Timelines Of The Great Depression

The Great Depression and its effects lasted more than a decade, from 1929 until 1941.

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Following are some of the key dates in the timeline of the Great Depression:
October 29, 1929: Stock market crashed, Black Tuesday
1930: Severe drought and Dust Bowl conditions began to ruin farmers’ land, a condition that lasted until 1935
1931: Food riots broke out, workers marched on Detroit, and “foreign workers” were deported
January 1932: Congress established the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to lend $2 billion to banks, insurance companies, building and loan associations, and farming organizations
Late 1932: Stocks reached their lowest point
November 1932: Franklin D. Roosevelt beat Herbert Hoover in a landslide
March 1933: Franklin D. Roosevelt took office
1933: More than 11,000 of the nation’s 25,000 banks had closed
1933: Roosevelt announced a three-day “bank holiday” to prevent a third run on banks and to shore up the banking system
1933: Unemployment reached its highest level, at 25%
1933: The Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) was established to put young men to work in federal and state parks
1933: The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was introduced
1933: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was established to insure bank deposits
1933: The Civil Works Administration (CWA) was established to employ up to 4 million people on public works projects
1935: The Work Projects Administration (WPA) was formed to employ up to 8.5 million people on public works projects across the country
1935: The Social Security Act was signed into law, financed through payroll taxes
November 1936: FDR was elected to a second term as president
April 1938: FDR asked Congress for an additional $3.75 billion to stimulate the still floundering economy
November 1940: FDR was elected to a third term as president
1941: Preparations for World War II stimulated the American economy and effectively brought an end to the Great Depression