Alphabet agencies top trumps
Task Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)
Information
Paid farmers to produce less food. This stopped
overproduction, which meant that prices went back
up and farms started making a profit again. Because
of this, farmers’ incomes doubled in four years (19326).
For each of the alphabet agencies, produce a top trumps card in order to evaluate the success of the agency and its impact on the people of the USA. Once you have read the information, it is up to you to decide which categories to give each card, as different agencies affected different types of people, or had an impact on different parts of the economy. Try to think of at least one category which benefitted from the agency and at least one where the agency did not make any improvements, e.g. The CCC benefitted the unemployed, but did not help women directly as only men were employed under the scheme. Here are some suggestions for your categories:  farmers  industry  the unemployed  the poor and needy  black people  women  housing  children  long‐term future of the USA. Some criticised this agency as it wasted food – the
government bought and slaughtered six million
piglets. It also did not help black sharecroppers,
many of whom were fired because producing less
food and having money to buy machines meant
farmers needed fewer employees.
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Alphabet agencies top trumps
Civil Works Administration (CWA)
Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
Information
Gave jobs to men under 25. These men would move
to government camps and do jobs in the countryside
such as clearing land and planting trees to stop soil
blowing away. In return, the men got clothing, food
and a small wage ($1 a day), most of which was sent
home to help their families. Between 1933 and 1942
nearly three million men were part of the CCC.
However, some people criticised the CCC as cheap
labour. Of the three million who benefitted from
this scheme, only 200,000 were black, who were
segregated in separate camps. Furthermore, women
did not benefit as the work was only for men.
© www.teachithistory.co.uk 2012
Information
Gave people short-term jobs. Four million people
were employed over the winter of 1933-34.
Some of these jobs helped improve infrastructure
such as building roads. However, some people
criticised this agency because many of the jobs
seemed like a waste of tax payers’ money, like
scaring away pigeons or getting out-of-work actors to
put on free shows. These jobs were called
‘boondoggling’.
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Alphabet agencies top trumps
Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)
Public Works Administration (PWA)
Information
FDR gave the FERA $500 million to help the thousands
of Americans who were living in poverty because of
the Depression. They had no homes, money or food.
Most of the money was used to set up soup kitchens
and to provide clothing, schools and employment
schemes.
Information
Created public works of real and lasting value. $4
billion were spent employing skilled men to build
dams, schools, bridges, hospitals, houses and sewage
systems.
However, some people criticised this agency as there
were still lots of people living in poverty. 30% of
black people were still relying on charity in 1935.
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Alphabet agencies top trumps
Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC)
National Recovery Administration (NRA)
Information
Information
The aims of this agency were to:
Loaned money to people to help them pay their
mortgages. This meant that they were less likely to
lose their homes.
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increase workers’ wages so that they could buy
more goods, therefore putting money back into
the economy
increase the price of factory goods
improve conditions in the workplace by limiting
workers hours, setting minimum wages, allowing
workers to join trade unions, and banning child
labour.
Businesses who signed up were allowed to use the Blue
Eagle logo to show that they were part of the scheme.
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Alphabet agencies top trumps
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)
Farm Credit Administration (FCA)
Information
The Tennessee Valley covered seven states which had
had problems with flooding and soil erosion. 33 dams
were built to control the Tennessee River, and
hydroelectric dams provided cheap electricity for
farmers and their families. The TVA became the largest
producer of electricity in America.
Information
Gave loans to a fifth of all farmers so that they would
not lose their farms.
Jobs were created in building these dams, and the land
was improved, allowing farmers to make more money
and improving their standard of living. New towns were
also built as land was no longer likely to flood.
However, when one of these towns, Norris, was built,
black people were not allowed to live there.
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