What Did Hoover Do During The Great Depression

Hoover was only thwarted from breaking the firm American tradition of laissez-faire during a depression by the fact that the severe but short-lived depression of 1920-21 was over soon after he took office. He also faced some reluctance on the part of Harding and the Cabinet. As it was, however, Hoover organized a federal committee on unemployment, which supplied unemployment relief through branches and subbranches to every state, and in numerous cities and local communities. Furthermore, Hoover organized the various federal, state, and municipal governments to increase public works, and persuaded the biggest business firms, such as Standard Oil of New Jersey and United States Steel, to increase their expenditure on repairs and construction. He also persuaded employers to spread unemployment by cutting hours for all workers instead of discharging the marginal workers – an action he was to repeat in the 1929 Depression.(4)

Hoover called for these interventionist measures with an analogy from the institutions of wartime planning and collaboration, urging that Americans develop “the same spirit of spontaneous cooperation in
In contrast to Harding’s address affirming laissez-faire as the proper method of dealing with depressions, Hoover’s opening address to the Conference called for active intervention.(6) Furthermore, the Conference’s major recommendation – for coordinated federal state expansion of public works to remedy depressions – was prepared by Hoover and his staff in advance of the conference.(7) Of particular importance was the provision that public works and public relief were to be supplied only at the usual wage rate – a method of trying to maintain the high wage rates of the preceding boom during a