The Wall Street
Crash under
Hoover
Understanding the Great Depression's
Beginning
Lesson Goals
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
● Explain the causes of the 1929 Wall Street
Crash.
● Analyse President Hoover’s response to
the economic crisis.
● Evaluate the impact of the Great
Depression on American society.
● Define key economic terms related to the
crash.
Key Vocabulary
Speculation
Speculative
investing: buying
assets for a higher
future price, often
high risk.
Protectionism
Deficit
Tariffs:
Government policy
protecting
domestic
industries from
foreign
competition.
The amount by
which spending
exceeds revenue
over a particular
period.
Recession
Economic activity
declined
significantly for
months.
The Roaring Twenties: A House of Cards?
Overproduction
Factories produced more goods than people
could buy. Warehouses filled up with unsold
cars and radios.
Buying on Margin
People borrowed heavily to buy stocks. They
paid only 10% of the value, hoping prices would
keep rising.
The Bubble Bursts
By September 1929, investors realised prices
were too high. Confidence began to waver.
The Cycle of Collapse
Black Tuesday: The Crash
On 29 October 1929, panic selling hit the New York
Stock Exchange.
● 16 million shares were dumped in one day.
● Investors lost billions of dollars virtually
overnight.
● Banks collapsed as borrowers could not repay
their loans.
This marked the start of the Great Depression.
President Hoover’s Response
Rugged Individualism
Hoover believed people should succeed
through their own efforts. He opposed federal
welfare (handouts), fearing it would make
people lazy.
Limited Action
Cut taxes to help businesses.
Urged businesses to keep wages up.
Signed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff (1930),
raising taxes on imports.
This tariff backfired, hurting global trade and
deepening the depression.
●
●
●
Hoover's Strategy
Answers on the next slide...
What was the main flaw in Hoover's 'Rugged Individualism' approach during the
Depression?
1.
It encouraged too much government spending.
2.
It failed to provide direct relief to suffering citizens.
3.
It forced factories to close down immediately.
4.
It lowered taxes too much for the rich.
Hoover's Strategy
✅
What was the main flaw in Hoover's 'Rugged Individualism' approach during the
Depression?
1.
It encouraged too much government spending.
2.
It failed to provide direct relief to suffering citizens.
3.
It forced factories to close down immediately.
4.
It lowered taxes too much for the rich.
�
Discuss! 󰤈 󰡇 💬
Critical Thinking
Why do you think the Smoot-Hawley
Tariff made the economic situation
worse, rather than better? Consider
international trade relations.
Discuss! 󰤈 󰡇 💬
You might have said...
Other countries retaliated with their own tariffs on American goods.
This reduced the global market for US exports.
International trade shrank, worsening the recession worldwide.
✅
Summary & Impact
The Legacy
Economic Ruin: Unemployment reached
25% by 1933.
● Human Cost: Thousands lost homes,
moving into 'Hoovervilles' (shantytowns).
● Political Shift: The failure of Hoover's
policies paved the way for Franklin D.
Roosevelt's 'New Deal'.
The crash exposed the dangers of unregulated
markets and weak safety nets.
●