Mrs. Ruland's U.S. History Class Project
Impact of World War II on the Great Depression
Did the Second World War help end the Great Depression?
Due to multiple factors, the United States of America suffered the worst economic slump yet seen in their history from 1929-1939. Franklin D. Roosevelt was trying to battle the Depression with his New Deal, but nothing seemed to get the US economy back where it should be. It took a World War to pull the US out of the Depression.
Even before the United States joined World War Two, the war was helping America 's economy. Policies such as cash and carry increased the need for war goods. Industries therefore geared up to make weapons and the like and had to employ more people to keep up with the demand. Since no one could afford consumer goods, it was a blessing that many factories switched from manufacturing consumer goods to war goods. This way, the factories could take on more employees without worrying about closing, as they weren't dependent of the poverty stricken public. Some Ford factories even stopped building Model-T's to build tanks. After the US joined the war, unemployment dropped even further when American soldiers were sent to Europe , giving them jobs automatically and oftentimes leaving jobs that needed filling. Unemployment had dropped to 670,000 by 1944, or 1 percent of the population, compared to 9.5 million in the depths of the depression (www.learnhistory.org/uk).
Library of Economics and Liberty
This site contains information on American economics through history. It, therefore, had an in depth article on the Great Depression. Although this article didn't focus solely on the end of the Depression, it did offer a general view of that subject, and provided good base research one can build upon.
This site contained an article titled “About the Great Depression,” which gave a good overview of the great depression and World War Two. The article put World War Two's role in ending the war in easy to understand, yet informative terms. This article gave a more in depth look at this particular topic.
The Great Depression and World War II
This site contains an overview of World War Two's effect on the Great Depression. The page offers links that contain different aspects of the war and how they affected the Great Depression. These links contained some information and pictures in association with this topic.
This article on the Great Depression, gave a general overview on the entire Depression. Despite its generality, it still contained some valuable information, that helps broaden the understanding of World War Two's effects on the Great Depression. This article helps the reader better understand how the Great Depression came to be, and the horrors it brought for the world, therefore helping the reader see how WWII brought it to an end.
Timeline of The Great Depression and World War II
This web site portrays an timeline of events, facts, and Acts of the years from the Great Depression to World War Two. Also, after the timeline there is a chart showing the percentages of GNP, unemployment rate, and other similar information during this timeframe. This site is a good source for those looking for straight up facts about the topic.
"World War II Ended the Great Depression"
This entire site focuses on how World War Two brought an end to the Depression. It is full of information. It is a very helpful page for anyone looking for information on how the War contributed to the end of the Depression, and an extremely specific site. Because it is so specific the reader doesn't have to deal with all of the unnecessary information that is usually a bother while researching such a specific topic.
This page is about World War Two and how it affected the end of the Great Depression. It contains a brief, easy to understand, overview of the information, followed by a plethora of facts. All in all, this page is good for those trying to get a general understanding of the War's role in pulling the US out of the depression.
This web site offers an overview of how the war affected the US economy. Because this site focuses solely on the relationship between the economy and the war, it has great content pertaining to this subject, yet isn't overly wordy or overwhelming. It gives useful statistics, facts, and ideas pertaining to this topic.
The Great Depression in the United States
This is an in depth site depicting how the Great Depression affected the US, and the world. It discusses only briefly how the War played a role in the Depression, yet at the same time this source is valuable to anyone researching this topic. It gives the reader a real understanding of the Great Depression, which makes it easier to understand how the War ended it.
This web site covered unemployment trends in the US during the 1930's. It presented the reader with statistics, facts, and easy to understand graphs. Looking at these statistics helps the reader understand how the War pulled the United States out of the depression
By: Maddie, Lindsey, Katie, Liz, and Samantha
Last updated March 28, 2006
© Marcella Ruland 1998-2008, All rights reserved
