New Deal Documents

The New Deal was a series of programs and projects instituted during the Great Depression by President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) that aimed to restore prosperity to Americans. When Roosevelt took office in 1933, he acted swiftly to stabilize the economy and provide jobs and relief to those who were suffering. Use the provided resources to answer the questions that follow. All texts must be annotated. All answers must use complete sentences and refer to sources as supporting evidence.

Document 1 Source: Political campaign advertisement for the Republican nominee, Herbert Hoover

Document 2 Source: Results of the 1932 Election, US National Archives

Document 3

Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933

I am certain that my fellow Americans expect that on my induction into the Presidency I will address them with a candor and a decision which the present situation of our people impel. This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself— nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. I am convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these critical days. …We face our common difficulties. They concern, thank God, only material things. Values have shrunken to fantastic levels; taxes have risen; our ability to pay has fallen; government of all kinds is faced by serious curtailment [decrease] of income; the means of exchange [money and credit] are frozen in the currents of trade; the withered leaves [failure] of industrial enterprise [business] lie on every side; farmers find no markets for their produce; the savings of many years in thousands of families are gone… More important, a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an equally great number toil with little return. Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment. Our greatest primary task is to put people to work. This is no unsolvable problem if we face it wisely and courageously. It can be accomplished in part by direct recruiting [hiring] by the government itself…but at the same time, through this employment, accomplishing greatly needed projects to stimulate and reorganize the use of our natural resources. …Finally, in our progress toward a resumption of work we require two safeguards against a return of the evils of the old order; there must be a strict supervision of all banking and credits and investments; there must be an end to speculation with other people’s money, and there must be provision for an adequate but sound currency.”

Document 4

Source: Fireside Chat #1, On the Banking Crisis, from March 12, 1933.

Note: After a month-long run on American banks, Franklin Delano Roosevelt proclaimed a Bank Holiday, beginning March 6, 1933, that shut down the nation’s banking system for a week. On March 12, 1933, the president delivered his first fireside chat to the American people. The fireside chats were a series of 30 evening radio addresses given between 1933 and 1944. Broadcasting nationwide, Roosevelt was able to quell rumors and explain his policies. His tone and demeanor communicated self-assurance during times of despair and uncertainty.

…We had a bad banking situation. Some of our bankers had shown themselves either incompetent or dishonest in their handling of the people's funds. They had used the money entrusted to them in speculations and unwise loans. This was of course not true in the vast majority of our banks, but it was true in enough of them to shock the people for a time into a sense of insecurity…

It was the Government's job to straighten out this situation and do it as quickly as possible -- and the job is being performed. I do not promise you that every bank will be reopened or that individual losses will not be suffered, but there will be no losses that possibly could be avoided; and there would have been more and greater losses had we continued to drift. It has been wonderful to me to catch the note of confidence from all over the country.

…After all there is an element in the readjustment of our financial system more important than currency, more important than gold, and that is the confidence of the people. Confidence and courage are the essentials of success in carrying out our plan. You people must have faith; you must not be stampeded by rumors or guesses. Let us unite in banishing fear. We have provided the machinery to restore our financial system; it is up to you to support and make it work.

It is your problem no less than it is mine. Together we cannot fail.

Document 5 Source: New Deal Programs Created under President Roosevelt (partial list)

Program Initials Begun Purpose

Federal Deposit June Insured savings accounts in banks up to $5,000.00 Insurance FDIC 1933 in 1933 Corporation

Works Progress Employed men and women to build hospitals, WPA 1935 Administration schools, parks, and airports.

Social Security Set up a system of insurance for elderly, SSA 1935 Act unemployed, and the disabled

Civilian April Provided jobs to young men to plant trees, build Conservation CCC 1933 bridges, parks, and set up flood control projects Corps

Securities Set up the Securities and Exchange Commission to SEC 1934 Exchange Act oversee the stock market and advisors

Document 6 Source: Clifford Berryman, Washington Star, January 5, 1934. Library of Congress

Name: Period: 1 3 4 5 New Deal DBQ Answer Sheet Use Documents 1-6 to answer the following questions. All texts must be annotated. All answers must use complete sentences and refer to sources as supporting evidence. Document 1 1. What message is the Republican Party (the G.O.P) trying to convey in the campaign ad?

Document 2 2. Describe the results of the 1932 election. Use your knowledge of the causes of the Great Depression and events prior to 1932 that would explain the results.

Document 3 3. Describe the tone of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first inaugural address. Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

4. What is the purpose of the first paragraph in FDR’s speech? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

5. What problems does FDR identify in his speech? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

(Document 3, continued) 6. What solutions are being proposed in the speech?

Document 4 7. For what reason(s) does Roosevelt say he has closed the nation’s banks?

8. When the banks reopened, Americans returned more than half of the money they had withdrawn during the run on the banks. Within two weeks, the stock market also saw the largest ever one-day percentage price increase. How can FDR’s fireside chat be connected to those results? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

Document 5 9. What did the New Deal programs shown in the table do to solve the nation’s problems?

10. Which government program began first? Why might this have been a good first step towards ending the nation’s problems (as opposed to another issue)?

Document 6 11. What do the three figures in the political cartoon represent?

12. What do the bottles on the table represent?

"Happy Days Are Here Again" – 1932 slogan by Democratic presidential candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt. "We are turning the corner" – 1932 campaign slogan in the depths of the Great Depression by Republican president Herbert Hoover.