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Chapter 9 | Overview Great Depression

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Key Terms

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Great Depression Route 66 The Grapes of Wrath New Deal 100 Days Civilian Conservation Corps Rural Electrification Administration Dust Bowl Indian Reorganization Act Will Rogers Kiowa Six

Chapter Objectives

Learning Outcomes:

The learner will be able to…

  • Describe the political and economic significance of the Great Depression in Oklahoma.
  • Explain how the Great Depression impacted various groups of Oklahomans, including oil workers, farmers, families, and women.
  • Identify New Deal reforms and evaluate their effectiveness in Oklahoma.
  • Describe the causes and conditions of the Dust Bowl and how it impacted different groups of Oklahomans.
  • Describe the contributions of prominent Oklahomans such as Woody Guthrie, “Alfalfa Bill” Murray, and Will Rogers.

Compelling Question:

  • What responsibilities do state and federal governments have during times of crisis?

Chapter Overview

The decade of the 1930s gave rise to new levels of suffering across Oklahoma and throughout the nation. In this chapter we explore the impact of the Great Depression on Oklahomans and the ways they responded with a mix of defiance, humor, optimism, and hopelessness. Oklahomans did not all suffer in equal amounts during this time, but they all did, in one way or another, find their lives and communities challenged by the events that unfolded. The state’s economy, deeply rooted in agriculture and oil, experienced a dramatic downturn. Some Oklahomans were determined to stay put, no matter what happened. Others left the state in droves and were lumped in with other poor migrants fleeing other Dust Bowl states. Collectively these migrants were called “Okies.” Personal recollections, song lyrics, literature, photographs, and other artistic expressions from this time all serve to remind later generations of the toll exacted by the Great Depression. This chapter tells that story.