Title: Great Depression in Washington State
Headings: Tour the project
Tour the project
A Concise History of the Decade
Poverty
Strikes and Unions
Radicalism
Civil Rights
Politics
Culture and the Arts
University of Washington
Theatre Arts
Visual Arts
Everyday Life
Public Works

Content: Great Depression in Washington State


VIDEO INTRODUCTION Four-minute film introduces themes and resources of the Great Depression in Washington State Project
The Great Depression first shattered and then rebuilt the economy of Washington State, leaving it with roads, bridges, dams, and a new electric grid that set the stage for rapid industrial growth. It rearranged the state's politics, ending decades of Republican rule, setting up a powerful labor movement, a new Democratic Party, and a new set of political priorities. It ended prohibition and launched new cultural institutions. It saw the creation of parks and trails and the realization of a long struggle to create the Olympic National Park. By the end of the 1930s, Washington was a different place, its future beginning to come clear even before World War II turned the state into an aerospace center and industrial powerhouse. The Great Depression in Washington State Project is a multimedia website that explores this important decade. Here you will find detailed accounts of issues, incidents, institutions, and people, along with hundreds of photographs, documents, and news articles from the period. This site is part of the Civil Rights and Labor History Consortium based at the University of Washington. Tour the project
A Concise History of the Decade
Start with a short historical narrative of the Great Depression in Washington State in ten brief illustrated chapters. Poverty
Economics and Poverty The crash of 1929 led to business failures, Hoovervilles, and the organizations of the unemployed.