Page "Herbert Hoover" Paragraph 69

The Great Depression had spread across the globe by 1932.

In the U. S., unemployment had reached 24. 9 %, a drought persisted in the central United States particularly Oklahoma and Texas, businesses and families defaulted on record numbers of loans, and more than 5, 000 banks had failed.

Tens of thousands of Americans found themselves homeless and began congregating in the numerous Hoovervilles ( also known as shanty towns or tent cities ) that began to appear across the country.

Hoover's stance on the economy had been based largely on voluntarism.

That is, expecting churches and social institutions to aid the poor.

However, faced with a tide of poverty, Hoover and the Congress approved the Federal Home Loan Bank Act, to spur new home construction and reduce foreclosures.

The plan seemed to work, as foreclosures dropped, but it was seen as too little, too late.