During WWI, this area belonged to the Port of Seattle but was occupied by the Skinner and Eddy shipyard. Many Americans in need believed the resolution to their problems lay in government assistance, but Hoover resisted such a response throughout his presidency. St. Louis Hooverville, built in 1930, had its own unofficial mayor, churches and social institutions. A Hooverville near Portland, Oregon. lessons in math, English, science, history, and more. Response from Health Department (May 23, 1935) Where were Hoovervilles situated? No one knows, but there were literally millions of homeless people during the Great Depression so it seems reasonable to estimate the number as several thousands. Hoover was largely blamed for the ineffective federal role to that point, and Americans were largely thankful to see their government trying any policy. Some cities allowed squatter encampments for a time, others did not. The name was a reference to Herbert Hoover who was the President of the United States during the at the start of the Depression and widely blamed for it. Some shelters were little more than holes in the ground covered with tin or cardboard. (Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images). Farming in 1935 . When Roosevelt took office in 1933, he acted swiftly to stabilize the economy and provide jobs and relief read more, The Stock Market Crash of 1929 occurred on October 29, 1929, when Wall Street investors traded some 16 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. [2], Tacoma's "Hollywood-on-the-Tideflats" was burned by city officials in May 1942, but was soon reoccupied and rebuilt. Excerpt from "Hooverville: A Study of a Community of Homeless Men in Seattle" by Donald Francis Roy (1935) A Brief Look at the U.S. Department of Labor. [2] Donald Francis Roy, a citizen of Seattles Hooverville, took detailed recordings of the population during his time there. Exhibit C: Physical Conditions and Occupancy of Shacks (March 5, 1941) And although private philanthropy increased during the early 1930s, the amounts given were not enough to make a significant impact. They were built by unemployed impoverished Americans that had been made homeless and had nowhere else to live. As the Depression worsened in the 1930s many looked to the federal government for assistance. Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images. Advertisement. The Great Depression caused social upheaval and political unrest. Seattle's decision to raze Hooverville in 1941 and expel its residents relied on a discourse of "otherness" that set Hooverville economically, socially, and geographically apart. 10 Facts About the Great Depression. Seattle lies on a narrow strip of land between the salt waters of Puget Sound and the fresh waters of Lake Washington. On two occasions, the Seattle Health Department ordered the residents to leave and burned their shanties when they refused. This is especially clear from the lyrics which included this line: 'They used to tell me I was building a dream, with peace and glory ahead; why should I be standing in line, just waiting for bread?'. Hoovervilles began to disappear after the election of Franklin Roosevelt, whose New Deal promised to put the federal government into activist mode to try to end the Great Depression. This site uses cookies to improve your experience. Shanty towns also appeared in or near other cities. However, understanding that the campers had nowhere else to go, and fearing that they might still fall victim to the Great Depression themselves, most more affluent people were willing to tolerate the Hoovervilles and their impoverished residents. People were expected to fend for themselves. Hoovervilles and Homelessness. Although people would often use castoff lumber and building materials, more often than not Hooverville structures were built with cardboard, tar paper, and other comparatively flimsy elements. The nickname 'Hooverville' was given to the shanty towns that sprang up across the nation during the Great Depression. St. Louis, Missouri, and Seattle, Washington, were home to two of the countrys largest and longest-standing Hoovervilles. Covering nine acres of public land, it housed a population of up to 1,200, claimed its own community government including an unofficial mayor, and enjoyed the protection of leftwing groups and sympathetic public officials Library of Congress. This was Port of Seattle property that had been occupied by Skinner and Eddy shipyard during World War I. Hooverville shanties were constructed of cardboard, tar paper, glass, lumber, tin and whatever other materials people could salvage. The largest Hooverville, located in St. Louis, Missouri, was home to as many as 8,000 homeless people from 1930 to 1936. [1] [2] Jesse Jackson, "The Story of Seattle's Hooverville," in Calvin F. Schmid, Social Trends in Seattle (Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1944), 286-93. The majority of the homeless chose to live in small towns where they could easily access free soup kitchens. Hoovervilles varied in size from a few hundred residents to thousands of people in larger cities like New York City, Washington, D.C., and Seattle, Washington. Hundreds of Hoovervilles were established across the country during the 1930s. This began with a heated debate over the status and rights of Hooverville residents, who became more visible in petitions submitted throughout the late 1930s. In 1934, Roy recorded a population of non-White people, including Black men, Costa Rican, Chilean, Filipino, Japanese, Mexican, and. Over the next several read more, Disenchantment with Prohibition had been building almost from the moment it first took effect in 1920. New York City saw the emergence of many Hoovervilles during the 1930s: During the Great Depression of the 1930s author John Steinbeck wrote "The Grapes of Wrath" about the lives of the people living in the Prairies states and the devastating effects of the Dust Bowl. By 1932, between one and two million American people were homeless. months[11] = "A vast range of highly informative and dependable articles have been produced by the Siteseen network of entertaining and educational websites. Today the nine acre site is used to unload container ships. