Hoovervilles
One of the many shacks in Hooverville.
Hoovervilles were camps that were set up by homeless people in the 1930's. They consisted of shacks that were usually made from scrap pieces of junk and were inhabited by up to a thousand people in some places. There were hundreds of these "towns" throughout the country which proved how bad the housing crisis was. These people became unemployed which caused them to not be able to afford their houses so they were forced to take to the streets.
Hoovervilles were named after President Herbert Hoover because people held him and the Republican Party responsible for the economic crisis.
In Seattle, there was one of the largest and longest lasting Hooverville. It covered nine acres of public land and housed up to 1,200 people. Seattle police twice burned the entire "town" to the ground, but both times residents rebuilt. After Seattle elected a new mayor, the Hooverville was tolerated which allowed it to grow. It was a very ethnically diverse population of people that lived there. Until World War ll this Hooverville survived with the rules that there had to be building and sanitation regulations, women and children were not allowed to live there, and residents had to be orderly.
It was estimated that four thousand to five thousand people were living in these shacktowns just in Seattle. Millions of others were also living in these conditions in the United States at that time.
Hoovervilles were named after President Herbert Hoover because people held him and the Republican Party responsible for the economic crisis.
In Seattle, there was one of the largest and longest lasting Hooverville. It covered nine acres of public land and housed up to 1,200 people. Seattle police twice burned the entire "town" to the ground, but both times residents rebuilt. After Seattle elected a new mayor, the Hooverville was tolerated which allowed it to grow. It was a very ethnically diverse population of people that lived there. Until World War ll this Hooverville survived with the rules that there had to be building and sanitation regulations, women and children were not allowed to live there, and residents had to be orderly.
It was estimated that four thousand to five thousand people were living in these shacktowns just in Seattle. Millions of others were also living in these conditions in the United States at that time.