The Great Depression, The New Deal, and WWII

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Lasting economic and social conditions within the state including failure of banks, mills, and other businesses, decrease in the birth rate, displacement of individuals and families, and growing dependence on government assistance

The Great Depression was not caused by the stock market crash. Although the crash marked what is recognized as the beginning of the Great Depression nationally, South Carolina had been in a depression many years before the crash . After the stock market crash, conditions continued to deteriorate in South Carolina. More banks failed and some textile mills closed their doors.

More farmers lost their land to foreclosure and a railroad went bankrupt. A quarter of the people in South Carolina were unemployed and people had no money to spend in their local stores. Marriage and birth rates dropped dramatically as people postponed starting families because they could not afford them. Young men wandered from town to town or rode the rails searching for work or a handout. Charitable organizations, such as churches and community groups, could not keep up with the need for food, clothing, and shelter. People looked to the government for help.

Role of James F. Byrnes and Mary McCleod Bethune in President Roosevelt's administration

Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected President of the United States in November 1932 on the promise that he would bring a New Deal to the American people. By the time he was inaugurated in March of 1933, conditions were even worse. Roosevelt sought advice from South Carolinians, most notably James F. Byrnes and Mary McLeod Bethune. Byrnes was elected to the United States Senate in 1930 where he helped Roosevelt pass the New Deal through Congress and served as an important domestic policy adviser. Byrnes was South Carolina’s Senator until 1941 when he accepted an appointment to the Supreme Court.

He later served as head of the Office of War Mobilization, Secretary of State. and Governor of South Carolina. Mary McLeod Bethune was an African American educator and civil rights leader who founded a college and organized the National Council of Negro Women. She served as the Director of Negro Affairs for the National Youth Administration and was an influential member of the unofficial “Black Cabinet,” a group of African American leaders President Roosevelt consulted.

FDR's First Hundred Days

During his first "hundred days" in office, President Roosevelt started an aggressive program to bring relief, recovery, and reform to the country. He used the radio for "fireside chats" to reassure the American people that they had "nothing to fear but fear itself." New Deal programs were not specifically designed for South Carolina, however, certain programs had significant and long-term impacts on the people of South Carolina.

Role of the CCC in the creation of state parks and the promotion of land conservation

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) put unemployed young men to work in the nations’ parks. They lived in army camps and sent most of their pay home to help their struggling families and pumped money into the economy. Over 50,000 South Carolinians were employed in reforestation and soil conservation projects and in building parks including Hunting Island, Paris Mountain, Poinsett, and Myrtle Beach State Parks. The CCC reflected the prejudices of the times and was racially segregated.

Role of the PWA and WPA in creating public schools, libraries, courthouses, airports, bridges, and highways

The Public Works Administration (PWA) and the Works Progress Administration (WPA) engaged in building projects that not only put people to work but also provided lasting improvements for the community. The PWA built schools, libraries, and courthouses as well as United States Navy aircraft carriers. The WPA built highways, airports, bridges, and playgrounds as well as hospitals and schools.

Cultural impact of the WPA in promoting the arts and collecting oral histories (narratives) of former slaves

Artists and writers were also employed by the WPA. They produced murals and plays and recorded interviews with former slaves that preserved the historical record of African Americans in South Carolina. African Americans did not receive their fair share of New Deal assistance and continued to be discriminated against in hiring by these programs. Job creation programs put some people to work, alleviated their despair and economic hardship, and pumped some money into the economy. However, the New Deal did not result in economic recovery.

Lasting impact of the the Social Security Act

The Social Security Act was designed as a reform of the system to prevent future depressions and provide protection for the elderly, the orphaned, the disabled, and the unemployed. The system of old age pensions was particularly important to South Carolina because it was one of only a few states that did not offer such an insurance program.

The cost was shared by workers and their employers. Social Security was also the basic social welfare legislation in the United States and set the precedent for future aid to people in need. Because of this, Social Security was criticized. The poverty rate for the elderly declined significantly as a result of Social Security. The Social Security System has had a profound impact on Americans of all ages.

Economic impact of the Santee Cooper Electricity Project in the state

The Santee Cooper Electricity Project was the largest New Deal project in South Carolina and was promoted by South Carolina Senator and New Deal supporter James F. Byrnes. The project built dams on the Santee and the Cooper Rivers, creating Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie. These hydroelectric dams produced power to region, provided jobs to those who built the dams and to others in industries made possible by the power the project provided, and improved living conditions for many South Carolinians.

Impact of the Rural Electrification Act on small farmers and families in rural areas

The Rural Electrification Act brought power to many of the farms and rural regions of South Carolina. By creating power cooperatives, citizens were able to get government loans and work together to provide electricity to less populated areas where commercial power companies were unwilling to string power lines. By 1940, twenty five percent of farms had electricity. Although dispossessed land owners were offered meager compensation, other farmers were able to install milking machines and water pumps that made farming more profitable.

Causes and lasting consequences of the general textile strike of 1934 in South Carolina

Other New Deal programs were designed to address the problems of overproduction and declining prices for farmers and industry . The National Recovery Act set up codes for industries that would regulate prices for consumers and hours and wages for workers. The code for textile mills did not affect the “speed up” or the “stretch out” that mill owners used to get more productivity out of their workers, nor did it guarantee workers a forty hour week. As a result of the workers dissatisfaction with wages and working conditions, mill workers in South Carolina joined a labor union and called a general strike in 1934.

The strike affected mills along the eastern seaboard. Soon violence broke out between union members and strike breakers (scabs). In South Carolina, deputies fired on a crowd in Honea Path killing seven workers and injuring others. President Roosevelt urged the workers to end the strike and allow arbitration to find a settlement. Strikers agreed, but many South Carolina mill owners did not, keeping their mills closed even when the workers were ready to return. The strike led to the collapse of the union in South Carolina. The New Deal later passed laws that established a minimum wage and maximum hours for industrial workers and recognized their right to form a union and bargain collectively. In South Carolina the general textile strike intensified anti-union sentiment which continues today.

Although the New Deal had a lasting impact on the United States and South Carolina, it did not end the Great Depression. The depression ended when the United States became involved in helping the Allies fight Hitler’s Germany in World War II.

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