THE GREAT DEPRESSION — USING CENSUS INFORMATION TO HELP DURING HARD TIMES

Things We Will Learn

• I will look at map information about jobs in the United States in 1937. I will explain why it was important to collect this information during the Great Depression. (The Great Depression was a very hard time when many people did not have money or jobs.)
• I will share my own idea about the New Deal. (The New Deal was a plan by the government to help people during the Great Depression.) I will use facts to back up my idea.

Introduction

In 1930, the government did a census. A census is when workers count all the people in the country and ask them questions. This was near the start of the Great Depression.

The census asked people if they had a job. If someone did not work the day before, they were asked more questions. Could they work? Were they looking for a job? How long had they been without work? Why didn't they have a job?

But leaders in the government needed even more information, and they needed it more often. This would help them understand how bad the crisis was. It would also help them run the New Deal programs.

So in 1937, the Census Bureau did two special counts about jobs. This was before the next big census, which would happen in 1940.

The first count was sent to every home in the country. People could choose whether or not to answer it.

The second count was called the Enumerative Check Census. It was sent to about 510,000 homes. This was the first time the government tried to guess how many people had no job across the whole country by asking only some people, chosen at random. The Census Bureau picked areas using mail routes. But this left out 18 out of every 100 people, because some people did not live on a mail route. So the count was not perfect.

The first count (sent to everyone) ended up being wrong. Not enough people without jobs were counted. The second count, the Enumerative Check Census, gave a better, more correct answer.

In 1940, the big census tried something new called sampling. Sampling means asking only some people, chosen at random, instead of asking everyone. That year, workers asked about 5 out of every 100 people some extra questions. These questions were different from the regular census questions. The Census Bureau used the answers to guess facts about everyone in the country. This way, they could learn more without asking every single person or spending too much money.

From then on, through the end of the 1900s, some people had to answer longer surveys with more questions. Today, the Census Bureau collects this kind of information every month. It is called the American Community Survey.

Questions to Think About

1. In 1930, many people had just lost money because of the stock market crash. The Great Depression was starting. Why might people not want to tell a census worker whether they had a job?

1. What was good and what was hard about collecting job information in 1937, in between the big censuses of 1930 and 1940?

1. What was good and what was hard about asking only some people (a random sample) extra questions, instead of asking everyone?

1. Look at Item 2 (the map of U.S. regions in 1937) and Item 3 (the chart showing unemployment by region in 1937). Which region or regions had the most men and women without jobs?

1. Which region probably needed the least money for New Deal programs? Use facts from Item 3 to explain your answer.

1. Pretend you are a lawmaker in 1938. President Franklin D. Roosevelt wants more money for the New Deal. Use facts from Item 3 and what you know about this time to explain why you would say yes or no to more money.

1. Which New Deal programs, started between 1930 and 1940, could have used facts about unemployment to help them do their job?

1. Besides questions about jobs, what other questions could have helped lawmakers understand how the Great Depression affected families?

1. What questions do you think are important to ask today, to keep track of big changes happening in the United States?

Item 1: Unemployment Census Photo

This is a photo from November 24, 1937. It shows two Census Bureau leaders, William L. Austin and John D. Biggers. They are watching workers check in survey forms from the 1937 job count.

(See the photo online using the link in the original document.)

Item 2: Map of the United States Showing Regions: 1937

This map shows the different regions of the United States in 1937.

(See the map online using the link in the original document.)

Item 3: Chart Showing Percent of People Without Jobs, by Region: 1937

This chart shows the percent of people ages 15 to 74 who had no job, or only part of a job, in different regions. It shows separate numbers for men and women.

(See the chart online using the link in the original document.)