Yet, despite the mythology surrounding the Great Depression, there were those who were aware that a Depression was possible and there were unmistakable factors which were at the root of the Great Depression. During the post-war period there were some American scholars and politicians concerned with the business cycle. The Harding Administration gave out government contracts for construction in 1921-1922, hoping to boost employment and pump purchasing power into the economy. Legislation was introduced around the same time which called for the president to consider the use of public works projects in the case of future depressions. Similar legislation was re-introduced in 1928 which was even stronger. Both times the legislation was defeated with many Congressman calling it socialistic.

The warnings were there but still the Great Depression occurred, causing an almost immediate shift from prosperity to depression. "All groups in American society felt the tremendous impact of the Depression, and most Americans suffered from it. The crisis resulted from fundamental weaknesses in the economy" (Kirkendall, 1974, p. 5).

One basic explanation for the Great Depression is certainly ironic in that ther

But it was not only the average American citizen who suffered from the overexpansion of credit. The nation as a whole indulged in a form of reckless financing that began with the end of the First World War. There was a structure of debt in the United States--federal, state, and municipal--of some thirty-three billion dollars (and corporate and individual debts of one hundred billion). These public and private debts "demanded expanding markets and world prosperity for successful carrying. A relatively small reduction in buying power, or backsliding of prices, could send tremors along the whole length of this mountain chain" (Wechter, 1948, p. 6).

Kirkendall, Richard S. The United States: 1929-1945. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.

Installment buying became a way of life for the common American at the time as he was victimized by the super salesman.

And, of course, once the downward spiral began, one thing followed hard upon another until the United States was caught up in the greatest economic depression known in man's history. The measures which were taken to stop the economic slide did nothing to halt the economic crisis. In fact, the measures in large part had the opposite effect.

Ellis, Edward Robb. (1970). A Nation In Torment. New York: Coward-McCann.