History of the United States

Banks were taking major financial risks, including investing in stocks and bonds. At that time, there were few limits, and fewer regulations, to require banks to be cautious or to protect their customers' money. When the stock market crashed in 1929, many of the banks that had not set aside enough capital to cover their losses in case of an emergency found themselves out of money and had to close; their customers, who in most cases had no idea the banks were making risky investments, also lost everything.

The Great Plains were the area affected by the loss of agricultural land in the 1930s.

Bootleggers sold illegal alcohol to consumers and helped to bypass the laws.

They decreased.