In this unit, you will read about events that happened in the 20th century. These include a drought, the Great Depression, and World Wars I and II. You will learn about the invention of aircraft, the destruction by the boll weevil, the lend-lease program, and the Savannah and Brunswick shipyards.

 

KEY TERMS

 

Agricultural Adjustment Act: A federal law passed in 1933, ruled unconstitutional, and then modified and passed again in 1938. It set quotas on farm produce in an attempt to keep farmers in business during the Great Depression. (SS8H8e)

 

Bell Aircraft: A corporation that manufactured aircraft, including the B-29, and was active during World War II. (SS8H9b)

 

Boll weevil: A beetle that feeds on flowers and cotton buds. Not native to the United States, it proved disastrous to cotton producers in the American Southeast, including those in Georgia, during the Great Depression. (SS8H8b)

 

Civilian Conservation Corps: A Great Depression-era work relief program that put young American men to work in rural areas. (SS8H8e)

 

Drought: A period of little or no rainfall. A widespread drought in the United States during the 1930s created the Dust Bowl in parts of the Midwest and West. (SS8H8b)

 

The Great Depression: A sustained period of American economic decline. It lasted from 1929 until the mid-1940s. U.S. entry into World War II led to the end of the Great Depression. (SS8H8b) GPB Video

 

Lend-Lease Act: The Lend-Lease Act in 1941 let the United States aid the Allies in World War II. It was signed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and it allowed the United States to provide aid to Great Britain. (SS8H9a)

 

Military bases: Georgia provided more military bases for World War I than any other state. These bases included Fort McPherson, Camp Gordon, Camp Benning, and Camp Stewart. (SS8H8a)

 

New Deal: A series of laws enacted by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt during the Great Depression, aimed at rebuilding the American economy. (SS8H8e)

 

Pearl Harbor: A naval base in Hawaii that was attacked by Japan on December 7, 1941, prompting the United States’ entry into World War II. (SS8H9a)

 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt: The president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. He governed the nation during both the Great Depression and World War II. He first visited Brunswick, Georgia, in 1913 on business for the U.S. Navy. After contracting polio in 1921, he returned to the state, this time to visit Warm Springs, where he hoped the waters would restore him to health. He later purchased a home there, visiting often, and it was to become the site of his death. (SS8H8d)

 

Rural Electrification Administration: A federal agency established by the Rural Electrification Act, which was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1936 to bring electricity to rural areas throughout the United States. (SS8H8e) GPB Video

 

Richard Russell: Former governor of Georgia and U.S. senator. He was known for working to strengthen national defense as well as for opposing civil rights. (SS8H9c)

 

Savannah and Brunswick shipyards: Two deepwater ports in Georgia where ships were built. Both were extremely important to the United States during World War II. (SS8H9b)

 

Social Security Administration: It provides an income to elderly people who can no longer work by giving them benefits based on what they paid into the system while working. (SS8H8e)

 

Eugene Talmadge: A three-term governor of Georgia who served in the 1930s and 1940s. (SS8H8c)

 

Carl Vinson: A Georgia native who served in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was the first to hold congressional office for a period of 50 years. He is known as “The Father of the Two-Ocean Navy.” (SS8H9c) GPB Video

 

World War I: Known at the time as the Great War, this war was largely fought in Europe, Africa, and parts of Asia. Georgia contributed more than 100,000 men and women to the war effort. (SS8H8a)

 

World War II: The largest war in history. Conflict extended into Europe, Africa, Asia, and both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. (SS8H9a) GPB Video