Click here to see more photographs of Hoovervilles and homeless encampments in Seattle and Tacoma. “Hooverville” became a common term for shacktowns and homeless encampments during the Great Depression.
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What were the slums in the Great Depression called?
A “Hooverville” was a shanty town built during the Great Depression by the homeless in the United States. They were named after Herbert Hoover, who was President of the United States during the onset of the Depression and was widely blamed for it.
Where did the homeless go during the Great Depression?
Hoovervilles
“Hoovervilles” were hundreds of makeshift homeless encampments built near large cities across the United States during the Great Depression (1929-1933). Dwellings in the Hoovervilles were little more than shacks built of discarded bricks, wood, tin, and cardboard.
Was everyone homeless during the Great Depression?
During the Great Depression, there were 2 million homeless people in the United States. The stock market hit a low in 1932 closing at 41.22, down 89.2% from its all-time high. It is interesting to note that one industry actually did very well during this period of time. It was the Hollywood film industry.
What is the difference between a shantytown and a slum?
So a slum is poorly maintained housing stock that would have originally been built “to code”. It would generally still have municipal services like water, electricity, and telephones. A shanty town is a collection of makeshift housing thrown together with no recognizable organization.
Why was it called Hooverville?
The towns were named “Hoovervilles,” because of President Herbert Hoover’s ineffective relief policies. Mass unemployment was rampant among men aged 18–50, and the lack of a social safety net continued to push them down the ladder.
What did they eat in Hoovervilles?
There were several terms for commonly eaten food. One was a “Hoover Hog”, a jackrabbit, a source of food used, when no other was available. There was also Mulligan Stew, where homeless people gathered together any food they could find, and made soup out of it for everyone.
Who lived in Hoovervilles?
Summary and definition: The Shanty Towns, known as Hoovervilles, sprang up across the nation during the Great Depression (1929 – 1941). They were built by unemployed impoverished Americans that had been made homeless and had nowhere else to live. By 1932, between one and two million American people were homeless.
When did Hoovervilles end?
This Hooverville was established on lands owned by the Seattle Port Commission and lasted ten years from its establishment in 1931 until its final destruction in 1941.
What does a shantytown look like?
A typical shanty town is squatted and in the beginning lacks adequate infrastructure, including proper sanitation, safe water supply, electricity and street drainage. Over time, shanty towns can develop their infrastructure and even change into middle class neighbourhoods.
What are shanty houses made of?
Shanty towns are also known as squatter settlements. These improvised housing developments are often made up of corrugated metal, plywood, cardboard boxes and sheets of plastics, with these impromptu homes often called shacks.
What means shanty town?
: a usually poor town or section of a town consisting mostly of shanties.
Why were there so many orphans during the Great Depression?
While Mills Home eventually moved in that direction, during the Great Depression orphanages were contending with constrained resources and overwhelming numbers of needy children. Those circumstances meant crowded residential cottages, separation of the children by sex, and grouping by age in the housing arrangements.
What was a typical meal during the Great Depression?
Chili, macaroni and cheese, soups, and creamed chicken on biscuits were popular meals. In the 70 or more years since the Great Depression, a lot has changed on the farms of rural America.
What did Hoovervilles look like?
Hooverville shanties were constructed of cardboard, tar paper, glass, lumber, tin and whatever other materials people could salvage. Unemployed masons used cast-off stone and bricks and in some cases built structures that stood 20 feet high.
Who was blamed for the Great Depression?
President Hoover
By the summer of 1932, the Great Depression had begun to show signs of improvement, but many people in the United States still blamed President Hoover.
What kind of soup was served in the Great Depression?
Hoover Stew
Hoover Stew was served in soup kitchens across the country during The Great Depression in the early 1930’s, designed to give even the poorest families something to eat.
What was a Hoover blanket?
Hoover blanket (plural Hoover blankets) (US, dated, especially during the Depression) Old newspaper or cardboard, used by a homeless person to cover themselves for warmth.
What did kids do in Hoovervilles?
Kids played games they made up. People tried to keep their spirits up with songs and music. But the camps were full of disease, and dirt, and depression. No one wanted a Hooverville near or in their city or town.
How did people keep their homes in the Great Depression?
More than one million homeowners faced foreclosure, as people immediately resorted to homes made entirely out of scrapyard materials—loose lumber, cardboard, with newspapers as blankets. Some people simply lived out of empty conduits and water mains.
Are shanty towns illegal?
A shanty town (also called a squatter settlement) is a type of slum settlement (sometimes illegal or unauthorized) containing improvised dwellings made from scrap materials: often plywood, corrugated metal, and sheets of plastic.