Brother, Can Y ou Spare a Dime: The WPA and the Great Depression

1. Brother, Can You Spare a Dime: The WPA and the Great Depression

2. Black Tuesday October 29, 1929

3. Bank Closures 1929-1934

4. Unemployment Levels from 1929-1939

14. Roosevelt’s Alphabet Soup

15. WPA Achievements (by June 1941) • Built or improved enough roads to encircle the world 24 times. • Built or rebuilt 700 miles of bridges. • Constructed enough new public buildings to give 10 to each county in the U.S.

17. The Federal Historical Records Survey • Aim was to compile a bibliography of the historic records of every county. • Many cities had their own. • Employed between 2,750-4,400 people. • Copied records of 40,000 churches.

18. The Federal Theatre Project • For unemployed actors and theatrical people. • Employed between 8,700-12,700 people in 40 cities. • 4,000 of them worked in New York City. • 1,200 of them worked in Los Angeles. • Presented plays, dance and radio dramas. • Seen by 25 million people. • Admission was low-price or free.

19. The Federal Arts Project

20. The Federal Music Project

21. The Federal Writer’s Project • For unemployed writers. • Employed between 3,000-6,700 people. • Produced 275 major books and booklets.

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