Tip: Press ctrl and F (or apple and F on a Mac) to perform a keyword search of this page. To keyword search all Best of History Web Sites pages use the search engine located on the home page.
"Did Bernanke save US from another Great Depression?" AFP, September 6, 2009. The causes of last year's financial upheaval remain hotly debated, but many analysts say a swift and massive response by US authorities may have averted another Great Depression. Perhaps the most important player in the crisis was Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke... Read more>>>
"What the Great Depression did to culture" The New Yorker, September 21, 2009. As Morris Dickstein writes in “Dancing in the Dark, ” a bighearted, rambling new survey of American culture in the nineteen-thirties, “The arts bound people together in a collaborative effort to interpret and alleviate their plight.” They were something to turn to when faith in work seemed lost... Read more>>>
"One economist's review of Great Depression cause - a lesson for the future?" San Diego Economy Examiner, September 1, 2009. In general President Hoover merely gets scorn heaped on him for being a free market loving capitalist who fiddled as the economy collapsed. Most historians have accepted this, but recently a number of economists, including UCLA professor Lee Ohanian have begun questioning the theory that Hoover was a free-marketer... Read more>>>
"How Lincoln Might Fix Our Economic Mess" by Richard Striner. As America grapples with the worst economic chain-reaction since 1929 -- and as President-Elect Obama takes time to consider more closely the methods of Abraham Lincoln -- it is time to reconsider a monetary method that Lincoln and the Civil War Republicans used, a monetary method that America's leading economists attempted to revive in the 1930s. . . Read more >>>
"Was the New Deal too small?" Christian Science Monitor, MA - Dec 8, 2008. A lesson from Great Depression, historians say, is that Roosevelt didn't spend enough to jolt economy into recovery.... Read more >>>
General Information
New Deal Network The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute (FERI), in collaboration with the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library, Marist College, and IBM, launched the impressive New Deal Network (NDN). The site features 20,000 items: photographs, speeches, letters, documents, and exercises from the New Deal era
The Hoover Dam (PBS) A companion to the American Experience video series, the site focuses on the Hoover Dam construction. There is a timeline of construction, Dam facts and environmental issues, maps of the Dam, stories of key characters and incidents and a teacher's guide
The Great Depression
Breadline: 1929-1939(PBS) Part of PBS's People's Century television series, this site explores the massive unemployment in America during the Depression and offers interviews, a timeline, and a teacher's guide
American Life Histories, 1936-1940 These life histories were written by the staff of the Folklore Project of the Federal Writers' Project for the U.S. Works Progress (later Work Projects) Administration (WPA) from 1936-1940. The Library of Congress collection includes 2,900 documents representing the work of over 300 writers from 24 states. Typically 2,000-15,000 words in length, the documents consist of drafts and revisions, varying in form from narrative to dialogue to report to case history. The histories describe the informant's family education, income, occupation, political views, religion and morals, medical needs, diet and miscellaneous observations.
Surviving the Dust Bowl (PBS) Part of PBS's American Experience television series, this site examines the region in the Southwest renamed the "Dust Bowl" because of a catastrophic eight-year drought. Included is a time line, maps, eyewitness accounts, New Deal remedies, people and events from the era, and a teacher's guide.
Voices from the Dust Bowl (Library of Congress) This LOC site documents the everyday life of residents in central California in 1940 and 1941. There are audio recordings, photographs, manuscript materials, publications, related sources, and more
Riding the Rails (PBS) Part of PBS's American Experience television series, this site focuses on the plight of more than a quarter million teenagers living on the road in America. There is a timeline, maps, "tales from the rails", Hobo songs, a teacher's guide, recommended resources, and more
U.S. Thrilled as FDR Outlines Recovery, 1933/10/23
American in the 1930s This University of Virginia production features a museum for American studies, cultural maps, on-going hypertext projects, an electronic classroom, and special features.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum Educational Program website includes biographies of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt, a Roosevelt Timeline, Online Documents and Photographs, a Research Guide, and Puzzles and Activities
Depression Papers of Herbert Hoover A large collection with many sections: Tariffs and Agriculture, Economic Stability Program, Relief, Unemployment and Public Works, The Dust Bowl, Banks & Finance, The Federal Budget, Economic Recovery Measures, and the Bonus March.
Studs Terkel: Conversations Produced by the Chicago Historical Society, this site explores the life and work of Studs Terkel, an important American oral historian. Galleries focus on interviews that Mr. Terkel did for his books, including one on the Depression, and also contains a multimedia interview with him.
The Depression News From the Michigan Historical Museum, the site explores the depression in a newspaper format and provides teacher and student resources
Depression Papers of Herbert Hoover
A collection of press statements, radio transcripts, letters, and other messages from Herbert Hoover during the Great Depression. These deal mainly with welfare, unemployment and disaster relief funds, and Red Cross donations. These primary sources are useful as an accompaniment to a study of the Great Depression.
Debunking the Roosevelt Myth The website provides links to online e-books critical of or hostile to Roosevelt including: The Roosevelt Myth (John T. Flynn), Communism at Pearl Harbor (Anthony Kubek), Roosevelt's Road to Russia (George N. Crocker,) and The Yalta Betrayal (Felix Wittmer).