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); By 1932, between one and two million American people were homeless. Both his parents were dead by the time he was nine. In turn, a new lexicon came into being -- words like "Hoovervilles," "Hoover blankets" and "Hoover hogs." Roosevelts recovery program, known as the New Deal, eventually reduced unemployment, regulated banking and helped turn the ailing economy around with public works projects and other economic programs. Summary and Definition: The Shanty Towns, known as Hoovervilles, sprang up across the nation during the Great Depression (1929 - 1941). No two Hoovervilles were quite alike, and the camps varied in population and size. After hosting several homeless settlements, the reservoir was dubbed the Hoover Valley and Depression Street. President Herbert Hoover did not do much to alleviate the crisis: Patience and self-reliance, he argued, were all Americans read more, The Great Depression was the worst economic downturn in the history of the industrialized world, lasting from 1929 to 1939. By 1932, Hoover was so unpopular that he had no realistic hope of being re-elected, and Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York won that years presidential election in November by a landslide. One-fourth of all workers were unemployed. See the fact file below for more information on the Hoovervilles, or alternatively, you can download our 20-page Hooverville worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment. He was proud of the self-built community, saying "Hooverville is the abode of the forgotten man." months[5] = "Explore the interesting, and fascinating selection of unique websites created and produced by the Siteseen network. It is a city built on hills and around water, in a mild marine climate that encourages prolific . The Shanty Town was not new to America. "Nobody Paid any Attention": The Economic Marginalization of Seattle's Hooverville, by Dustin Neighly, Seattles Hooverville: The Failure of Effective Unemployment Relief in the Early 1930s by Magic Demirel, Hooverville: A Study of a Community of Homeless Men in Seattle by Donald Francis Roy, The Story of Seattle's Hooverville by Jesse Jackson, "Mayor" of Hooverville, Seattle Municipal Archives Hooverville Documents. It was headed by the Commissioner of Health, the Superintendent of Buildings, the Chief of Police, and the Chief of the Fire Department, tasked to draft a plan on how to proceed with the elimination of Hooverville. Twelve million Americans, about 25% of the normal labor force, were out of work and many suffered poverty, deprivation and homelessness. A 'Hooverville' on waterfront of Seattle, Washington, March 1933. The Great Depression drew to an end with the outbreak of WW2 and municipal programs aimed at "eradicating" shantytowns destroyed all the Hoovervilles. "Hoovervilles: Homeless Camps of the Great Depression." Inhabitants living in the primitive conditions of the shantytowns were subject to many health problems. He had first achieved fame during World War I when he ran the U.S. Food Administration, and his managerial skills, relentless work ethic, and ability to feed both the troops and the homefront simultaneously won him enormous praise. It was a highly diverse population. Around 15,000 men joined the movement, many of whom came from far away and arrived in the area by illegally riding on railroad freight trains. With such a well-developed social order, the camp maintained itself as a functional separate community from 1930 to 1936, when President Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal sweeping economic recovery plan allocated federal funds for its removal. Hoovervilles are very similar to refugee camps. He described the population as fluid in 1938, owing to men selling their homes to newcomers and moving on. months[2] = "Learning made easy with the various learning techniques and proven teaching methods used by the Siteseen network. The camps, dubbed Hoovervilles after Republican President Hoover, often sprang up near charity operated soup kitchens and rivers for drinking water and limited sanitary needs. Thesis, University of Washington, 1935), pp.42-45. It comes from the New York Public Library. "; Beyond the waters lie two rugged mountain ranges, the Olympics to the west and the Cascades to the east. Hoovervilles: Homeless Camps of the Great Depression. President Herbert Hoover lost the election in 1932 to Franklin D. Roosevelt. [3] Men, women and children alike lived in Hoovervilles. 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To find out more, see our, Download the Hooverville Facts & Worksheets, Hooverville Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com, Resources created by teaching professionals. Americas longest lasting Hooverville in Seattle, Washington, stood for ten years, from 1931 to 1941. Life in these Hoovervilles was difficult and caused many people to migrate throughout the United States in search of better opportunities elsewhere. The highly unpopular Hoover was defeated in the 1932 presidential election by Franklin D. Roosevelt, whose New Deal recovery programs eventually helped lift the United States out of the Depression. Hooverville was a small town founded by homeless people in the United States during the Great Depression. He counted 639 residents in March of that year, all but seven of them men. Some people . Homeless people were forced to live in absolute poverty in the Hoovervilles or shantytowns in the 1930s. 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