LIFE FOR THE FAMILY IN THE GREAT DEPRESSION

 LIFE FOR THE FAMILY IN THE GREAT DEPRESSION

The average American family lived by the Depression-era motto: “Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without.” They kept kitchen gardens, patched worn-out clothes and passed on trips to the movies as they privately struggled to retain ownership of a home or automobile.

Women’s magazines and radio shows taught Depression-era homemakers how to stretch their food budget with casseroles and one-pot meals. Favorites included chili, macaroni and cheese, soups, and chipped beef on toast.

Potlucks, often organized by churches, became a popular way to share food and a cheap form of social entertainment.

Many families strived for self-sufficiency by keeping small kitchen gardens with vegetables and herbs. Some towns and cities allowed for the conversion of vacant lots to community “thrift gardens” where residents could grow food.

Before the Depression, going to the movie theater was a major pastime. Fewer Americans could afford this luxury after the stock market crashed. Neighbors got together to play cards, and board games such as Scrabble and Monopoly—both introduced during the 1930s—became popular.

Some families had fun putting together puzzles with hundreds of pieces. They put the puzzle pieces on a table in the parlor and different members of the family worked on the puzzle when they had time after chores or on Sunday afternoons. Sometimes it took several weeks to assemble a hard puzzle with lots of pieces.

The radio also provided a free form of entertainment. By the early 1930s, many middle class families owned a home radio. Comedy programs such as Amos ‘n’ Andy, soap operas, sporting events and swing music distracted listeners from everyday struggles.

Mini-golf became a Depression-era craze. More than 30,000 miniature golf links sprang up across the country during the 1930s.

Women entered the workforce in increasing numbers. Some people criticized married women for taking jobs when so many men were out of work, though women often took clerical or service industry positions that weren’t seen as socially acceptable for men at the time.

Prior to the Great Depression, most Americans had negative views of government welfare programs and refused to go on welfare. In some towns, local newspapers published the names of welfare recipients. While attitudes toward government assistance began to change during the Great Depression, going on welfare was still viewed as a painful and humiliating experience for many families.

Economic hardship caused family breakdowns. The stress of financial strain took a psychological toll—especially on men who were suddenly unable to provide for their families. The national suicide rate rose to an all-time high in 1933.

Marriages became strained, though many couples could not afford to separate. Divorce rates dropped during the 1930s though abandonments increased. Some men deserted their families out of embarrassment or frustration: This was sometimes called a “poor man’s divorce.”More than 200,000 vagrant children wandered the country as a result of the breakup of their families.

The Great Depression forced couples to delay marriage and drove the birthrate below the replacement level for the first time in American history. 

To save money, families neglected medical and dental care. Despite a steep decline in food prices, many families did without milk or meat. 

People would stand in bread lines to get any food they could. They would also look for food at soup kitchens, which were run by charities and provided hot meals for men, women and children that couldn't afford food. It is estimated that one-third of American children did not have the food they needed and often went to bed hungry.

After the stock market crash, many businesses started to close or to lay off workers. Many families did not have money to buy things, and consumer demand for manufactured goods fell off. Fewer families were buying new cars or household appliances. People learned to do without new clothing. Many families could not pay their rent. Some young men left home by jumping on railroad cars in search of any job they could get.

During World War I, farmers worked hard to produce record crops and livestock. When prices fell they tried to produce even more to pay their debts, taxes and living expenses. In the early 1930s prices dropped so low that many farmers went bankrupt and lost their farms.

In some ways farmers were better off than city and town dwellers. Farmers could produce much of their own food while city residents could not. Almost all farm families raised large gardens with vegetables and canned fruit from their orchards. They had milk and cream from their dairy cattle. Chickens supplied meat and eggs. They bought flour and sugar in 50-pound sacks and baked their own bread. In some families the farm wife made clothing out of the cloth from flour and feed sacks. They learned how to get by with very little money. But they had to pay their taxes and debts to the bank in cash. 

Town families could not produce their own food. Many city dwellers often went hungry. Sometimes there were soup kitchens in larger cities that provided free meals to the poor. Winters were an especially hard time since many families had no money to buy coal to heat their houses.

The government created programs to put Americans to work. The Works Progress Administration (WPA) hired many men to work on parks, roads, bridges, swimming pools, public buildings and other projects. Teen age boys were hired by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). They lived in barracks, were given clothing, and provided with free meals. The small salary that they earned was sent back to help their families. The CCC boys planted trees, helped create parks, and did other projects to beautify and preserve natural areas.

With the coming of World War II, the government began hiring many men to serve in the army. Factories began receiving orders for military supplies. 

But the memories of the Depression did not go away. Many Americans worried that when the war ended, hard times would come again.