The Great Depression Quiz

Grade 11 · Social Studies · Quiz

Test your knowledge of the Depression's causes, human impact, and FDR's New Deal response.

Questions

1. Which of the following was NOT a direct cause of the Great Depression?

   1. Over-speculation in the stock market
   2. Weak banking regulations
   3. The United States joining the League of Nations
   4. Overproduction and falling agricultural prices throughout the 1920s
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   Answer: The United States joining the League of Nations

   The US never joined the League; the Depression's causes were overspeculation, weak banking, overproduction, and a fragile international financial system.

2. Herbert Hoover's response to the Depression was criticized mainly because he:

   1. Raised taxes sharply on the poor
   2. Opposed direct federal relief, believing the economy would self-correct
   3. Nationalized major banks and industries
   4. Declared martial law in cities with unemployed protests
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   Answer: Opposed direct federal relief, believing the economy would self-correct

   Hoover's ideology of 'rugged individualism' led him to reject direct relief; his limited response was seen as callous and cost him re-election.

3. The FDIC, created in 1933, protects Americans by:

   1. Guaranteeing stock market returns
   2. Insuring bank deposits so savings aren't lost if a bank fails
   3. Providing unemployment benefits to laid-off workers
   4. Regulating mortgage interest rates
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   Answer: Insuring bank deposits so savings aren't lost if a bank fails

   The FDIC restored confidence in banks by guaranteeing depositors would not lose savings even if a bank failed.

4. The Dust Bowl was entirely a natural disaster with no human contribution.

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   Answer: false

   While drought was a natural factor, decades of deep plowing by farmers had destroyed the native grasses that held Great Plains soil in place, making the disaster far worse.

5. FDR's 'First Hundred Days' is famous for:

   1. Declaring war on Japan after Pearl Harbor
   2. Passing an unprecedented volume of relief and recovery legislation
   3. Ending Prohibition through the 21st Amendment
   4. Negotiating the Lend-Lease Act with Britain
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   Answer: Passing an unprecedented volume of relief and recovery legislation

   FDR signed 15 major pieces of legislation in his first 100 days (March–June 1933), transforming the federal government's economic role.

6. What economic policy of 1930 worsened the Depression by triggering foreign trade retaliation?

   1. The Glass-Steagall Act
   2. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff
   3. The Agricultural Adjustment Act
   4. The Wagner Act
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   Answer: The Smoot-Hawley Tariff

   The tariff raised duties on over 20,000 imported goods; trading partners retaliated and global trade fell ~66% by 1934.

7. The Wagner Act of 1935 was significant because it:

   1. Created the Social Security retirement system
   2. Guaranteed workers' right to unionize and bargain collectively
   3. Regulated Wall Street securities trading
   4. Provided federal jobs to unemployed young men
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   Answer: Guaranteed workers' right to unionize and bargain collectively

   The Wagner (National Labor Relations) Act is considered labor's Magna Carta; union membership tripled in subsequent years.

8. Roosevelt's New Deal permanently changed the idea that the federal government should remain largely uninvolved in the economy.

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   Answer: true

   The New Deal established that government has a responsibility to provide economic relief and regulate markets — a principle that remains foundational to American politics.

9. The term 'Hoovervilles' referred to:

   1. Federal housing projects named for President Hoover
   2. Shantytowns where homeless Depression victims lived
   3. Work camps run by the Civilian Conservation Corps
   4. Government soup kitchens funded by Congress
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   Answer: Shantytowns where homeless Depression victims lived

   The sardonic nickname reflected public anger at Hoover's inadequate response to the economic catastrophe.

10. What ultimately ended the Great Depression?

    1. The New Deal programs of 1935
    2. The Social Security Act
    3. Massive government spending during World War II
    4. The repeal of Prohibition in 1933
    Show answer

    Answer: Massive government spending during World War II

    Defense spending from 1940–1945 put millions back to work and effectively ended the unemployment of the Depression era.

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