The Great Depression: History Of The Industrialized Western World

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The Great Depression was the longest and deepest economic down fall in the history of the industrialized Western World. It started not long after the stock market crashed on October 1929 that sent Wall Street into a panic and wiped out millions of investors. It put people on the streets. Banks lost money which made people go to get their money withdrawn. Not long after banks started closing down. It affected both working and middle class people. The depression challenged American families in cruel ways making great economic, social, and psychological strains and demands on families and their members. Families of different class, racial, and regional backgrounds, with various styles of marital and familial relationships, reacted in different ways to the stress and demands placed on them. During 1933 the average family income had dropped down to $1,500, which was 40% less than the 1929 family average income of $2,300. Men often deserted their families. …show more content…
During the next several years consumer spending and investment went down. Which caused a steep decline in industrial output and rising levels of unemployment from failed companies laying off workers. By 1933, when the depression had reached its peak, almost 13 to 15 million Americans were unemployed and almost half the country’s banks had closed down. The worst affects were lessened by relief and reform measures President Franklin Roosevelt put into place in the