Could you imagine a time that people were forced to make their homes out of scraps, including old tires or cardboard boxes? On January 11, 2016, Linden High School students in Mrs. Monica Goncalves’s, Mr. Robert Mangel’s, and Mrs. Meghann Mohan’s US History II class were tasked with this situation and had to budget mortgage, car loan, electric bill, phone bill, and their medical bills during the Great Depression.
Many families in the Great Depression were too poor to afford housing and some of them were forced to sell all of their belonging including their family pictures. They then moved to “Hoovervilles”, areas of makeshift homes next to cities. The name “Hooverville” mocked the president, Herbert Hoover and his policies. Students witnessed the struggles first hand and were able to capture a glimpse of one of the worst times in American history.
(above) Students quickly learn how hard it was to live during the depression.
(above) A Hooverville right in Linden High…
(above) Students make do with what they have
