. By mid-November, stock prices had plunged 40%. The crash of the StockMarket led to the Great Depression. The depression was the worst in the history of theUnited States and proved to be a terrible price to pay for the false sense of prosperityand national well -being of the roaring Twenties. Many Americans felt that they wereuntouchable in society. The thought of the American Dream cemented in the heads ofthousands of Americans overshadowed the real risk of business in the United States.When the American people saw that the economy was flourishing, they felt that theywere on a pedestal, protected from the river of uncertainty, economic depression andthe failure of the American Dream. Many Americans found a way to improve their lifestyle. Whether it had been throughhard work on the job, or even with a struck of luck on the stock market. There were,however, many people who found other ways to make a living. Some of these wayswere prohibited. With the passing of the 18th Amendment, it became illegal tomanufacture or sell alcoholic beverages. Thousands of Americans began making liquorat home which quickly became known as bathtub rum. Gangsters disregarded the lawand found it quite profitable bootlegging liquor from Canada and selling it to illegal barsknown as speakeasies. Police were often bribed not to intervene in the activities ofsmuggling. Bootlegging, although prosperous to the ringleader, was a dangerous activityin which over 500 gangland murders occurred as underworld mobs fought for control ofthe liquor traffic. (Time Life 166) The United States in the Twenties was still a young country which had not yetestablished itself an identity. Was the image of the United States going to be that ofthe American Dream? The image of a successful entrepreneur whose once insignificantbusiness exploded into a nationwide corporation? The image of the stock holder who hitit big on the market? The image of the local supermarket owner whose business...
