United States joined the Allied Powers after December 7, 1941. On that day, Japan bombed American ships at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Multiple Choice

What event caused the United States to join the Allied Forces in WWII?

• the sinking of the Lusitania

• the bombing of Pearl Harbor

• the Great Depression

• The New Deal

Many soldiers were trained at military camps in North Carolina. About 361,000 North Carolinians joined the armed forces. Women served as doctors, nurses, and mechanics. At home, women once again filled jobs in factories. Sugar, gasoline, and other goods were rationed, or controlled by the government. People could only buy small amounts of these goods.

Multiple Choice

What is a ration?

• a valuable good that is sold at a high price

• goods that are easily found

• good controlled by the government

• a renewable resource

Open Ended

How did women help support the war effort during both world wars?

The Allied Powers won the war in 1945. About 400,000 United States soldiers died, including more than 8,000 from North Carolina.