Hoovervilles
What is a hooverville?
Hoovervilles are grungy towns built by the homeless people during the great depression. Its claimed that a hooverville is "a place for anyone that has no where else to go." Why are they called "hoovervilles"? They are called "hoovervilles" because they are named after Herbert Hoover who was the president at the time. He led the country into a state of economic failure and led many people into poverty. What were used to build hoovervilles? Some people were more crafty and were able to build their houses out of stone. However, most people used cardboard, old wood, and scrap pieces of metal. Some used newspaper for blanketing and cardboard to fix the soles of their worn shoes. How large were hoovervilles? Hoovervilles were generally, many miles long. A specific hooverville in Seattle, Washington was 9 acres long and housed more than 1,200 people. This was one of the largest and longest lasting hoovervilles. How were hoovervilles destroyed? When poverty and unemployment decreased many programs, such as, the shanty eradication program destroyed all of the hoovervilles. |