---
id: kb-2026-00363
title: Great Depression
schema_type: TechArticle
category: history
language: en
confidence: medium
last_verified: '2026-05-25'
created_date: '2026-05-22'
generation_method: ai_structured
ai_models:
  - claude-opus
derived_from_human_seed: true
conflict_of_interest: none_declared
is_live_document: false
data_period: static
atomic_facts:
  - id: fact-history-001
    statement: >-
      The Great Depression (1929-1939) was the worst economic downturn in modern history. Trigger: US stock market crash (October 1929). Global unemployment reached 25-33%. Bank failures, deflation,
      dust bowl. FDR's New Deal (1933) provided relief, recovery, reform. WWII ultimately ended the Depression through massive government spending.
    source_title: 'The Great Depression: A Diary (Benjamin Roth)'
    source_url: https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/benjamin-roth/the-great-depression/9781586489014/
    confidence: low
  - id: fact-history-002
    statement: 'Causes: stock market speculation, bank failures, reduction in purchasing power, drought (Dust Bowl).'
    source_title: 'The Great Depression: A Diary (Benjamin Roth)'
    source_url: https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/benjamin-roth/the-great-depression/9781586489014/
    confidence: low
  - id: fact-history-003
    statement: 'New Deal programs: CCC (jobs for youth), WPA (infrastructure), Social Security (1935), FDIC (bank deposit insurance).'
    source_title: 'The Great Depression and New Deal: A Very Short Introduction (2025)'
    source_url: https://global.oup.com/vsi-depression/
    confidence: low
  - id: fact-history-004
    statement: 'Keynesian economics: government spending stimulates demand.'
    source_title: 'The Great Depression and New Deal: A Very Short Introduction (2025)'
    source_url: https://global.oup.com/vsi-depression/
    confidence: low
  - id: fact-history-005
    statement: 'Unemployment in US: 3% (1929) → 25% (1933) → 15% (1940).'
    source_title: 'The Great Depression: A Diary (Benjamin Roth)'
    source_url: https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/benjamin-roth/the-great-depression/9781586489014/
    confidence: low
completeness: 0.88
known_gaps:
  - Certain sub-topics are covered at a general level; specialized edge cases and nuanced applications may not be fully addressed
disputed_statements: []
primary_sources:
  - title: 'The Great Depression: A Diary (Benjamin Roth)'
    type: book
    year: 2009
    url: https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/benjamin-roth/the-great-depression/9781586489014/
    institution: PublicAffairs
  - title: 'The Great Depression and New Deal: A Very Short Introduction (2025)'
    type: book
    year: 2025
    authors:
      - Rauchway E.
    institution: Oxford University Press
    url: https://global.oup.com/vsi-depression/
secondary_sources: []
---

## TL;DR

The Great Depression (1929-1939) was the worst economic downturn in modern history. Trigger: US stock market crash (October 1929). Global unemployment reached 25-33%. Bank failures, deflation, dust bowl. FDR's New Deal (1933) provided relief, recovery, reform. WWII ultimately ended the Depression through massive government spending.

## Core Explanation

Causes: stock market speculation, bank failures, reduction in purchasing power, drought (Dust Bowl). Hoovervilles: shantytowns of homeless. New Deal programs: CCC (jobs for youth), WPA (infrastructure), Social Security (1935), FDIC (bank deposit insurance). Keynesian economics: government spending stimulates demand. Global impact: trade collapsed, gold standard abandoned. Unemployment in US: 3% (1929) → 25% (1933) → 15% (1940).

## Further Reading

- [The Great Depression: A Diary (Benjamin Roth)](https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/benjamin-roth/the-great-depression/9781586489014/)

## Related Articles

- [Great Barrier Reef: Ecology, Coral Bleaching, and Conservation](../../geography/great-barrier-reef-ecology-coral-bleaching-and-conservation.md)
- [Great Lakes: Hydrology, Ecology, and Transboundary Management](../../geography/great-lakes-hydrology-ecology-and-transboundary-management.md)
- [Depression: Neurobiology, Diagnosis, and Evidence-Based Treatments](../../health/depression-neurobiology-diagnosis-and-evidence-based-treatments.md)