<P> The Great Depression began in August 1929, when the United States economy first went into an economic recession . Although the country spent two months with declining GDP, it was not until the Wall Street Crash in October 1929 that the effects of a declining economy were felt, and a major worldwide economic downturn ensued . The market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth and personal advancement . Although its causes are still uncertain and controversial, the net effect was a sudden and general loss of confidence in the economic future . </P> <P> The usual explanations include numerous factors, especially high consumer debt, ill - regulated markets that permitted overoptimistic loans by banks and investors, and the lack of high - growth new industries, all interacting to create a downward economic spiral of reduced spending, falling confidence and lowered production . </P> <P> Industries that suffered the most included construction, agriculture as dust - bowl conditions persisted in the agricultural heartland, shipping, mining, and logging as well as durable goods like automobiles and appliances that could be postponed . The economy reached bottom in the winter of 1932--33; then came four years of very rapid growth until 1937, when the Recession of 1937 brought back 1934 levels of unemployment . </P> <P> The Depression caused major political changes in America . Three years into the depression, President Herbert Hoover, widely blamed for not doing enough to combat the crisis, lost the election of 1932 to Franklin Delano Roosevelt in a landslide . Roosevelt's economic recovery plan, the New Deal, instituted unprecedented programs for relief, recovery and reform, and brought about a major realignment of American politics . </P>

Who was the president when the great depression ended