Did you you ever watch the television show "The Waltons"? It was supposed to be about a family in Virginia in the Depression Era. Now, as I understand it, people in the Appalachia Region were already starving about ten years before the rest of the country was in a depression. But the Waltons' had a large comfortable house with hot and cold running water, indoor toilet, electricity and a phone (all quite a feat in a rural community), and a truck. Their kids had nice clothes, shoes, and plenty to eat. I guess that Hollywood's idea of poverty, but its not the story your grandparents and/or great-grandparents will tell you.
| Hard Times | Herbert Hover and the Great Depression | The New Deal | Tenn. Valley Authority |
| Works Progress Administration | Civilian Conservation Corps | The Dust Bowl | Gangsters |
Main
Causes of the Great Depression
The
Great Depression, Good & Bad
The
Easy Life of the '20s Contributed to Great Depression
Herbert
Hoover and the Great Depression
A president blamed for a financial disaster not of his making. Faced with a daunting task, President Hoover did more in trying to turn the failed economy around and relieve the suffering of the people than he was given credit for.
Herbert
Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
The
Life of Herbert Hoover
The
New Deal
F.D.R.'s programs didn't end the depression, WWII did. His programs did give the people hope. We still reap benefits from some of these works such as some of the roads and other facilities in our parks.
The Tennessee Valley Authority was originally part the WWI war effort. It was dropped after the war ended. F.D.R. revived it and used it as one of several vehicles for his "New Deal" creating an infrastructure that would later bring prosperity to this region.
The WPA (Works Progress Administration. Folks said that WPA stood for "we piddle around", go to the these sites and see what you think:
For the those familiar with Monte Sano State Park in Huntsville the pavilions and cabins were built by the C.C.C.
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Surviving the Dust Bowl |
Drought
in the Dust Bowl Years |
Gangsters The Thirties was time of Gangsters. John Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, Machine Kelly, and Bonnie and Clyde were big news. Following are some links I have found that feature these gangsters:
Bonnie
Parker
John
Herbert Dillinger
Crime
Library's John Dillinger
John
Dillinger Scrap Book (very good)
John
Dillinger - The Hidden Truth
Charles
Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd
The
Kansas City Massacre
Public
Enemy No. 1
Did
Pretty Boy Floyd Join theDillinger Gang?
The
Crime Library's Pretty Boy Floyd
Lester
M. Gillis, aka: "Baby Face" Nelson
Famous
Cases - Baby Face Nelson
The
Crime Library's Baby Face Nelson
Photos
Baby
Facts
George
"Machine Gun" Kelly
Machine
Gun Kelly
The
Crime Library's "Machine Gun Kelly"
Alcatraz
History - Machine Gun Kelly
About
Machine Gun Kelly
Ma
Barker and Her Gang
The
Crime Library's Barker and Karpis Gang
Barker
and Karpis Gang FBI File
Harvey Bailey - The Dean of American Bank Robbers
The Forgotten Harry Pierpont - Rode with John Dillinger
Back to the History Page