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The Great Depression Essay
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The Great Depression Essay
On October the 24th, 1929 the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) collapsed when millions of shares at inflated prices were offered on sale. Over $50 billions were lost on what was called "Black Thursday" when the stock prices returned to their actual value. Soon after the crash, the entire world economy began a period of deflation; prices and wages dropped as the demand for goods was significantly reduced. Because of this lack of need for goods production halted and several factories closed; people lost their jobs and businesses were bankrupt. By 1933, nearly half the nations workmen were unemployed, and the youths coming out of high school and university had little hope of beginning a career. A lack of unemployment insurance forced many people to rely on relief from the government. The Depression hit most sectors of the economy very hard. One of the hardest hit was the wheat farming industry. Farmers in the Prairie region of Canada saw the price of a bushel of wheat plummet from $1.60 in 1929 to 38 cents in 1932 because of an oversupplied world market. Many farmers were unable to pay off their loans and lost their farms, others were forced to abandon their farms for lack of money to support themselves. Incomes fell 60% in Alberta and 72% in Saskatchewan. Quebec was also hit hard as the demand for manufactured goods and clothes decreased due to the inability of people, farms, and companies to spend money freely. The many ports of Quebec were...
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