The Great Depression and the 1990's (Lesson Plan) By using the American Memory's American Life Histories, 1936-1940 documents, personal interviews, and the Library of Congress's on-line legislative information (THOMAS), students will be able to gain a better understanding of why the government takes care of its people and how this type of welfare state started. Armed with this knowledge, they can then evaluate the current need of government programs, such as welfare, Medicare and Social Security, on the federal and state level.
Documentary Photography and The Photographic Essay (Lesson Plan) Students will examine and interpret photographs taken by Rondal Partridge, a documentary photographer who worked with Dorothea Lange during the Depression Era. A study of the photographs will enable students to visualize the effects of the Depression on some of America's young people. Reading the captions will provide background information and an opportunity to learn about historical perspective. This lesson plan is provided by the New Deal Network.
Examining the Causes and Effects of the 1929 Stock Market Crash In this lesson, students use New York Times articles covering the stock market collapse in 1929 to analyze the reported causes of this stock market collapse, reactions on many levels to the collapse, and speculated short-term and long-term effects of the collapse. This lesson plan is intended for grades 6-12.
Roosevelt's New Deal (Lesson Plan) Written by teacher Brian Davis of Southern Columbia High School, this lesson plan instructs students on conducting online research and examining the New Deal.
NEW " Irony? Students re-enact life during Great Depression" OCRegister, CA - Dec 11, 2008. "The school's fourth annual reenactment of the Great Depression for US History classes began today and will continue Friday. Weeks before, the students had ..."
Riding the Rails (PBS): Teacher's Guide Students will learn about "teenage hobos" in this depression-era lesson plan. Emphasis is put on the causes of homelessness and what made these young men leave home. The lesson plan also outlines topics for discussion, as well as small group activities.
"Really worse than the Great Depression" -- Former head of Goldman Sachs
Surviving the Dust Bowl (PBS): Teacher's Guide In this PBS lesson plan, students begin studying "The Dust Bowl" and the way in which farmers reacted to it. The Teacher's guide includes 8 activities and discussion topics. PBS recommends the purchase of the film Surviving the Dust Bowl in order to fully utilize this lesson plan.
Lesson Plans - Living Without Technology Presented by PBS, this lesson plan introduces a project that allows students to experience the difficulties of the Great Depression. Students are instructed to live 24 hours without many of today's modern comforts .
Teacher Lesson Plan: Visions in the Dust For grades 6-8, this lesson plan uses photographic examination to teach students about the Dustbowl. This LOC lesson plan also uses PBS resources.
Hard Times, Soft Sell In this high school lesson plan, students use online content from the AMERICAN VISIONS episode entitled Streamlines and Breadlines as a jumping-off point and then explore the social, political, and artistic climate of the 1930s' Great Depression and identify themes that permeated the zeitgeist of that era. Using online, software, video, and multimedia resources, students will investigate diverse people's experiences of the Depression, conduct surveys and interviews, and create and publish a variety of media highlighting Depression-era motifs and resources.
Streamline and Breadlines High School students will learn about the growth and development of cities in America from 1920 through 1940. Immigration, the migration of African-Americans from the South to the urban centers of the North, industrialization, and the Great Depression all affected cities during this period. This lesson will culminate in a student essay that compares two contrasting images from this time period. Students will view two sets of images from Thirteen/WNET's AMERICAN VISIONS Web site. Students will choose one image from each group and compare and contrast the images in an essay.
Educational Resources from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s site offers information on the Federal Reserve System and monetary policy with sections for students, teachers, and the general public. A highlight from the Student Activities section is “FedVille” which allows students to explore the subject of economics through a fun and interactive game. Teacher Resources provides course material and helpful link. For information on a variety of more specific topics, see the helpful Publications section. The San Francisco Fed has great educational resources—don’t miss the FedVille game for younger students!
Economics Resources for K-12 Teachers
EcEdWeb provides thorough and detailed economics lesson plans for grades K-12 that correspond with national standards for public schools. There are about 30 lessons in total, organized by subject, standard, and grade level. Looking at the “concepts” page under either “K-5” or “6-12” is the easiest way to navigate these. And don’t miss the list of “Support Resources”—it includes sites for research, teacher guides, glossaries, and games. This is a great site for teachers!
Digital History Resource Guides The Digital Resource Guides provide links to American history web sites by period and provide historical overviews, readings (online textbook chapter, Reader's Companion), primary source documents (documents, maps, cartoons), teaching resources (chronologies, maps, quizzes), audio-visual resources, and additional resources. The Guides are an excellent and comprehensive teaching resource.
Course Models: Great Depression Part of the California History-Social Science content standards and annotated course which includes: background information, focus questions, pupil activities and handouts, an assessment, and references to books, articles, web sites, literature, audio-video programs, and historic sites. Grade 11.
Interpreting Primary Sources Digital History provides brief excerpts from primary sources and statistics and questions to think about the Great Depression and the New Deal
HistoryTeacher.net: AP United States History Quizzes A New York teacher has produced a great general site for history teachers that offers AP-level United States history quizzes on many different periods and topics.
Economics Resources for K-12 Teachers EcEdWeb is your headquarters for teaching resources for K-12 or pre-college economics. The menus at the top are designed to work the way you work. If you need a lesson or information on a particular concept (e.g. scarcity), start with Concepts.
Summer 2010 Teaching with Technology Workshops
Organized by Tom Daccord and Justin Reich of Best of History Web
Sites, Center for Teaching History with Technology, & National Council
of Social Studies Technology Committee
Join educators from around the world who come to Boston each summer
for a memorable educational experience:
